The Dark Side of Archery

Some people (particularly some recurve archers) think the dark side of archery is the compound. But not so. The dark side is the evil sport of bowhunting.

I recently (Friday 24/4/09) bought a new bow. Woo Hoo! BTW.
It's a PSE Moneymaker, and it's a purpose built target bow. You can tell this by the deflex riser which means it's designed for precision rather than than power, the relatively long axle to axle measurement: precision rather than portability, and the color (not camo).

But PSE (and I think also most archery equipment suppliers) make most of their money from people who buy the short, reflex, high powered camo bows that they use to kill things with.

So it came with this DVD:

It's basically a collection of kill videos, showing the unsuspecting deer, coyote or bear being stalked by the well hidden fully camouflaged hunter. Then the shot, penetration, distressed animal running away, and pan back to the extremely adrenalin rushed hunter. Then of course the obligatory slow-mo replay, and fast forward to the proud hunter displaying the dead animal that he was responsible for, and describing the kill with all the articulation and coherence of a football player after the match. Like all pornography, it's repellent yet compelling at the same time. A bit like watching a train wreck.

I suppose the difference between a target archer and a bowhunter is their motivation. What to do on the weekend, shoot arrows or kill things?