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Discussion Topic: Can New Jersey Ban Hunting and Fishing?
If you think your right to hunt is iron clad or written in stone, you should talk to New Jersey bear hunters, whose season was infamously shot down by politicians. Now, a pair of anti-hunting legislators are taking aim at all outdoorsmen—and potentially providing a model by which other states could move to effectively ban hunting and fishing.
From the Asbury Park Press:
Instituting a law to prohibit fishing would be unimaginable only a generation ago. Fishing is so intertwined in New Jersey's recreational and economic past and present that it is hard to imagine living without it. Sadly, Monmouth County politicians may outlaw this essential part of our outdoor heritage.
Legislative bills A-3275 and S-2041 have been introduced by Assemblyman Michael Panter and Sen. Ellen Karcher, both D-Monmouth. These bills will eliminate freshwater fishing, hunting and trapping in New Jersey. It will be achieved by changing the structure of the Fish and Game Council.
Check out the full article and tell us your reaction.
This will never happen in our lifetime. This is absolute BS.
Posted by: Tommy | September 26, 2007 at 03:07 PM
I see this type of bs is what gets some of you guys all worked up. This is the extreme stuff we have to fight - not each other. These people are obviously misguided and out of touch with reality.
I still say it will never happen in our lifetime. But I do indeed see a day when hunting and fishing will be outlawed on this planet - a day when we eat from pills. Unless we blow the planet up.
It will not happen any time soon though.
Posted by: Tommy | September 26, 2007 at 03:17 PM
I agree that is will not happen any time soon - but...the fact that such a proposal has made it to the phase of being introduced as a potential law is evidence that a large group of people think and behave the same as the sponsors of the legislation.
Vigilance is required - these yahoos never quit.
Posted by: jack | September 26, 2007 at 03:26 PM
Ban fishing and hunting and the terrorists win.
Posted by: Evan V | September 26, 2007 at 03:33 PM
Ohhhh, that pisses me off
Posted by: Wes | September 26, 2007 at 11:21 PM
this may sound farfetched but the bill was voted on in comittee and passed and is now going to come up for a vote. N.J. is an extremely corrupt state with a great deal of patronage along party lines and a lot of "i voted for your bill, now vote for my bill" is going on. just the fact that this has gone as far as it has is scary.
Posted by: jerseyguy | September 27, 2007 at 05:02 AM
Glad I friggin moved out of that swamp eight years ago! Live Free or Die!
SA
Posted by: SilverArrow | September 27, 2007 at 08:12 AM
Those who say it'll never happen is exactly what the anti's want us to think and that will only make it happen faster.
Posted by: Gerard Natale | September 27, 2007 at 10:23 AM
This is now the time for sportsmen and women to get off their butts and do something to support our sports and recreation! Hunters, fishers, etc. have sat around doing nothing about the fact that animal rights wackos are trying to shove their emotional crap down our throats!
WAKE UP PEOPLE!!! If you dont realize and act on the threat of these bills.....you dont deserve to be a sports person.
We need to be proactive not reactive! Dont think someone else is going to take care of the problems because the ARA's sit at home 24/7 making phone calls and writing letters as they have no other life. MAKE YOUR VOICES HEARD or our future generations will only be able to look at pictures of what was once a wonderful thing.
Posted by: Jerry | September 27, 2007 at 10:30 AM
This isn't BS. This is real and it is entirely possible.
Posted by: Andrew | September 27, 2007 at 10:37 AM
This is crazy how did it get this far? Who the hell are these people that are doing this .Are cheeseburgers next then fried chicken and god forbid steak!. If this even comes close to being passed we have failed all outdoorspeople.What is their agenda? I wish I could vote in Jersy. Am I wrong or didnt they stop bear hunting at one time. Then problem bear numbers went through the roof.That was a symptom, wake up! Get out there and vote my brothers in arms!!!!!!
Posted by: Greg | September 27, 2007 at 10:51 AM
There seems to be alot of voters in the People's Republic of New Jersey who are incapable of self-powered thought and rely on their political leaders to tell them what's best for them. Always remember to never underestimate the power of ignorant people in large groups!
Posted by: Mike | September 27, 2007 at 10:53 AM
Anyone who thinks this can't happen is kidding themselves.
This is one of the last countries in the world where you CAN hunt.
It's already a thing of the past in much of Europe.
And we all know how much the dems want washington to be paris...
Posted by: Trent M. | September 27, 2007 at 11:19 AM
This is a perfect example of a politician with a mind set of "I'll do what's best for them whether they like it or not!"
I would like to ask these people, at what point in their political careers did they ultimately decide to lay down their morals and ethics, and decide to introduce their "own" agenda, regardless of and against the thoughts and desires of their constituency?
I am a gun owner!
I don't ask them to have a firearm!
Don't tell me I can't legally have one until I become a convicted criminal!
I am a hunter!
I don't demand that they hunt!
Don't tell me I can't hunt legitmate game with a viable population!
I am a fisherman (person)!
I don't ask that they fish!
Don't tell me I can't fish public waters for sport, food and recreation. As long as there is a viable population. (I practice catch and release beyond sustenance!)
I am a meat eater! (If you think I'm totally ignorant, that's carnivore!)
I did not tell them they "must" be vegans! (that's herbivore)
I am an omnivore! (do they know what that means?)
Man has been an omnivore since he wasn't able to kill an animal and had to eat nuts or berries to fill his growling belly!
Don't tell me I can't select my own diet!
This is a prime example of politics of the people, by me, for me! If they thought for one second about the people they were affecting and the long range effect of their inane ideals, they would have to question their own educations! These people are so ignorant, (I didn't say they weren't intelligent, but I do insist they aren't very smart!)
when presented with hard facts about game and land management, they continue down their "own" path of rightousness! Their concerns are controlling the minds and rights of others with no thought (or only ignorant thought) of wildlife as a whole.
I digress, so will bow out for now.
Bubba
Posted by: Bubba | September 27, 2007 at 11:56 AM
As one of the sportsmen in New Jersey who is fighting and educating at the same time about these bills, I would like to comment. First, to the person who said that they are glad they moved out and to the gentleman who doesn't believe it will happen, those attitudes are what put these bills in this position in the first place. No politician gets in office without the support of some group. We as sportsmen have done a very poor job of getting people elected who follow our point of view. This is pure laziness and wishfulness. Instead of politicking, we hope that the situation will go away. I have made visits to three senators since this bill came out of the Assembly committee in June. All three have said to me that this was the first time that a sportsman came to talk to them about legislation. As hunters, fishermen and trappers, we don't want make that kind of contact. For most of us, this is just our nature. However, to degrade a situation shows me that enough people did not get involved in the process. The animal rights people know how to do this. So while we are blindly doing our thing, they are cultivating relationships, raising money and badgering the hell out of the politicians. We are just starting to do that. We have a PAC for the first time in the New Jersey Outdoor Alliance. In order to play the game, this is necessary. Politics are not the game we would like to play. But they are the game we have been dragged into. It didn't used to be like this - our adversaries have made it like this and we have no other choice. I grew up hunting, fishing and trapping in New Jersey. I still do. I will do whatever it takes to keep those things that I love. It means getting involved and electing people who see my point of view. The antis have done it and they are certainly no better than I am. Stop crying, complaining and throwing up your hands. Get involved by voting and learning who is on your side. We have made a difference in the two months we have worked on this issue. This situation is exactly what we needed as a wakeup call. For the first time, fishermen, hunters and trappers have banded together in New Jersey to fight these people. The fight should not end here either; from now on we should elect people who see our point of view and make sure we educate other sportsmen to know what is going on. To that end, we are having an informational meeting on Tuesday, October 9 in Mullica Hill, Gloucester County. Mike Iaconelli has agreed to speak on our behalf and a number of politicians who support us are coming to speak. Most importantly, all sportsmen will be gathered in a show of brotherhood. I think all sportsmen in America can learn from our situation.
Posted by: Farmer Ed | September 27, 2007 at 12:21 PM
If we needed a politician to run our division of fish and game, then the people who wanted that don't know what there talking about. That would be like somebody voting me in to run the state government. Although I probably would do a better job. If it is not broken than leave it alone. Our Division of fish and game has been great and they are looked upon by other states as a place to copy and run there programs. This is just a attempt to stop things that have been done since the beginning on mankind on our planet by people who have too much time and money on there hands. If they really want to do something good, then feed the hungry, stop crime, pick a decent cause and stop trying to reinvent the wheel.
Posted by: rgswildlife | September 27, 2007 at 12:27 PM
We need more people like you in the fight Farmer Ed. thanks
Posted by: Greg | September 27, 2007 at 12:46 PM
To everyone who keeps saying we said it would never happen. re-read the first post, my god I said in our lifetime.
Furthermore,
If I had a million to blow or time to spend at the grassroot level fighting for our hunting like many of you seem to be provoking. I would spend it on a much more important issue. I love to hunt - don't get me wrong, but I will pay for my licenses, I will buy my gear, I will patronize local business where I hunt or fish, I will pay tags for my boat and trailer, I will call in my harvests and record the data, I will renew my big game harvest report card in June, I will go on and on with what I already do to support hunting and fishing. You guys can argue about the rest.
Posted by: Tommy | September 27, 2007 at 01:10 PM
Farmer Ed
What I said up above was something of a knee jerk reaction. I also grew up hunting and fishing in New Jersey; I have hunted from the Delaware Water Gap in the far northwest of the state down to the center of the state at Assunpink and Colliers Mills. So much of what NJ Fish and Game accomplished does serve as a model for other states; purchasing thousands of acres of Wildlife Management Area property throughout the state, reintroducing Wild Turkeys, state waterfowl stamps, the list goes on.
I left NJ for a lot of other reasons besides gun control and anti-'consumptive use' politics. At this point I am well settled in New Hampshire and I do try to stay on top of shifts in momentum here.
I do wish you success in your drive to defeat this bill!
SA
Posted by: SilverArrow | September 27, 2007 at 01:54 PM
The fact that this has even the remotest possibility of happening is scary and absurd. It's funny, NJ has such terrible money problems, it ammazes me that anyone would try to suggest a bill that would cut out millions of dollars in state revenue through tourism and licensing.
I have been thinking of moving out of Jersey for a couple year, you can bet if they pull this through, I'm definitely out. That's another 9,000 dollars a year in property taxes they won't get.
Also, if hunting and fishing is banned in the state would that mean that NJ would no longer be eligible for millions of reimbursement dollars porvided by the Wildlife Restoration Act?
This would cost the state hundreds of millions of dollars...Good luck, I'm looking for an excuse to leave.
Posted by: Doug | September 27, 2007 at 02:14 PM
Silver Arrow,
No offense on your part. I feel your frustration. I own land in Wisconsin and the thought has crossed my mind to pack it in and move there. Sometimes living in New Jersey is an exercise in great patience because of the political atmosphere. However, as I have told even my non-hunter friends, "have you voted?" or "have you personally contacted your legislator?" Usually the answer is no in both cases. Now, this "seeing the politician" scenario does not always work for everyone. But in this case with the sportsmen it should. Counting fishermen, hunters and trappers, there are over 1 million people. That's a significant voting block. And like I said before, with everyone working together, that is an attainable goal. In 1984, we trappers were thrown under the bus by other groups who didn't care about trapping. We lost the leg hold trap. I don't see that scenario this time because everyone's rod, gun and snare are at stake. There's still some "sportsmen" who don't get it but most of them do. The line of communication has been excellent because of the work of a handful of very fed up, dedicated sportsmen. Let's hope we turn them back on this one.
Posted by: Farmer Ed | September 27, 2007 at 04:18 PM
Farmer Ed
Best of luck in your endeavors!
If there is anything we can do here in the great Southwest, let us know.
Don't know if the column here would allow it, but if you could give us an e-mail address, maybe we could bombard them electronically.
Bubba
Posted by: Bubba | September 27, 2007 at 05:09 PM
We at njsaltwaterfisherman.com know this is NO JOKE!!. Time to step up people and let theses politicians know who gives them their jobs!!
Posted by: Hotrod | September 27, 2007 at 05:15 PM
It could never happen in our lifetime? Thats what people said about $3.oo p/gal gasoline, $6.00 a pack cigs.
It has to start sometime and somewhere, why not now and here.
I hate this state and it's polititians.
I love the hunting and fishing though!!!
Posted by: Jim Kneipp | September 27, 2007 at 05:27 PM
"It could never happen in our lifetime? Thats what people said about $3.oo p/gal gasoline, $6.00 a pack cigs."
Yes and then they went so far as to ban smoking in many public and private places and are talking about mandating maximum gasoline usage.
Yet people still say: "it won't happen in my lifetime" Wake up people your lifetime is nearly over!!!
Posted by: mike | September 27, 2007 at 05:36 PM