CO: Yuppie NIMBY yada-yada

[NOS]

I think Colorado is over the tipping point to becoming an open-air loony asylum.

- Jim

They're called "Californians". And they are sadly spreading out into and ruining the other mountain states having already taken most of Oregon and Washington (at least the populated areas).

I have a cabin in Gunnison County CO. that is southwest of the county in question. I used to hunt there on occasion, and it's not uncommon for the tree hugging (mostly California transplant) hippies to try to stop a hunt in progress. I've been a good way up in the high country and had many people run through the woods while singing, yelling, or playing music (one guy had a boom box! like one of the real big ones from the 80's with the B&W TV in it ). I even had a woman jog in front of me while I was calling in a big bull from the valley bellow her. Once she noticed me she slowed down to a walk and proceed to take her baby out of her baby-pack and start singing nursery rhymes loudly! After there was no chance for me to see any elk, she smiled at me and briskly walked down the trail. Then she did the same thing to my hunting buddy around the ridge. These folks camp in known hunting areas and try to scare off as many animals as they can. I quit hunting there altogether after that. I lost over $600 dollars on that trip on the out of state license alone. I refuse to keep spending money if I can't get a chance to hunt.
Funny thing is that the hippies have stopped almost all bear hunting for the past 10-15 years. Now they are scared to leave their homes because there are too many bears and not enough food for them, so the bears are getting aggressive! Let Mother Nature teach them the error of their ways.

Now back to the subject at hand...
I understand that if this occurred in a residential area (even if it wasn't in the city limits) it may not have been the best idea to shoot an elk between 7 and 8 in the morning without letting the neighbors know of his intentions. If it were me I would at least have talked with my closest neighbors and let them know what I was going to do, so the police wouldn't be called to investigate an early morning gunshot in the neighborhood. I agree that it is his right to hunt on his property if he has the proper license. However, in a residential neighborhood (depending on how close the nearest neighboring house was), I would think that this could be classified as disturbing the peace. I can see both sides to some extent. I however, fail to see the "trauma" that these people went through in seeing an elk taken both cleanly and legally. That part seems a little "out there" to me.
I'm glad that the authorities didn't see anything wrong with him exercising his right to hunt on his property.
I'm just glad I live in Texas so I can hunt and not deal with the things I have to deal with in Colorado.

[seamusTX]

I understand that if this occurred in a residential area (even if it wasn't in the city limits) it may not have been the best idea to shoot an elk between 7 and 8 in the morning without letting the neighbors know of his intentions.

I think I understand what you are getting at, but where does it stop and end?

I would really like for my neighbors to have to obtain my approval to use leaf blowers, because THEY WOULD NEVER GET IT. They are out there at 7 a.m. on Sunday with the stupid things, blowing trash onto someone else's property or into the middle of the street.

You get the idea.

- Jim

[bnc]

I have a cabin in Gunnison County CO. that is southwest of the county in question. I used to hunt there on occasion, and it's not uncommon for the tree hugging (mostly California transplant) hippies to try to stop a hunt in progress. I've been a good way up in the high country and had many people run through the woods while singing, yelling, or playing music (one guy had a boom box! like one of the real big ones from the 80's with the B&W TV in it ). I even had a woman jog in front of me while I was calling in a big bull from the valley bellow her. Once she noticed me she slowed down to a walk and proceed to take her baby out of her baby-pack and start singing nursery rhymes loudly! After there was no chance for me to see any elk, she smiled at me and briskly walked down the trail. Then she did the same thing to my hunting buddy around the ridge. These folks camp in known hunting areas and try to scare off as many animals as they can. I quit hunting there altogether after that. I lost over $600 dollars on that trip on the out of state license alone. I refuse to keep spending money if I can't get a chance to hunt.

Seriously?!?!? So what happens when one of them gets shot by skipping in front of someone lining up some game? I'm not sure what the right words are right now, but I wonder if there is some defense of the shooter for situations when the shootee purposefully places themselves in the firing line. Imagine you are at a range (not just land where it is legal to shoot) and some nutjob goes sprinting across during live fire. If he got hit would the shooters be prosecuted? If so, could the shooter turn around and sue the nutjob for placing the shooter in a position where he is likely to kill a person when that wasn't the shooter's intention?

I'm going to start a new thread on this after I think about it for a bit.

[seamusTX]

Many states have laws against intentionally interfering with hunting or molesting game. However, as with every other law, enforcement is the "rub," as Shakespeare wrote.

- Jim

[ELB]

I have little sympathy for the "residential" aspects, I guess. People move out in the country, then try to turn it into the city.

[bdickens]

I would really like for my neighbors to have to obtain my approval to use leaf blowers, because THEY WOULD NEVER GET IT. They are out there at 7 a.m. on Sunday with the stupid things, blowing trash onto someone else's property or into the middle of the street.

You get the idea.

- Jim

Not only are those leaf blowers the spawn of Satan and should be banned, you can also get the leaves and grass clippings up faster the old-fashioned way with a rake and a broom.

[ELB]

Bunny trail: I looked into the Denver thing a little more. With a recognized license, you can carry a concealed handgun anywhere except for essentially four types of locations:
- Private property posted as such
- Federal government buildings (which of course is a federal thing, not a state or city ordinance)
- Public schools K-12 (may include parking lots, but I didn't get into that far)
- Public buildings with metal detectors and security personnel posted at each entrance that prohibit ALL weapons of any kind

Public buildings that do not have metal detectors and security people are legal to carry in, regardless of any (unauthorized) signage that may be present.

Denver has tried to suppress legal carry, licenesed and unlicensed, through various means, and has been partly successful because under CO law, it is a "home rule" city. The state legislature does not have absolute power to pre-empt home rule cities, and there have been some legal disputes between the city and the state, with the results being essentially the whims of a judge name Meyer, as far as I can tell. He judged certain things to be state issues that the legislature can control, some things to be local issues that the city can control, and some things to straddle that boundary that have to be decided on a case-by-case basis. Messy. He (I think he) determined that concealed carry is a state issue, and home rule cities cannot ban it. One of the oddities that emerged is that the city can ban "Assault Weapons;" however by Denver ordinance, an assault rifle has a capacity of more than 20 rounds. So your AR-15 with a 20 round mag is legal, but if you stick in a 30 rounder, it is not. I think shotguns with more than 6 rounds are also AWs. Open carry is a whole 'nother can of worms.

Also, at one point it appears the concealed carry license was a "weapons" license, but now is "only" a "handgun" license. I didn't look into Denver's knife laws, but i suggest you keep your pocket knife concealed, not clipped where it can be seen.

None of this prevents the cops from being jerks, but me, I have no funny accent, since I was born in the Midwest -- it is all these Texans and southerners and Brits running around that talk funny. So I shall continue to discreetly carry in Denver and pretty much anywhere else.

[chartreuse]

None of this prevents the cops from being jerks, but me, I have no funny accent, since I was born in the Midwest -- it is all these Texans and southerners and Brits running around that talk funny. So I shall continue to discreetly carry in Denver and pretty much anywhere else.

Being lumped in with Texans and Southerners, on account of my accent, has absolutely made my day!

[VoiceofReason]

One of the comments said “Ohh, the challenge of stalking a neighborhood pet.”

"Joe Watt, a former Denver Post employee who lives in the area, said elk often graze nearby in herds of up to 100. They have become accustomed to people being around them."

And these people do not see anything dangerous about their children playing outside with elk wandering through the neighbourhood? If someone gets hurt or killed by “a neighborhood pet” in rut, those same people will be screaming for law enforcement to "kill them all".

[NOS]

I understand that if this occurred in a residential area (even if it wasn't in the city limits) it may not have been the best idea to shoot an elk between 7 and 8 in the morning without letting the neighbors know of his intentions.

I think I understand what you are getting at, but where does it stop and end?

I would really like for my neighbors to have to obtain my approval to use leaf blowers, because THEY WOULD NEVER GET IT. They are out there at 7 a.m. on Sunday with the stupid things, blowing trash onto someone else's property or into the middle of the street.

You get the idea.

- Jim

I feel your pain with the Leaf Blowing Brigade, or The LBB as I call them! Not only do they fire up the blower at the crack of dawn, but apparently there is some kind of secret HOA code that states "Whenever one man blows leaves, at least 2 others must join in!"

Many states have laws against intentionally interfering with hunting or molesting game. However, as with every other law, enforcement is the "rub," as Shakespeare wrote.

- Jim

During the hunting seasons the Forest Service, and DOW have so much going on, there is no way that they could patrol the back country enough to enforce these laws. Even if they found the people that do these things, they would have to catch them in the act. It would be a fine and a slap on the wrist for them, and would do no good in the end. It's simply a waste of resources for the state and federal authorities in their opinion...

[Purplehood]

In Jefferson County, Colorado (Denver exurb), a resident legally shot and field-dressed an elk on his own property.

Neighbors are claiming PTSD, hairballs, and the heartbreak of psoriasis caused by witnessing this violent event.

http://www.denverpost.com/headlines/ci_15995768" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

I think Colorado is over the tipping point to becoming an open-air loony asylum.

- Jim

I grew up in Colorado. Nothing has changed. Everyone knew that Boulder is the equivalent of Colorado. Everyone knew that if you lived in the city limits of Denver, you were likely a Liberal and read the Rocky Mountain News. Everyone knew that if you lived outside the city limits, you probably were not.
I suspect that more liberals are getting loose from their pens now...

EDIT: should read, "is the equivalent of California."

[Tass]

I have little sympathy for the "residential" aspects, I guess. People move out in the country, then try to turn it into the city.

I went to a friends farm in Hempstead yesterday. When the dove hunters started up, the 'city' people all jumped and startled each time-the rest of us, not so much (although after a while, we were pretty sure the dove were long gone and ammo just needed to be used).

Tass

[74novaman]

In Jefferson County, Colorado (Denver exurb), a resident legally shot and field-dressed an elk on his own property.

Neighbors are claiming PTSD, hairballs, and the heartbreak of psoriasis caused by witnessing this violent event.

http://www.denverpost.com/headlines/ci_15995768" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

I think Colorado is over the tipping point to becoming an open-air loony asylum.

- Jim

I grew up in Colorado. Nothing has changed. Everyone knew that Boulder is the equivalent of Colorado. Everyone knew that if you lived in the city limits of Denver, you were likely a Liberal and read the Rocky Mountain News. Everyone knew that if you lived outside the city limits, you probably were not.
I suspect that more liberals are getting loose from their pens now...

Fort Collins is very similar to Boulder these days.