MIKE BRAUN Hunters, take heed -- forces are marshaling against you

This past week was a good one, and a not so good one, for hunters around the United States.
The good news came in the form of reports of a good bear season in Pennsylvania and an outstanding young hunters deer gun season in Ohio.
The bad news was that two groups -- the Humane Society of the United States and the Fund for Animals -- have combined to form one of the largest such bodies in the world.
But first, the good news.
The Pennsylvania Game Commission reported that agency employees processed 2,262 black bears -- 689 on the second day -- at check stations on Monday and Tuesday. Hunters in the Keystone State are required to have their harvested bears checked within 24 hours after tagging it.
The statewide three-day bear season ended at sundown Wednesday but, in a large portion of eastern Pennsylvania, hunters will have an additional week -- Monday through Saturday -- of bear hunting that will run concurrently with the first week of the rifle deer season so a final tally will be coming later.
Meanwhile, young hunters in Ohio had a fantastic time of it on Nov. 20 and 21 for the youth deer gun season.
How many harvested
Ohio Department of Natural Resources Division of Wildlife officials said that 6,673 deer were harvested during the two-day season. This figure reflected a 28-percent jump over the 2003 harvest of 5,208 whitetails during youth deer gun season.
More hunting opportunities will be available on Monday as the regular deer gun season is scheduled to open in both Ohio and Pennsylvania (See story below).
Now the not-so-good news.
At the start of the week, the Humane Society of the United States and the Fund for Animals announced that as of January they will combine their organizations.
"Our groups have decided to join forces not out of necessity, but because we believe we can do more to help animals together than we can do operating separately," said David O. Wiebers, M.D., chair of the HSUS' board of directors. "By combining resources, the new entity will bring unprecedented energy to the battles we take on. This union ushers in a whole new era of strengthened activism for animals."
"This is a historic move that is going to unite the movement," said Wayne Pacelle, the 39-year-old president of the Humane Society, who has spearheaded efforts to unite the competing agendas of organizations fighting for animal rights.
The organization will focus on inhumane treatment of animals in factory farms, animal cruelty and efforts to enforce crackdowns on illegal cockfighting. It also will try to revitalize the campaign against fur clothing, ban inhumane sports hunting with bows and arrows and launch campaigns against keeping exotics as pets.
Raised alarms
The merger raised alarms all over the hunting world.
Rob Sexton, vice president for governmental affairs at the U.S. Sportsmen's Alliance, an organization created to combat the anti-hunting movement, said the merger indicates the Humane Society will become a more-outspoken opponent of hunting.
"The Fund for Animals has always been 100 percent anti-hunting, but the HSUS has been more subtle about it," he said. "This merger signals that HSUS is taking off the mask and devoting a greater amount of its capabilities at hunters. If we do a good job, we are going to unify sportsmen over this."
Scripps Howard News Service reporter Lance Gay confirmed the merger announcement to USSA late last week. Gay stated that sources within the groups confirmed that the new organization would seek to ban bowhunting as a first priority.
The USSA will convene an emergency meeting of bowhunting organizations, businesses and publications to prepare to counter the attack. The Alliance created the Bowhunter Defense Coalition to defeat a series of attacks on bowhunters during the late 1980s.
"The merger announcement serves as a wake-up call to bowhunting groups to reunite to defeat what promises to be a powerful attack on our heritage from this monstrous anti-hunting group," said Rick Story, USSA's senior vice president. "To win, we will need to energize the vast grass-roots network of sportsmen across this country."
Formidable organization
Story added that, over the years, the Fund for Animals and HSUS have been the two most formidable organizations working to ban hunting. While the Fund for Animals has been openly hostile to hunters, HSUS has attempted to mask its intentions by raising funds using puppy calendars for promotions. Earlier this year, HSUS appointed former Fund for Animals official Wayne Pacelle to the position of CEO. Combined with the merger announcement, Pacelle's appointment leaves little doubt about the agenda of the newly merged organization. According to public filings, the new organization will have combined assets of as much as $97 million to implement its anti-hunting agenda.
The Sportsmen's Alliance protects the rights of hunters, anglers and trappers in the courts, legislatures, at the ballot, in Congress and through public education programs. For more information about the U.S. Sportsmen's Alliance and its work, call (614) 888-4868 or visit its Web site, www.ussportsmen.org.
braun@vindy.com