Wildlife Alliance Of Maine Misleading Voters Already

LD1635 is another bill to end trapping bear in Maine. The problem is, like with all bills presented by preservationists and animal rights groups, that is not their full intent and that’s the part that is most disturbing.

What most people in Maine and across the United States don’t understand and are seldom given the chance to make up their own minds based on facts, is that there is not one known case where an organization such as the Wildlife Alliance of Maine, has waged a battle to end one aspect of hunting or trapping and went away satisfied with their successes. No, they only go away to ready themselves for the next campaign to end one more aspect until they have achieved their final agenda – a hunting and trapping free society.

They won’t admit it because doing so reveals to the people who they really are so they resort to tactics of misinformation, distortion of facts, fear mongering, deceit and threats to get what they want.

The Wildlife Alliance of Maine is making another attempt at banning bear trapping. In 2004 voters said no, as WAM teamed up with other outside the state animal rights groups, to end bear trapping, bear baiting and hunting bear with dogs. Some thought they bit off too big a chunk and that if they had only gone after trapping, it would have passed. As was predicted, they are back and we are to believe they only want to ban trapping?

How stupid are Maine people? Can they be hoodwinked into believing that WAM ONLY wants to stop bear trapping? WAM is attempting to make their case now.

On May 8th, there will be a public hearing at the Augusta Civic Center to discuss this bill. Everyone is encouraged to attend. Leading up to that meeting, WAM has gone hi-tech and has produced a video to run on You Tube.

The video clearly depicts who is behind the effort and what their long term goals are. It is labeled as a “spoof” in an article in today’s Kennebec Journal.

Daryl Dejoy, head of the 700-member Wildlife Alliance of Maine, said the video on YouTube is meant to be a spoof that shows a “good looking guy in his 30s” who is out for a day of bear hunting.

Aside from the fact that the guy is not a hunter – and please don’t ask me to explain how I know that – and the guy “ain’t from around heeya is he”, I want to know what happened to the ban on trapping?

WAM is the sponsor of LD1635 which is to stop bear trapping, yet this video, admittedly created by WAM, shows a guy setting a box of Dunkin’ Donuts down under a tree and steps back to wait for a bear to come out. When this happens the “city slicker” with a gun tells himself to “sshhhh!” and then shoots the bear. He ends that with, “Now that’s trapping!”

When someone uses a manipulative tactic such as this to con the public into believing this is what bear trapping is like, they label it as a spoof to deflect attention away from the fact that it is nothing more than a tactic to wrongfully misguide the voters.

Then DeJoy lets readers no how sensitive a man he really is.

“We have real bear trapping videos we would never show because they are very disturbing,” he said.

The real issue here that Maine voters need to focus on is what is the intent behind LD1635? Whether you as a voter believe that trapping bears should or shouldn’t be part of Maine culture, I’m reminding you again of past history. It will not stop here. It will not stop after they have banned hunting bears with dogs. It will not stop once they have banned the use of baits. It will not stop once they have banned hunting. Whether you want to believe that or not, that is your business but you can’t argue with facts and the facts are clear. This is why I am opposed to LD1635. I’m finished with always giving and getting nothing in return. I’m putting my foot down.

Skip Trask, head of the Maine Trappers Association and the Maine Professional Guides Association, issued a letter last week encouraging everyone to attend the public hearing in Augusta.

Good afternoon -

The public hearing on LD 1635, An Act To Prohibit Recreational Bear Trapping, will be held at 1 PM on Tuesday, May 8th, in the Androscoggin Room at the Augusta Civic Center. This bill could represent the beginning of the end for all trapping in Maine.

This bill was submitted by WAM, a Bangor-based animal protection group. WAM and other animal protection groups are going “all out” to get this bill passed. If they are successful, they plan to go after hunting bears with dogs and bear baiting. WAM has recently stated publicly that they oppose all recreational trapping. These same people, under another name, eliminated the coyote control program with threats of a lawsuit. WAM is currently working cooperatively with the Animal Protection Institute on the lawsuit filed in Bangor to eliminate all land trapping in areas frequented by eagles and lynx. WAM is desperate for any kind of victory in their efforts to ban activities with which they don’t agree – a victory on the bear trapping bill would build their confidence, increase their membership and generate the donations necessary to finance their future attacks on hunting and trapping. We cannot let that happen!

Trappers and other sportsmen must defeat this bill. We must fill the Civic Center on May 8th! WAM is bragging that they will have 500 people there. Although I question if they can generate that kind of turnout, we must generate a bigger “show of force” than they do. This bill is going to be very difficult to defeat. If we don’t send a strong enough message on the 8th, the bill will almost certainly be enacted. Our bear trapping will be done and other activities that we enjoy will be much more vulnerable. Please come to the Civic Center on the 8th. Get there at noon if possible. The MTA will be passing out orange MTA decals to all our supporters. We have 1000 decals, and we’d love to use them all! Other sportsmen’s organizations are also calling on their members to attend the hearing, but trappers and guides have always turned up at these types of hearings in the greatest numbers, and we need for you to do it again.

It would be great if some of you could come to the hearing prepared to say a few words about why this bill should be defeated. Explain how the bill would be detrimental to you or your business. If you plan to speak, plan to be very brief – two minutes is plenty (if a lot of people show up to testify, speakers may be instructed to limit their comments to a couple of minutes). I’ll try to be the first to testify – I’ll be speaking officially for both the MTA and the MPGA. That will set the stage for others to speak in opposition to the bill. If you plan to speak, I’d encourage you to know what you’re going to say ahead of time – write it down. The more people that testify, the better, but KEEP IT BRIEF. Long drawn out testimony irritates legislators, and they loose interest.

I’m a little concerned that it might be difficult on a nice day in early May to get the kind of turnout we need on this bill. For planning purposes (and also to give me some peace of mind), it would be great if you could email me quickly and let me know that you are planning to attend the hearing,whether or not you plan to testify and how many folks you will be bringing with you.

The work session on this bill is scheduled for 1 PM on Thursday, May 10th, in the F&W Committee Room (Room 206), in the Cross Office Building – the large grey building directly west of the State Capital Building. We also need to fill that room with trappers, guides and other sportsmen on the 10th, but it is much more important that you attend the public hearing.

Thank you in advance for your help and support on this critical issue. Our future is at stake!

Skip

Tom Remington

If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed!

Youth Turkey Hunting at It’s Best – Video Production

This video is part of our newly created vidcast production where we will be regularly showing hunting trips, news tips, interviews, and more. This one in particular is a day of Turkey Hunting with Guide Chris Cobbett taking to the woods with his son Dylan.

The following video is brought to you as a Skinny Moose Media Video Production in conjunction with Northwoods Adventures TV.

Steve Remington

If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed!

Sensible Gun Regulation? What Does That Mean?

Even when you have people claiming to be supporters of the Second Amendment, when their mind thinking is the way this one college professor’s is, it helps to explain why Americans’ constitutional right to bear arms is being depleted and crooks rights are being enhanced.

For as long as there have been guns in America, there have been gun regulations. Indeed, in the decades after the adoption of the Second Amendment, gun regulations became more restrictive, not less. The Second Amendment links the right to keep and bear arms with the civic obligation to participate in a well-regulated militia. It has nothing to do with the use of firearms for self-defense, hunting or target shooting. Recognizing that the Second Amendment does not address these issues does not mean that Americans have no right to engage in all of those activities.

The Founding Fathers were not anti-gun, nor opposed to self-defense. But they recognized that these activities had to be balanced against the needs of public safety. In contrast to modern gun rights ideology, the Founding Fathers were pro-gun regulation precisely because they were pro-gun. Until we learn to honor this fact, discussions about reasonable gun regulation will continue to be mired in a false dichotomy: gun rights or gun regulation. We need not make such a choice to honor the Second Amendment.

Put another way, the Second Amendment does not pose a barrier to gun regulation; it compels it.

So, to put it in my terms of understanding, the Second Amendment is only for organized militia, because we have always added regulations and restrictions to our Constitution that is reason enough to keep doing it, our Founding Fathers believed that gun restrictions were necessary and the Second Amendment “compels” gun regulation.

I wonder if this same professor would agree to his own reasoning and apply it to his First Amendment right to write this editorial?

I have discussed Second Amendment issues quite often on this blog and we discuss proposed legislation everyday on how to restrict guns, take them away from lawful citizens and create “safe zones”. Almost never do we sit around discussing what legislation is being proposed to tighten up punishment for people who illegally used guns to commit crimes. We also have a myriad of excuses as to why enforcing the law doesn’t work. Usually that is money so as our society has become adept at doing, we create a “feel good” law convincing ourselves things will be better.

This editorial writer wants to discuss the history of the Second Amendment to prove his theory yet fails to talk about the history of what has happened to violent crime as his history has taken away the rights of Americans to own them and use them. Let me give you two examples that anyone who opens their eyes can see.

The first is crime. Disarming the people emboldens crooks and thieves. Truth is, the more we disarm the more crime goes up. The truth is the less we punish and imprison criminals, the more crime goes up, yet to deal with this we target lawful citizens.

The second obvious historical change is when we look at the power of our government. The more we disarm the American people, government can further impose its control over the people, continuing to strip us of our rights and freedoms. History clearly shows us what has happened around the world when the power is removed from the people.

History is a valuable tool but it’s totally useless if we choose only to utilize that part of history which fits our own beliefs. “Sensible gun regulation” will only lead to a sensible takeover of crooks and that includes government.

Tom Remington

If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed!

The Bias In Questions About Gun Control

Ken Shepherd of News Busters examines recent questions asked by CBS News anchor Katie Couric when she interview Paul Helmke gun control promoter and Sen. Larry Craig of Idaho, a supporter of gun rights. It’s interesting when someone analyzes the wording of questions in order to inject bias into the discussion.

Tom Remington

If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed!

More Rabbits Means Fewer Deer Fawn Kills?

Do you agree with this assessment from the Idaho Department of Fish and Game? According to a short snippet in the Twin Falls Times, IDFG is canceling their planned coyote reduction hunt because there are more rabbits.

In March, the agency said it would be contracting with the U.S. Department of Agricul-ture’s Wildlife Services division to eradicate coyotes before deer fawning season. But after reassessing rabbit numbers in the South Hills, Fish and Game called off the hunt.

Coyotes sometimes feed on fawns when other sources of food, such as rabbits, are scarce. Because rabbit numbers are higher than anticipated, it’s unlikely many coyotes will kill deer this spring, said Dave Parrish, head of Fish and Game’s Jerome office.

emphasis added.

What are your thoughts on this assessment? Coyotes sometimes feed on fawns? It is unlikely coyotes will kill deer?

Let’s hear it!

Tom Remington

If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed!

Wykes Named Maine Warden Of The Year

From Mark Latti, Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and wildlife.

AUGUSTA, Maine – Game Warden Neal Wykes of Naples, a game warden of 26 years, was honored today when he was named the 2006 Maine Warden of the Year at the Maine Warden Service 2007 Awards Banquet in Winslow.

“During his 26 years of service” said Colonel Tom Santaguida, Chief of the Maine Warden Service. “Warden Wykes has consistently performed his duties an extraordinary high level, setting the performance bar to a point that others should aspire to.”

Wykes was honored for his work in one of the busiest recreational areas of the State. The Naples District contains the busiest boating region of the State, an intensive open water and ice fishing season, many hunters and plentiful game, and recreational ATV and snowmobiling.

“What strikes me the most significantly about Neal is his professional demeanor and consistency year after year in a district that is second to none in regards to the shear numbers of contacts with the sporting public,” said his supervisor, Game Warden Sergeant Tim Place.

Although known primarily as a water activity district, Naples also has some remote areas with dense populations of game. Deer and turkey harvests are high, which in turn generates the corresponding enforcement responsibilities to Warden Wykes. Wykes’ district also includes the 6000-acre Hancock Land property that is open to the public for ATV and snow sled use. Wykes’ ability to keep this activity under control has been remarked positively upon by the property owner to the Warden Service. Being sensitive and responsive to landowner/land user relationships has helped maintain access to land that might otherwise be off limits to the public.

Wykes has been the primary officer investigating a yearly average of two dozen boating accidents that resulted in personal injury or death and countless others involving substantial property damage. Other recreational vehicle accident investigations, including ATV and snowmobile, are handled efficiently and with precision. Warden Wykes possesses considerable knowledge and expertise in recreational vehicle accident investigation and reconstruction, often being called on for guidance by fellow game wardens that find themselves as primary investigators of an unusual accident.

Wykes currently is a member of the airboat team and has been so since its inception 15 years ago. He also is the Southern Team Leader of the Warden Service color guard and has been an active member of the team for 23 years. Neal is one of the go to people on decibel meter operation and is often called upon to facilitate enforcement of noise emission violations. He also instructs on this type enforcement activity, as well as recreational vehicle accident investigation, at every Warden Service Academy. Wykes was on the firearms training team for a decade and won the coveted Commissioner’s trophy in 1983. Neal was also instrumental in setting up the new Naples sub-station that allows area wardens to use their computers on a high speed network connection.

“Warden Wykes is a very recognizable and respected member of the Lakes Region community and has developed relationships that aid in his mission. Whether it is the State Police, County Sheriff’s Department, or Naples Marine Safety, Neal doesn’t hesitate to lend a hand or ask for one when needed,” said Santaguida, “Twenty-six years of calm, confidence and consistency
makes Warden Neal Wykes a valued member of the Maine Warden Service and most worthy of our highest honor and title of ‘Warden of the Year’.”

Along with the Warden of the Year Award, Meritorious Service Awards were awarded for conduct above the ordinary course of duty, in which a warden because of their initiative, courage and diligence places themselves in danger while performing an unusual task.

Game Warden Sergeant Dan Menard of Houlton and Game Warden Bill Chandler of Shirley received Meritorious Service Awards for their dramatic rescue of a lady trapped in a submerged vehicle in Moosehead Lake.

Game Warden Chris Cloutier of Bridgton received a Meritorious Service Award for his courage and determination in apprehending an armed and dangerous bank robbery suspect on the grounds of an Elementary School in Lovell.

Game Warden Rick Clowry of Harmony received a Meritorious Service Award for his rescue of three overturned canoeists who weren’t wearing lifejackets on an icy Kingsbury Pond last April. The canoe tipped over, and Clowry went into the icy water twice to save the victims.

Game Warden Pilot Dan Dufault of Turner received a Meritorious Service Award for his part in the rescue of two lost children who were floating down the Kennebec River. Dufault flew in conditions that kept most planes grounded, but realizing that the lost children wouldn’t last long in the weather, he flew anyway.

The following Game Wardens received Exemplary Service Awards for rendering outstanding service that deserves special attention: Game Warden Alan Dudley of Easton for his expertise in search and rescue, fish and game enforcement, and his record of achievement over the past ten years; Game Warden Bill Livezey of Sherman Mills in recognition of his outstanding undercover work in Operation Deer Snare in Washington County in the Fall of 2005; and Game Warden Bruce Loring of Enfield for freeing an entangled warden service diver who was running out of air under the ice on Cold Stream Pond. The pair were retrieving a snowmobile that went through the ice.

Game Warden Dan Scott of Hamden and his canine Roxy received the Search and Rescue Canine Case of the Year award, for their part in finding and rescuing a diabetic man who was found nearly unconscious, and Warden Mark Merrifield of Searsmont and his canine Aspen received the K9 Conservation Law Enforcement Case of the Year Award for their part in a poaching case involving a crossbow with night vision equipment. The case netted the suspect three days in jail and a $2,000.00 fine.

Game Warden Captain Joel Wilkinson of Windsor received the Supervisor of the Year Award for demonstrating superior knowledge and leadership in supervisory law enforcement and by doing so has gained the respect of fellow officers, department employees and other agencies. Wilkinson was honored for what he has accomplished in this past year in the newly created captain position, along with his consistency of outstanding performance for his thirteen years of service.

Retired Game Warden Gary Dumond of Aroostook County received the 2006 legendary Game Warden Award.

Tom Remington

If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed!

The Signs Of Spring

I received this photo yesterday from U.S. Hunting Today’s chief photographer, Milt Inman, as he has been out roaming the countryside looking for signs of spring. This comes after returning to Maine from his winter retreats in Florida, where spring arrived some time ago.

Tom Remington

If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed!

Radio Interview With Kristy Sternes, Pres. Idaho Elk Breeders Association

Last Thursday, April 19, 2007, East Idaho News Newstalk Radio interviewed Kristy Sternes who was recently elected president of the Idaho Elk Breeders Association. Kristy answers questions about the elk industry, including elk ranches that permit hunting.

The interview, which is available below in MP3 format, also includes questions taken from call-in listeners.

[AUDIO:http://www.mainehuntingtoday.com/bbb/audio/rex.mp3]

Tom Remington

If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed!

The Truth About Elk Ranching/Hunting

Below is a video that depicts much of elk ranching in Idaho and shows some of the terrain associated with ranch hunting. The video features two gentlemen I had the pleasure of meeting on my recent trip to Idaho. Chuck Warner is a member of the board of directors of the Idaho Elk Breeders Association. Gary Queen, a past board member of IEBA, was responsible for getting me out to Idaho. Although I didn’t get to see their specific elk ranches, I did visit a few while I was there, including a trip to the Thunder Mountain Elk Ranch in Soda Springs, where hunting is part of their operation.

Tom Remington

If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed!

Violent Threats From Pro Gun Supporters?

Some of you may have heard by now about the pro gun rally in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania earlier this week when two morons, as I called them in a previous blog, sported about with a banner that read that Rep. Angel Cruz, the author of a bill that would require gun registration, should be “hung from the tree of liberty for treasonous acts against the constitution.”

According to Jeff Soyer at Alphecca.com, another Philadelphia lawmaker received a threatening email.

Rep. Jewell Williams said during a news conference on gun control that he would ask police to investigate an e-mail he received Thursday morning from an Allentown resident saying Williams should be shot for supporting Rep. Angel Cruz, also a Democrat from Philadelphia.

Soyer goes on to explain that this kind of behavior from gun rights advocates does nothing to support and advance the cause for the Second Amendment.

Both the email threat and the ugly banner are of no assistance in helping our side to make our case. We need to engage lawmakers in intelligently thought out reason and arguments why the right to keep and bear arms is important. The actions above only go to reaffirm in many anti-2A minds the opinion that we are all a bunch of Cro-Magnon rednecks and I for one resent that implication.

He also points out what a hypocrite Rep. Williams is for caring about gun rights for himself and not others.

While I in no way condone the actions of protesters who resort to violence, I do agree with this statement made by Soyer.

This kind of behavior — granted it was by only a few boobs — needs to stop. Leave the death wishes and death threats to the leftist liberals. They do it so much better, anyway.

Which brings me to my added point in this story. The leftist liberals are better at violence and violent threats as history shows. If an investigation is done over the email and the banner carrying boobs at the rally, it may just reveal that neither party are for gun rights. It is not above gun rights opponents to create situations that make gun advocates look to be “a bunch of Cro-Magnon rednecks” as Soyer puts it.

Tom Remington

If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed!

Maine Moose Hunt Will Expand

The Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife joint committee approved a two-year expansion of the moose hunting zones a bit further south into the state. Deirdre Fleming of MaineToday.com describes the expanded zone.

The moose hunt will extend south from Parsonsfield to Sebago, north to Minot and Auburn, east to Greene and Winthrop, over to Palermo, Morrill and Belfast and along the coast to Searsport, Stockton Springs, Penobscot, Castine, Brooksville, Sedgwick and Brooklin.

The hunt will begin for the first time in the fall of 2008 and will coincide with the general firearms season for deer. At the conclusion of the two-year experimental hunt, an evaluation will take place and then decisions made as whether to stop, continue or amend the hunt and/or zones.

Tom Remington

If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed!

Skinny Moose Media Production – Youth Turkey Hunting

The Black Bear Blog will be starting a new segment which will be a ‘regular feature”. We will be regularly broadcasting videos such as hunting in the field, leaving tips, fishing, interviews, and more. This will be brought to you as a Skinny Moose Media Video Production in conjunction with Northwoods Adventures TV.

Please enjoy our 1st edition of Dylan’s Turkey Hunt.

Steve Remington

If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed!

Oregon Property Owners Being Stripped Of Rights

Oregon lawmakers, with the encouragement of the Humane Society of the United States, are systematically going about stripping landowners from their rights to own property and have the freedom to do as they choose on their land. This is another disgusting attempt by government and out of touch with reality animal rights psychopaths to bully their way into private lives and private enterprise.

Not only do these groups and individuals think they have a right to sidestep the United States Constitution, they also think it is their duty to legislate my personal ethics by telling me how I can hunt and where I can hunt according to their standards.

It appears that the ranchers in Oregon are not well organized nor do they have powerful lawyers and money behind them to fight this governmental tyranny. Yesterday, I discovered one lonely website, Friends of Hunting, making an attempt to get the word out that they were being railroaded by the Oregon government. Please go over there and offer your support, even if it’s only moral support.

This foolish domino effect of one state following the lead of another to outlaw ranching and hunting on ranches has got to stop. Each state are like “sheeple”, following the last flock to slaughter because they are ignorant of facts and groups like the HSUS lie and saturate the media with their campaigns of hate and fear because they believe animals and plants have more rights than human beings. How sick and disgusting. To me what they do is no better than domestic terrorism. Shame on them.

If you live in Oregon, call your Congressional representative and tell them you thought you were living in America where people had rights. Don’t let a few mislead the rest of the people down a path that is one step closer toward governmental slavery.

Tom Remington

If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed!

Bear Being Transported Out Of North Carolina

Dan at Moose Droppings has a story of how and why the bear in North Carolina are being moved again to protect the slowly growing elk herd. He’s got some great photos as well, as Dan is a decent amateur shutter bug.

Tom Remington

If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed!

Hal Sharp On Deer Scents

Every once in awhile, I dig out this collection of old Hal Sharp hunting, fishing and outdoor tips and share them with readers. If you will recall, how I came by these was through U.S. Hunting Today’s chief photographer, Milt Inman. Many years ago, his mother clipped and saved over 120 of these from the local newspaper – at that time the Lewiston Daily Sun, today called the Sun Journal.

Here’s one I thought would give us all a little look back and see how far technology has taken us today. I only wish I had the exact dates that these were originally published. Hope you enjoy.

Tom Remington

If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed!

Next Page »