Headline News compares teaching kids to hunt in Michigan to The Hunger Games?

I would have never given this article a second look if it wasn’t for a conversation between one of my best friends and his daughter earlier today. I had never heard of The Hunger Games, but leave it to the weird media to connect a fictional, post-apocalyptic world where teens fight to the death to teaching kids how to responsibly hunt for food.

Anna Lanfreschi’s headline? A real-life ‘Hunger Games’ in Michigan? Certainly, headlines are frequently written by editors, but Lanfreschi’s first paragraph enforces the theme.

It sounds like a scene from “The Hunger Games:” Kids under the age of 10 are learning how to shoot guns and crossbows in Michigan. They’re learning how to hunt — small game, that is, but with smaller weapons and the supervision of an adult.

Although I had no idea what the book was all about until this afternoon, learning how to hunt with their parents, grandparents and mentors at their side is absolutely nothing at all compared to the premise of The Hunger Games. From Wikipedia…

[O]ne boy and one girl between the ages of 12 and 18 from each district are selected by annual lottery to participate in the Hunger Games, a televised event in which the participants (or “tributes”) must fight to the death in a dangerous outdoor arena controlled by the Capitol, until only one remains.

Let me make the point again that I know little to nothing about the book or the upcoming movie, and I’m certain a significant portion of the book is dedicated to issues like self-preservation, hunting for food and other outdoor skills. But why take the unneeded approach to connect hunting, which is becoming more and more a lost art, to a book with a theme like this?

Maybe I’m totally wrong and the book will be responsible for more kids asking about, and getting involved with, hunting and fishing with their parents. Maybe it’s just a good book for teens. Maybe headline news is just trying to get the article included in search results for ‘hunger games.’ (I could not avoid it since it’s the premise of my post.) That said, I’d rather see mom and dad take advantage of Michigan’s Mentored Youth Hunting Program.

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Steve McGough

Steve's a part-time conservative blogger. Steve grew up in Connecticut and has lived in Washington, D.C. and the Bahamas. He resides in Connecticut, where he’s comfortable six months of the year.

5 Comments

  1. Plainvillian on March 3, 2012 at 8:49 pm

    Silly you.? What could a motivated parent possibly know about hunting?? Isn’t it commonly known that the Cherokees and all other Indian tribes only allowed hunting to be taught by masters degree qualified, board certified and unionized teachers?? Shouldn’t Michigan honor that American tradition?



  2. ricbee on March 3, 2012 at 9:51 pm

    ?I’ve never hunted,but know how & would if I had the knowledge to prepare my kill. Friends give me fish they’ve caught & I feel the thrill of the chase.



  3. RoBrDona on March 3, 2012 at 10:18 pm

    I have read this book, as I try to read most of the stuff the kids bring home. I found it a compelling argument FOR self-reliance and personal defense and AGAINST a centrist, big-brother?government that controls its people through fear, food and energy shortages and public spectacles?designed to keep public opinion?AWAY from the few?elitists running this society.?
    Hmmmmmmm………….??



  4. JBS on March 4, 2012 at 8:59 am

    Modern variation on the gladiator theme. This Regime is all about smoke and mirrors.
    Thanks for straightening out the discussion. Hunting is a rapidly fading skill and art. It used to be essential for maintaining the family larder. Glad to know some people still practice their heritage and customs.
    For the record, the hunters I know are not about blood lust nor they are crazy. You would never know that they were hunters unless it came up in conversation or you got to know them.
    If you eat meat, don’t be a hypocrite about hunting.



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