Response: Did it take Palin six shots, two rifles and help from her dad to bring down a caribou?
yes.
first rifle was not sighted in well
got a fresh rifle, one shot, right through the ticker
Well, her dad wanted her to use his rifle, but he had taken a nasty fall while carrying it and apparently knocked the scope out of alignment.
They didn't know this of course, so after Sarah shot and missed, dad took the gun and worked another round in the chamber and had her try again. (I'm sure he thought she may have just missed...it's very easy to do)
After firing all five rounds from her dad's gun, and missing every time, she took the other guys gun (which was also a much larger caliber) and one shot from it dropped the caribou. It was a perfect shot.
At camp they checked dad's gun and the sight had been knocked out of whack. No one could hit anything with it and it needed to be sighted in again.
Now, this is a T.V. production, and they could have very easily edited out all the missed shots to make her "look good." That's obviously not what this is about.
Sometimes when hunting, things go wrong. Sights get knocked out of alignment, etc. She is giving viewers a real look at life in Alaska. I think it is award worthy programing.
Your Response: Did it take Palin six shots, two rifles and help from her dad to bring down a caribou?”
Explanation, Devil in the details.
1. “Gunned down” She shot her in the back at high noon?
2. “female caribou”. Anything wrong with harvesting a female caribou? I'm sure they had all the necessary permits and were doing nothing illegal or unethical.
3. “with six shots” Out of context. Would have been easy to edit out the missed shots, she didn't. The first gun she used was not properly sighted in, as was proved later in the show when her father couldn't hit a much closer target with it.
4. “two rifles”. Yes, after figuring out, ( missing four times tells someone who knows how to shoot, that it isn't them) She used the other guy's gun (which had already killed a caribou), and with ONE shot, took the caribou.
5. “help from her dad” What is wrong with this? All he did was coach her and reload the rifle one round at a time. Maybe so she could keep her eye on the target and not lose sight of it?
6. “recounts Maureen Dowd” This is the biggest clue that you should pay no attention to her expert opinions on hunting. The only hunting I'll bet she has done is for a cogent thought.
7. “the New York Times.” Again, consider the source. Would a story in the NYT about Sarah Palin be accurate? I rest my case.
Technically, yes. But not a big deal Why Have Some Hunters Declared Open Season on Sarah Palin?