Jimmer Negamanee

I consider myself a staunch if not rabid proponent of free markets. So much so that I think even government programs can benefit from free market principles. (For example, it irked me to no end that when Medicare started its prescription drug benefit the law did not allow Medicare to negotiate the prices it paid for the medications.) But with that said, I must admit there are some things that the government does with some amount of competence. Here’s a quick list: 1. Military: Our men and women in uniform answered their country’s call and throughout our history (including our most recent conflicts) performed with efficiency, conviction and honor. I thank them all for their service. 2. Police and Fire Depts: If I smell smoke or am a victim of crime I call one of these local agencies. They respond quickly but also partner with the feds to match fingerprints, DNA or other evidence to help catch the bad guys. I thank them for their service. 3. Education: I am a product of the public school system that educated me through high school for (nearly) free. College was not free but was subsidized. I thank my teachers for their service. 4. Water/Waste Water: Every morning I turn on my tap to find potable water to drink or make my coffee with. It comes from my local government who prepares and delivers my water to me while complying with federal government standards. When I flush, my sewage goes to a government waste water treatment plant to be cleaned up before it is discharged down the river to Rocky Point or into the ground water supply. I rather prefer this process to having to drink and eat fish out a river full of human waste. I thank them for their service. I do not, however, refer to them as our “socialized” military, police and fire departments, etc. DB, I agree with you on a fundamental level. I don’t think health care is a right and it bothers me when people talk about it as such. We live in an economic world. If something is right, it sounds like it should be free, but if it’s free, then no one will value it. That’s why (except perhaps for children or the completely indigent) there needs to be a cost for services. I pay a co-pay for the most basic services, for example, but it’s enough to make me think about it. I guess my point is this, we already cover “non-producers” 100% (or nearly so) and I don’t think that is going away because a lot of “non-producers” vote, but there must be a way to give BASIC COVERAGE (not liver transplants to alcoholics) to people who work one or more jobs but are a broken arm or a heart attack away from going bankrupt.

Here in the USA, once you’ve reached 65, you’re covered by the government (Medicare). If you’re under 65 but have no job or make so little from your job that you are considered impoverished, you’re covered by the government (Medicaid or AHCCCS). There is also government coverage for veterans and Native Americans. Plus, we have universal coverage for every seriously injured or ill person who goes to the emergency room. Sure, afterwards, patients might get a sternly written letter demanding that they pay but ERs don’t say "Show me the money!" before they start tryin' to save your life. While some of these costs may be written off as losses, I suspect that those of us with health insurance pay the difference through a higher cost for services and/or higher insurance premiums. But for those under 65 who have jobs that do not offer health insurance things can get pretty sticky. Here’s a link to an interesting comparison of health care systems of developed countries with their life expectancies and the % of GDP they spend to get it. According to these stats, the U.S. has the lowest life expectancy (but only by a little) but pays the most (by a lot) to get it. But then again, this is from the NPR website which, as a friend likes to remind me, stands for National People’s Radio. And, as you know, there are only two kinds of lies, dang lies and statistics. http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.p...oryId=110997469

Sweet pics! On the second to the last pic (the one with all the eyes shining at the cam) it looks like a little skunk might have tripped the cam but it's hard to tell. Anyway, thanks for posting. And welcome to CWT.com!

My customer service experience with Outdoorsmans has been overwhelmingly positive. I bought a pair of vortex binos from them and had them for about six months and was in there B.S.ing and mentioned how I wish the binos had a cover for the ocular lenses. The fella I was talking to said they came with the binos. I said mine didn't. He then reached under the counter, opened a Vortex box and handed them to me saying "Here you go." No questions asked. I then bought one of their tripods and they said if it ever needs cleaning, tightening, oiling, whatever, to just bring it in. I asked how long that offer was good for. They said "As long as it says 'Outdoorsmans' on it." Pretty cool.

Cool pics! Hopefully that bear stays out of trouble. Thanks for posting.

Wow! It's gotta give you pause to find something like that.

Wow! There would be lots of applications that. It'd be great for any close quarter situation where you may not have the time (or skill in my case) to carefully acquire the proper sight picture necessary for accurate shot placement. Home, backcountry, where ever. I liked that they explained how the rifling actually helped spread the shot of the .410. That wouldn't have dawned on me.

Great pics! Thanks for posting.

I had a cam up for 3 weeks and got a pic of one doe. I showed this thread to my wife to show her that some people actually do get animal pics from their trail cams and she said "Holy cow! Was he at a zoo?" That pretty much sums it up. The diversity is incredible. Thanks for posting.

I was afraid it was a North Korean cyber-attack. I thought to myself "Hey Kim Jong-il, hack into the New York Stock Exchange or some such nonsense but for the love of all things holy, leave CWT.com alone!"

My, my, how time flies. It's cool looking at your dad and his buck in 1980 and then seeing him again with his monster buck in 2009. http://forums.coueswhitetail.com/forums/in...showtopic=14585 Nearly 30 years. Goes by pretty quick. Many more hunts to the both of you. Thanks for posting.

GameHauler is the CWT.com fashion police? Heaven, help us all!

Cool! Thanks for posting.

As my teenager would say: OMG! Thanks for the pics and please keep us posted.

Great video! Nice to see twins. Thanks for posting.

+ 1!

Great pics! Thanks for posting.

+ 1 I bought a Covert II from Amanda. It's my first one and I've had all kinds of fun playing with it. Have you checked them out? http://www.coueswhitetail.com/bookstore/trail_cameras.htm

That could have ended very badly. I'm glad your dog's okay.

+ 1

I'm from MI too. Here's a pic of our western Michigan back yard in the '70s. Notice the half-buried tractor tire in background. Between that, the rickety 'monkey bars', the home-brew tree swing and the lawn darts, I'm surprised none of us were horribly injured. But then again, that was before children's car seats, bike helmets and safety glass. I think it's what made us strong. Thanks for the memories.

I almost asked you the same thing! I gotta admit, those were some TOAD grass hoppers!

I feel your pain. I inadvertently marked "non-resident" and they "rejected" me for not paying enough (I paid the resident fee because I am a resident). I think that if they take your application fee of $7.50 then they should at least give you the bonus point because that’s what they charge for a bonus point. It hurts to mess up like I did and miss out on the draw but it’s even worse to not get the bonus point. I wouldn't want to take a tag from someone who did everything right but missing out the draw AND bonus point is demoralizing.

Do you mean smallest coues or smallest animal? I've seen some pics of bats and pretty small rodents. Someone might have a pic of an insect big enough to trip a cam but I don't know. Maybe some of those grasshopers from 36B. Those ol' boys are HUGE.

Jason had one for sale. (I've been saving my pennies to buy it but am not there yet.) It might still be available. It's on the second page of the classifieds but here's the link: http://forums.coueswhitetail.com/forums/in...showtopic=12126