I should not force my way of life on others though. But I still feel my way follows the golden rule.....
I don't think you're forcing your "way of life" on anybody. For something to be a "way of life" you have to do it fairly regularly. Or at least once. How many times have you helped pack out a stranger's elk on your back? That was the question.
If you can say "more than once" you can get away with calling it your way of life. If not, it's just a way of posting on the internet. And in the process calling others who think differently "greedy and lazy." How's that square with the golden rule?
This has been an interesting thread, lots of good stories. Most people help when they can, which is not surprising. Many also gave good reasons why they don't feel an obligation to help haul out a stranger's elk on their back, which is where I fall.
I've helped strangers drag deer out, and I've helped them trail lost animals. But that wasn't the question, and the question wasn't about hauling one out with pack animals or bringing out your dog to trail a deer.
Because hauling an elk out on your back is a different story. If you're 24, that's one thing but if you're 60 it's another. And it's not being greedy or lazy. As a matter of fact, calling a 60 year-old hunter who has the gumption to get back to where an elk has to be packed out on foot (and then pack one out) "lazy" is pretty funny.
If your hunting season is a month or two long, taking a day to help is not such a big deal. If it's 5-9 days like most are here, and you're halfway through, that's different. It's not being greedy or lazy.
If the other hunter needs the help through no fault of their own, or they're older and a young man can help out, by all means most would do that. If they're just clueless and unprepared, then they need to learn a hard lesson and they'll be no more worse for the wear.
