Montana Moments – Guns and Rodeos

In blue-state America, 8 year olds ride bicycles and toy guns are banned.
In Montana, at the same age, kids ride bulls in rodeos and own real guns.
Montana Moments – Guns and Rodeos
By: George Noga – August 20, 2017
     I once observed a boy riding a tricycle in his front yard with both parents hovering nearby. Even though his head was near the ground and it is hard to fall off a trike, he wore a huge helmet. I instantly knew I was not in Montana where a young boy wearing a helmet means he may be riding a bull; yes, a real wild bull – and that’s no bull.
      Every Thursday during summer there is a rodeo in a small town (population 5,000) near Whitefish. Admission is $10 and often 2,000 people (40% of the town) attend. Rodeo participants are mostly locals. The opening ceremony promptly at 7:00 PM is moving. Riders full gallop into the arena with American, Canadian and Montana flags. They make a few loops and then come to rest for the playing of our national anthem. Instantly, the arena becomes eerily quiet as everyone stands, removes hats, holds them over their hearts and sings along. The simple ceremony imparts a warm feeling.
     There are many events during the 2-hour rodeo, one is youth bull riding. Kids can compete beginning on their eighth birthday. We once were seated next to a woman who averred she was a bit nervous because her son just turned 8 and was riding a bull for the first time. There are precautions: the bulls are young; their horns are trimmed back; and the boys wear helmets. Nevertheless, the 500 pound bulls are undomesticated.
      Many preteens and teens attend rodeo. It is not uncommon to see these kids with six-inch hunting knives strapped to their waists and freely mingling with the crowd. If kids turned up at a blue-state junior high football game wearing similar knives, panic would set in; SWAT teams would fast rope in; and the stadium would be evacuated. It would lead the local news and there would be a movement to ban knives in public.
      In blue-state America toy guns are banned. In Montana, toy guns are unnecessary because kids get real guns and not BB or pellet guns. Often by age eight they are on their second rifle. An 11-year-old can get a Montana hunting license and the first one is free. Montana has hunting seasons set aside strictly for youths ages 11-15. Youth deer hunting season always is the Thursday and Friday in October immediately prior to regular deer hunting season. So many kids go hunting that Montana has been forced to close all schools statewide during the two days of youth deer hunting season.
     Infantilization of children is child abuse. It hobbles their emotional development; they experience academic problems; and they have poor social skills. They are averse to responsibility and often fail as adults. The goal of progressives is to infantilize not just children but all Americans. They want a nanny state with government as the nanny and all of us as children. It is comforting to know there still are places like Montana where decisions about children are made by parents and not by the state!

Next: watch for our special MLLG mid-week posting about sanctuary cities.