I've been a state game biologist for 11 years, in both Washington and Wyoming. The vast majority of game wardens I've worked with have been excellent people. However, when I'm in the field checking hunters and collecting biological data, I've often had hunters ask me why the GWs aren't as "nice" as me.
Besides the stress on the family, more and more duties being piled on, political pressures, and the constant knowledge in the back of their minds that panicked or bad people - who look just like every other hunter - kill game wardens every year, I always explained it this way: "When I meet good people in the field, I tend to spend more time visiting with them; when I meet jerks, I get done with them as quick as I can. When the GW meets legal sportsmen, if he's doing his job and looking for violators, he finishes with them as quickly as possible. When he meets jerks - in the form of violators - he often spends hours with them sorting it out."
It's tough not to spend the majority of your time with violators - which is what a good game warden does - without developing a rather suspicious outlook. Believe it or not, the real poachers and homicidal psychopaths look and act exactly like regular hunters and fishermen. In addition, most cops go on the high alert at the first hint of a weapon; for game wardens, that's the norm. Think about that as a source of job stress! Not enough? Consider that most of them have a spouse who knows that too, and is scared that someday they won't be coming home, because some idiot panicked when he got caught shooting a rabbit out of season!
A good officer exercises some discretion, but their job is to catch violators and arrest them - regardless of their profession, income level, or community standing. I've noticed that a lot of the "good" people, who either gave in to temptation or made a mistake, tend to bad-mouth the game warden more than the ones who live on the edge. I've talked to a lot of people who complained about the game warden, and when I press them for details, more often than not they are angry at themselves for being stupid or giving in to temptation, and embarassed at getting caught; not at any action of the GW except for catching them, or not believing them when they lie. Embarassment and shame are often projected as anger toward the person who caught them, deservedly or not. Your intent doesn't matter - it is your actions that are regulated, and what the warden enforces.
It is a great profession, and a hard one. The GW who has given some of you a hard time that you didn't think you deserved, has had years of being undeservedly bad-mouthed by large numbers of violators, from genuine scum to good people who made an error and are projecting the blame at someone other than the violator (themselves).
There are, in my opinion, two common traits in a great game warden - they are at least comfortable with, and preferably enjoy, interacting with people on a frequent basis, under all kinds of circumstances. The second is a genuine dedication to the wildlife resource, and the knowledge that what they are doing is important and necessary. I urge you to not apply if this description doesn't fit you; it's not enough to enjoy hunting and fishing, and wanting to work outdoors.
All laws, including wildlife laws, are ignored unless they are sufficiently enforced to persuade the generally good majority to know the laws and obey them - for fear of the consequences, whether embarassment, hefty fines, equipment seizures, loss of privileges, or jail. If you study the history of wildlife management, you will learn that laws were passed to try and save declining wildlife populations long before they were decimated; these laws were not effective until they were enforced. That's the reality.
Next time a game warden contacts you, consider thanking them for doing an important and necessary job to protect the resources that are precious to all of us. Without them, that resource would be gone. That's a FACT.
To those of you who are game wardens - THANK YOU.