# BHA Offer



## maverick9465 (Nov 21, 2016)

Just heard this on the Meateater Podcast. Go to www.backcountryhunters.org/meateater and you can get a membership and Public Land Owner Shirt for $25. The shirt alone is $25. Great organization doing some amazing work to protect our public lands. Getting a free shirt out of it is just a bonus.


----------



## Lone_Hunter (Oct 25, 2017)

I've always wondered, how effective are they, and how much of a presence do they have in Utah? I've no problem joining an organization that lobbies for my interests (NRA), but i like to know if the money i'm tossing out the window is doing any good or not.


----------



## maverick9465 (Nov 21, 2016)

Lone_Hunter said:


> I've always wondered, how effective are they, and how much of a presence do they have in Utah? I've no problem joining an organization that lobbies for my interests (NRA), but i like to know if the money i'm tossing out the window is doing any good or not.


Very effective, in my opinion. They were the driving force behind mobilizing hunters and anglers to speak out against Chaffetz when he proposed selling public lands. He quickly backed off. Presence in Utah is growing. Good group of people. A few from BHA national and some from Utah, including the Mtn Ops co-founder recently went to D.C. for meetings with Mike Lee and others.

I think they're making public lands become more of a lightning rod issue for politicians much like the NRA has done for gun rights.


----------



## PHall (Oct 12, 2013)

Hey All!
I'm on the Utah Board for BHA here. We're approaching 700 members strong here in the state. Last year, we did a few service projects including planting forrage and habitat on Mule Deer Winter Range, cleaned up a public shooting range with collaboration from ChangeYourRange, and participated in a Public Lands Day river cleanup up in Logan. We're growing, and working on having a better presence up on the Capitol this legislative session, working to make sure that any bills will benefit sportsman and keep public lands in public hands! One of our board members recently was appointed to the Central Wasatch Committe Stakeholder board. On top of that, we have a chapter campout, monthly chapter meetings or pint nights (alternating). 

BHA is one of the fastest growing conservation organizations in the country. Between April 2017 and April 2018 we doubled in size from 10k to 20k, and we're on track to hit 30k by Jan 1! We're different than most because 68% of our membership is under 40, and we are not species specific. We advocate for Access (that our access to public lands will able to be used by the public) Opportunity (the quarry we are after is there, in good health), and Fair Chase. We are non-partisan in that we will oppose or support any legislation that supports public lands, from either side of the isle. 

Send me a message if you are interested in learning more, or join us Saturday, 12/8 for our annual Christmas Party, at the Sandwedge Cafe at Mountain Dell Golf Course. 6-9pm, wild game potluck (bring a dish to share) beverages provided by the chapter for the whole family. 

Besides the above offer which is through national, we are offering a New Members drive, $40.00 membership, which includes a BHA branded 20oz Yeti Tumbler, and a 1-100 opportunity drawing for a Yeti Tundra 75 which will be held at 8:30pm Saturday at the Christmas Party. The only way to get this is to attend and purchase the tickets directly.


----------



## Lone_Hunter (Oct 25, 2017)

Talked me into it.


----------



## muleydeermaniac (Jan 17, 2008)

I'll bite. looked into what is being done and joined.


----------



## PHall (Oct 12, 2013)

Thanks guys! We have exceeded 750 members in the state and we're on track for an awesome 2019. We had about 10 hours of planning meetings this weekend, and have some awesome events coming up.


----------



## CAExpat (Oct 27, 2013)

Just renewed.


----------



## Lone_Hunter (Oct 25, 2017)

This morning I stumbled onto this:





I've always been split on who owns the public land; federal vs state, because I believe in small government. However, with the rapid rate of expansion and growth of urban sprawl here in Utah, I trust Herbert and our local government to be good stewards of our backcountry, about as far as I can heave a pine tree. If given the chance, they'd have it parceled off and sold within 10 years or less, and we'd all be crammed into whatever was left, if anything.

I used to be a single issue voter, now I think ive just become a two issue voter. Don't take my guns, and don't take the backcountry. I wouldn't want to live in a place where I didn't have both.

Glad I clicked on this thread, it got me looking. I had no idea


----------



## Steve G (Nov 29, 2016)

I've been a member for a couple years now. I think they are effective and I know they are growing at a rapid pace. And their appeal isn't just hunters and fisherman but anybody who enjoys access to the out doors.

Glad to see additional guys joining/becoming aware.


----------



## maverick9465 (Nov 21, 2016)

Lone_Hunter said:


> This morning I stumbled onto this:
> 
> 
> 
> ...


It's embarrassing isn't it? I hate seeing my state being the laughingstock of the hunting/fishing community.

What I've come to learn as a new hunter is that the more time I spend on public land the more I appreciate it. So I think those that continue to voice support for land transfer are those who don't spend a ton of time outdoors on their public land. If we could get more people out I think public opinion would turn against Rob Bishop.


----------



## Lone_Hunter (Oct 25, 2017)

After digging around the internet this morning, I'm filled with doubt, and am wondering if I did the right thing, or just became a useful idiot.

Before I say anything else, I have to say I hate how politics has worked it's way into everything in life these days. By now I have certainly formed my own opinions, and they are strong ones. That said, everything has become politicized these days, and even though were talking about an advocacy group (which is inherently political), ill try and keep this as apolitical as i can.

Anyway, this morning I remembered why I didn't join BHA right away in the past. I wasn't sure if they were the real McCoy or not, and if they were really aligned to my interests and beliefs, or not. So i did some searching, and found results that labeled BHA as an extremist environmental group. Of course then I stated looking at who was making the accusation, which was American Lands council. Looking at these guys, and it became obvious it was a front organization for one of our local legislators who's keenly interested in state land transfer. So this ones easy to debunk. I love some of the wording. A lot of times groups will do a slight of hand with their wording. For example, back during midterms a TV ad by "Utahns for *Responsive *government", which at first glance looks a lot like "*Responsible*". When you look at the context of the words, you can tell which one is for big government and which one isn't, but I degress.

Looking around some more, I found some mighty tall accusations by some website called Green decoy's, or something to that effect. Cruise around the internet, and you'll find what these guys were saying have been repeated by many people accross multiple forums and articles. Some lines, almost verbatim. So that got me looking at green decoys. Turns out they are a front for some large corporate interest in DC, and greendecoys is one of several websites that only serve to attack or discredit opposition, and they can all be traced back to this one guy whos name I didn't write down.

Of course then, that got me looking at the credibility of the website that was debunking them, and it had a progressive air about it, so they are probably not unbiased as well. So yeah, just how far does one have to go down the rabbit hole to get to the truth?

Other searches found me into native Montanan weblogs, talking about BHA's CEO, his political leanings, past affiliations, etc. The only hard facts I can find for myself is that the CEO is a Democrat, BHA is headquartered in Missioula, which is a blue county. So partisan politics are really hard to ignore. That said, if BHA is truly non partisan, I can go along with that, and I'd gladly put that BHA sticker right alongside my NRA sticker and donate on occasion - but if it's not, if some of the accusations are true, I feel pretty stupid.

edit:

Despite all that, I suppose there is the argument of "Who else is advocating to keep public lands open?". Or rather, how many choices does one really have to be effective with their donations? I don't agree with everything the NRA does, but I still keep my membership because their the heavyweight in the fight.


----------



## Vanilla (Dec 11, 2009)

BHA is an advocacy group for public lands. As has been explained to me by some of their most ardent supporters: they are not a hunting group, they are a land group. 

I do think a lot of BHA, particularly with their higher ups lean left, but that isn’t the end of the world. I don’t think you need to be threatened by the fact of the democrat part of things. I don’t buy the conspiracies of the extreme environmental group, green decoy stuff. This group is passionate about public lands. Some of their associations and who they receive money from are concerning to me personally. But they align with those groups and individuals on the main issue of their mission: keeping public lands public so, they associate with those people that are certainly not friends to hunters in particular. 

BHA is passionate about what they do, you just have to understand their mission. As I stated earlier, some of their most rabid supporters have told me if you’re looking for a hunting advocacy group only, this probably isn’t your group. If you’re looking for a group fighting for public lands, which obviously impacts hunting, then this group may be your cup of tea. 

Just one man’s opinion.


----------



## Lone_Hunter (Oct 25, 2017)

Vanilla said:


> BHA is an advocacy group for public lands. As has been explained to me by some of their most ardent supporters: *they are not a hunting group, they are a land group. *


That makes me wonder about their choice in name. Their obviously trying to sound attractive to a particular demographic, but it might be considered a little misleading.



> I do think a lot of BHA, particularly with their higher ups lean left, but that isn't the end of the world. I don't think you need to be threatened by the fact of the democrat part of things.


I got that sense about it while digging around. What choice of words people use, are really telling at times. Now, how much of that should be considered I guess depends on how they conduct themselves, and if their disciplined enough to stay focused and avoid "mission creep".



> I don't buy the conspiracies of the extreme environmental group, green decoy stuff. This group is passionate about public lands.


I don't think I do either. When you can easily find the information on a website, what group it belongs to, what individual within that group is ultimately responsible for it, and what their interests are - its a conspiracy easily debunked.



> *Some of their associations and who they receive money from are concerning to me personally*. But they align with those groups and individuals on the main issue of their mission: keeping public lands public so, they associate with those people that are certainly not friends to hunters in particular.


 Yeah I came across some of where they get their money from as well. I just didn't mention it because I don't recall where I read it, and I wasn't sure if it was accurate. Synopsis being some fairly hard left leaning orgs, some of which even had/have ties to Soros money; and as you say, certainly no friend of hunters. And Soros? the instant that name comes up, your dealing with something really bad, or some really tall tales. Mind you I can recall that being mentioned only in one article, and I'm not about to go doing all the digging required to validate that articles claims.



> BHA is passionate about what they do, you just have to understand their mission. As I stated earlier, some of their most rabid supporters have told me if you're looking for a hunting advocacy group only, this probably isn't your group. If you're looking for a group fighting for public lands, which obviously impacts hunting, then this group may be your cup of tea.
> 
> Just one man's opinion.


Yeah I'll have to give this more thought, as to if I'll remain a member or not. It's starting to feel like an " enemy of my enemy is my friend" situation, and speaking very generally, that's an alliance that only goes so far.


----------



## Vanilla (Dec 11, 2009)

Lone_Hunter said:


> Yeah I'll have to give this more thought, as to if I'll remain a member or not. It's starting to feel like an " enemy of my enemy is my friend" situation, and speaking very generally, that's an alliance that only goes so far.


Agreed. I'm willing to work with anyone on common goals, but when I know that they are completely against things that are important to me in other areas, I tend to keep those limited alliances at arm's length.

I do think BHA is a good organization as a public land advocate. I won't agree with everyone in the organization on all issues, but I do want to see public lands stay open to the public!


----------



## Lone_Hunter (Oct 25, 2017)

Vanilla said:


> Agreed. I'm willing to work with anyone on common goals, but when I know that they are completely against things that are important to me in other areas, I tend to keep those limited alliances at arm's length.
> 
> I do think BHA is a good organization as a public land advocate. I won't agree with everyone in the organization on all issues, but I do want to see public lands stay open to the public!


I find myself in agreement with you. I found this video a little while ago.




 If this Trey Curtis is on the level, then I'm not sure if i care too much where BHA get's its money, as public lands are an issue for me, or maybe i should say, private lands in the middle of public lands, gets my hackles up instead. Lord how I hate that.

I'm gonna go finish my beer now. Drinking and posting rarely mix. Drinking and shopping don't mix either (along with driving, hunting, or anything for that matter). I bought an AR15 and had it shipped to gunnies after having a few too many. Heh, boy did i catch some flak from the wife for that one.


----------



## maverick9465 (Nov 21, 2016)

You ought to go check out some of Randy Newberg's stuff on public lands (like the video posted previously). He's an NRA Life Member and very conservative, yet he was also labeled a green decoy. It's a blessing to live in a country where we can belong to groups that have share some values even though the members may have differing beliefs on other issues. Aside from my church, I don't think any organization I'm part of will line up 100 percent with my beliefs.


----------



## CAExpat (Oct 27, 2013)

> I don't think any organization I'm part of will line up 100 percent with my beliefs.


Such is life. I think too often we get consumed with wanting ALL things, rather than understanding that something is very good and will get us closer to our goal than nothing at all. That's how I view BHA. The whole social media driven conspiracy crap is tiresome. Organizations like BHA and TRCP are for securing and protecting public land use. They're not for hunters ONLY. It's money well spent in my opinion, $50 a year for both is chump change when going toward advocating for public land use.


----------



## Lone_Hunter (Oct 25, 2017)

In the end it all boils down to politics. It's infected *everything *these days. You can't get away from it, you can't really ignore it, you can't take much at face value anymore, and it's tiresome.


----------



## CAExpat (Oct 27, 2013)

> It's infected everything these days.


Agreed. However, it's probably always been there only now we have it thrust into everything. We're all in our camps throwing rocks rather than sharing a campfire.


----------



## maverick9465 (Nov 21, 2016)

CAExpat said:


> We're all in our camps throwing rocks rather than sharing a campfire.


Well said!


----------

