MSU Professors Link Hunting With Sexual Violence (As Heard on Rush)

Michigan Times ^ | 11/7/2005 | Page W. H. Brousseau IV

[Pyro7480]

MSU professors link hunting with sexual violence
By Page W. H. Brousseau IV

Three female Michigan State University professors studied the magazine "Traditional Bowhunter," and concluded that hunting is a form of sexual violence with animals substituted for women. They describe hunting as, "erotic heterosexual predation, sadomasochism, restraint for aggressive sexual energy, and allied with the abuse of women." I think I need to take up bowhunting.

The article entitled, "Animals, Women and Weapons: Blurred Sexual Boundaries in the Discourse of Sport Hunting" was published by the Society & Animals Forum. The genesis of the article was the 2003 video "Hunting for Bambi," which reached national attention that year when many news-outlets reported a group in Nevada was selling "hunts" which men paid thousands of dollars to shoot naked women with paintball guns. The producers of the DVD later admitted the hunters and women involved were actors. Like in high-budget porn, the star is only an "actor" and really cannot fix the cable.

Concluding that men turn bows and firearms into phallic symbols, the researchers point to terms and jargon found in the magazine in order to reaffirm their belief of displaced sexual drive. "Climax," "big'uns," and "homely cow" are but a few of the many terms with which they took issue. Two things, first, using terms out of context allows anyone to make them sexual. Second, we are talking about hunting, not sex.

The study fails to see the subject matter as merely hunting. The outrageous links between sexual violence and hunting would cause sensible readers to scoff, but remember, the authors are members of MSU faculty, which makes this paper all the more scary.

Apparently, the woman-is-an-animal argument is only valid until the kill. "When alive and being chased in a sport of hunting, animals are given human characteristics...but when dead and displayed as a trophy, anthropomorphism is no longer necessary...and the animal is simply dead." Why anthropomorphism would be necessary in the first place is not explored. Furthermore, why is it not necessary in the second place?

Indeed, their argument is that men are violent creeps who beat up on poor, cuddly animals because there are no women running around the woods. "Violence against animals and women is linked by a theory of 'overlapping but absent referents' that institutionalizes patriarchal values...animals often are the absent referents in actions and phrases that actually are about women-and women often are the absent referents for animals." Therefore, when men are hunting they do so because there are no women present, conversely, when men are with women they are doing so because there are no animals present.

Absent from this study is where the millions of female hunters fit For that is the only logical conclusion of the animal-is-a-woman and woman-is-an-animal thesis. Not far removed from their illation would be to say women obtain sexual gratification from hunting but actually wish they were sexually abusing women, or maybe themselves.

What would an academic study be these days without a conclusion that points to racism? The study encapsulated that hunting is "cultural messages that validate and exacerbate white male dominance and power." The argument of racial oppression and hunting goes out the window because one can only shoot one Black Duck a day as apposed to five of another species.

When read in its entirety, the syllogistic argument takes on the seriousness of a Mad TV skit.

Maybe it is "Traditional Bowhunter" that is laying the groundwork for world takeover. Once again, the paper's authors come through and leave the reader not disappointed. They warn that, "[T]he underlying messages of the sexualizing of women, animals, and weapons in Traditional Bowhunter cannot be dismissed simply as a hoax. They are resilient popular culture images that celebrate and glorify weapons, killing, and violence, laying the groundwork for the perpetuation of attitudes of domination, power, and control.

[Adder]

Wonder what these idgits say about women hunting in larger numbers than ever?

They suffer from phallic symbol envy?

[Stashiu]

I would attribute such garbage to:

1. Publish or perish mentality. i.e. write a paper on something, anything, even if you don't know squat about it. They seem to love the 'review of available literature' rather than deal with real people whom they can't relate to.
2. Panty-waisted, liberal pu$$ies who wouldn't know which end of a firearm to point and shoot. As they squeal "OMG, they have guns!"

Yes, the hunters I know are some of the kindest and geniune people on this planet. They worship the ground their wives walk on. They hunt for sport and meat.

The hunting camp is also a male bonding thing. They eat well, drink well, and hunt well, all together. They don't strip naked and beat tom-toms to find their inner male. They don't need to find it, they never lost it to begin with.

These profs have seen too much Hollywood, and not enough real life.

I'm a shooter, not a hunter (its a long story).

[Blood of Tyrants]

Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar and hunting is just a way to put fresh meat on the table.

[Ben Mugged]

In the 1970s I was stationed at Williams AFB in Arizona. I was invited to go bow hunting for elk with a fellow airman from Montana. We hiked back into Chevlon canyon in north central Arizona and stalked a monster bull elk all day. Every time we would get in a position for a shot, the bull would casually walk out of range as though leading us deeper into the canyon. Early evening we caught up with the elk and TJ drew a bead on him. Suddenly TJ took his arrow out of the bow, unscrewed the razor tip, and replaced it with a .38 caliber spend shell placed over the end of the arrow. He notched up the arrow and hit the elk right in the chest. Right over his heart. The elk jumped and laying his antlers over his back, charged off through the brush. I asked TJ why he didn't kill the elk after we had stalked it all day and he responded, "a kill wasn't necessary, the hunt was successful". Most hunters know the truth of this. It is not in the kill but the hunt thet the true nature of the sport is found.

[Pyro7480]

Here's the paper: Animals, Women and Weapons: Blurred Sexual Boundaries in the Discourse of Sport Hunting

[Pyro7480]

Ping to post #45.

[ElkGroveDan]

Now ask them how that applies to Native Americans and their culture.

I believe that's the best response to this PC nonsense. You really need to look them up and send them that email.

[Tenacious 1]

I hope someone is checking to see how much tax money was spent on this. Then I hope someone is talking to an editor that published it. Finally, I hope the Bowhunting mag. publishes the research just so the readers know where there taxes are going.

Just to put this in perspective; Humans are at the very tip top of the food chain. Whether we kill in the woods with a gun/bow/knife/slingshot/etc. or in a slaughter house, we harvest protein for nutritional value by "killing." Now, by nature, the male sect of our species is genetically programed (yes there is some genetic instinct wiring left in our brains) to be the provider and tends to be more aggressive by nature in that pursuit. This is seen in the working world, in the military, in hunting, in sports, etc. (Yes there are women that fit the mold, but I am speaking in general terms). Applying this aggression and instinct to the familiar (by species standards) act of sneaking into the woods to fool the prey that resides there in an effort to kill that which we intend to eat is fun.

Now, how is this like sex again?

[FormerACLUmember]

This "paper" was placed in a PETA affiliated "Journal."

It is a complete fraud!

[M203M4]

OK, enough...

[clamper1797]

IT'S TRUE! I only married my wife because all the good elk sheep were taken! /sarc

[Alexander Rubin]

Isn't it obvious? They're repressed homosexuals.

Duh....

[proudofthesouth]

I can't get the link to work. Does anyone these professor's names?

[<1/1,000,000th%]

Three female Michigan State University professors studied the magazine "Traditional Bowhunter," and concluded that hunting is a form of sexual violence with animals substituted for women.

Because they believe that women are animals???

[faq]

While bowhunting this year, I passed up three female deer that walked right under my stand. A little while later, a male deer walked by and I shot him. That doesn't, uhm..... that doesn't really mean anything does it?

[Fido969]

I'm going to write my dissertation on "Women and Vegetables - Sublimating Castration and other Murderous Impulses"

[RikaStrom]

OMG - if some came to me and told me this was a premise for an article I would have laughed them out of the county.

What a bunch of rot by a bunch of "who'd want'em anyway" feminists.

[Minnesoootan]

They picked "Traditional Bowhunter" ?????? sheeesh! from my bow experience,there tend to be more of the 'liberal' type men involved in the traditional end of bow hunting...there's more artsy fartsy stuff...wish I could post some pictures as a reference.

the guy on this website is obviouly a horny closet womyn beater.... http://groups.msn.com/ferretsarcherywebpage/welcome.msnw

[Pyro7480]

The authors:

Linda Kalof e-mail: LKalofVT@aol.com

Amy Fitzgerald

Lori Baralt

All three are members of the Ecological & Cultural Change Studies Group at Michigan State.

[TheSpottedOwl]

They're nuts. Typical feminist college professors trying desperately to further malign men.