04/12/07 Pencil Hunting

Pop, pop fizz fizz&..no it is not an alkacelser commercial, it's Idaho's fastest growing sport, shooting pencils! For those of you not in the know, a pencil is a type of ground squirrel that voraciously reproduces itself and has become quite the target for weekend sharp shooters. Now before I get a barrage of hate mail from animal rights groups let me say that in most cases these ground squirrels are an over numbered nuisance and I believe that shooting is more humane than death by poisoning, then there is the fact that my animal compassion quotient lends more towards protecting horses and wildlife who can be crippled from ground squirrel burrows. With Boise's population booming, you can even buy "pencil" targets at the fancy New Cabellas. More people though mean more problems, like any endeavor a few "bad apples" are spoiling pencil hunting. Trigger happy hunters are taking liberty with gun laws by tracking pencils into conservation areas and even firing at National Guards tanks. These abuses simply mean more regulations and restrictions, and who knows before long probably even a hunting season for pencils