Technology is fine, but make no mistake. "Technology" in today's hunting world pretty much synonymous with "long range." Propelling a projectile by combustion really hasn't changed much since the introduction of smokeless powder. Oh, metallurgy has improved, safety has improved, etc, but that's not the "technology" most people are referring to. The new trend is "long range." Manufacturers are catering to the long range competitive shooter and long range animal shooter. Be it rifles, scopes, mounts, whatever. And far too many people are into the technology more than they are into the hunt. Just search "long range hunting" or "long range elk" on YouTube and you'll see people popping off at animals at 800, 1000, or 1400 yards away. And there is no hint in their demeanor that they care one iota about the animal they are killing. The goal is the kill and the kill alone. Not because they want the animal and the overall experience as Raurk said, but because the kill is the affirmation that all their sniping-skills and equipment is brag-worthy. And they want to make sure everyone knows what a skillful shooter they are evidenced by a dead elk that was probably pencil-holed by a bullet that was going too slow to do anything else. If one is into the technology more than the hunt, then perhaps the range and competitions are where one should stay.
Not necessarily. I think the hunting-related technology that has had the greatest impact on hunting in recent years is the accessible information about terrain, land access, digital scouting, GPS, OnX maps, Google Earth, etc. Of course, technology has also made significant advances in the areas of scopes, LRFs, bullets, barrels, ballistic apps, etc., all of which make it easier to hit what we're aiming at further and further away.
Deciding how much technology we want to incorporate into our personal hunting is a choice we all have to make, and we will continue to have to make those decisions as the contrasting relationship between technology and ethics evolves.
