I never intended to cover the wild hog beat. My parents were born in Arkansas, however, so perhaps it’s destiny. Perhaps I’m destiny’s child? It’s early. Anyway. (For earlier hog news, see this or that).Thanks to the latest monster pig killed in Dixie, I have a new favorite quote:
"It feels really good," [11-year-old] Jamison [Stone], of Pickensville, said in a telephone interview with The Associated Press. "It’s a good accomplishment. I probably won’t ever kill anything else that big."
Me neither, Jamison. Me neither.
Jamison supposedly killed a 1,051-pound feral pig, according to initial reports. The above photo should be scrutinized carefully for the sake of comparison to the less commonly seen photo of the pig below. The above photo is being hyped tremendously by Jamison’s father (and sold for 500 smackers), who paid $1500 for the privilege of taking down the giant. The hog was advertised as available for killing by the for-hire hunting ground where he roamed, so this was no case of random "Look at that there hog, boy–let’s shoot it!" The hyped photo is clearly meant to increase the perceived size of the hog (which is plenty big already)–Jamison appears to have been carefully placed farther into the background.
All of this, not to mention some suspicious timing regarding the upcoming movie The Legend of Hogzilla, in which Jamison has now been cast, puts Jamison’s kill in a quite different perspective.
Anyway, it turns out the hog was really 1,051 pounds, but it was also not even truly feral, having been a pet before it was sold to the hunting preserve where Jamison plugged it. A pet who both cavorted with the chihuahua and who could get irate without sufficient hog slop. (But hey, who doesn’t?)
It’s worth a visit to the boy’s site to check out the intriguing mix of Alabama fundamentalist culture and hunting trophies, plus the ongoing controversy.
LATE UPDATE:
According to the boy’s site, it turns out the pig cavorted with the chihuahua in the town of Heflin, Alabama. I’m a little numb. (You may have noticed that’s my last name.) So much is clear. Destiny, indeed. Once I’ve had coffee and a think, I may have to explore this issue further. This may require the help of Frank Dodge, near as I can tell. Perhaps I’ll have to stop being snarky to him, even if he is a Yankee. Heflin, Alabama!
