If/when .30-30 usage does decline, I believe this will signal a fundamental change in the hunting demographic: A shift away from Joe Public and his low-cost hunting oppportunities towards more specialized rigs owned by those serious enough and with the means to spend on higher dollar trips/leases or the like. The way hunting seems to be going in very many places.
If or when we do lose Joe Public, it will not portend well for the future of hunting in this country.
I wholeheartedly agree with the sentiment of losing "Joe Public" not being good for hunting. They're in a sense "the silent majority". The millions of outdoorsman who spend their time hunting and fishing and not on the couch watching outdoor tv or playing grab-ass on the internet
.
In terms of expensive and specialized equipment, I think that's mostly a marketing image. I see Cajuns all the time here in the swamps with nothing more than the most basic of equipment. In mind they're ten times the serious outdoorsman as the local range jockey with all the expensive gadgetry.
