Interesting Editorial

[ZuluHotel]

Originally Posted by ThomCat

Since then, instead of one job, I've got five. Bait shop, writing, fluke rig business, chartering and comm. rod& reel fishing. I do not R&R for "Huckleberry money" but as part of my income by which I support my home & family.
There are few "stockbrokers"', as mentioned in the article, on my dock doing much comm. rod & reeling although their are a number of anglers that couldn't run a boat without it. This judgemental article seems to have little consideration for these guys who for whatever reason ( Children, college funds, everyday living) should not be able to participate in boating and fishing and by their elimination, make it only a rich man's activity.
The most outrageous element of the article proposes that a comm. R&R fisherman should be required to show that a certain percentage of their income (40, 50, 75%) be generated by comm. R&R fishing. If not, no license. IN WHAT OTHER TRADE ARE YOU REQUIRED BY LAW TO SHOW A PERCENTAGE OF YOUR INCOME IS GENERATED BY WHATEVER JOB IS TO BE ISSUED A LICENSE? If a doctor has investments that earn him as much or more than his listed occupation, can he no longer practice. Does an electrician have to make the biggest part of his income from that trade in order to maintain his license? A plumber? A lawyer?
Doesn't this constitute a bit of "unbalance" in the law as it pertains to different groups. This is not a rant to pit comm.

You may not have soap-boxed about the loss of silver-smithing, but your stance smacks of the self-righteous stuff other commercials use to defend their historical involvement in the fishery.

PLease note that when you're going to reference an editorial, you really ougth to quote it accurately. And those who want to participate in this discussion should probably read the thing first lest all context be lost. I didn't level this thing at stockbrokers exclusively. Nor did I suggest X% of income had to come from COMMERCIAL fishing. I said "fishing."

I don't see a problem with charter guys supplementing their fishing income with more fishing income in the form of r & r fish, provided those fish aren't landed with paying customers on board.

No, you will not find income requirements in other trades, but then again, none that you mentioned involve direct harvest of federally and state-managed natural resources. A plumber doesn't have to harvest living pipes, a dentist doesn't break out a dredge to haul up a new chair.

With fish stocks strapped as they are, I don't think the free-enterprise/ hard-working American argument holds much water. That would work better if licenses were still available.

Look, we all struggle--yes, me too--to make a living. It sucks. I work two and sometimes three jobs to stay afloat. Does being part of the increasing ranks of the working poor give me some right to have fisheries permits?

Just some more food for thought....

[Slipknot]

Originally Posted by ZuluHotel

No, you will not find income requirements in other trades, but then again, none that you mentioned involve direct harvest of federally and state-managed natural resources. ..

none of those do, but in forestry they do(Not the income part but)


Is it possible to post the editorial in a post so we can all read it?

[Clammer]

Z/H

if I send ya a letter will ya put it in the Fisherman ...word for word ????

[MikeToole]

The ocean fishery is supposed to be managed for the greater good of the public. This greater good includes financial and human good. To accomplish this you first need to maintain the core stocks at a level where it maximizes this greater good and than distribute the surplus stocks to the users where the greatest gain can be made. In some cases the commercial fishermen meets this need. This occurs when the sale of fish and the supply of food to the public meet’s the greater need. In other cases giving the surplus fish to the recreational fisherman meets this need. To me this is the case for stripers because the financial gain from recreational fishing far exceeds what the commercial fishery could deliver even if they got the whole stock. Plus, from the human standpoint the number of people who get to enjoy recreational fishing for stripers in itself meet the need.

I’m not against commercial fishing by any means but I do not believe they have any additional rights to the fishery. In any case, there is no way the present form of commercial rod and reel fishing in Mass meets any of the needs. It’s nothing short of a license to steal for a large number, not all, of the participants. What it does do is send a bunch of money to a Mass fishery commission and allows some people to get around the limits the recs face. I have even less support for the person selling fish just so he can operate his boat. Learn to surf fish.

Oh yeah, I usually keep out of these discussions but like many others the winters taking affect. Smile everybody has an opinion. One more thing, Mike Toole is not my real name, he's really a nice guy and if you meet him be sure to say hello.

[Clammer]

M/T

very well stated ::

[fishsmith]

You write a weekly ad filled magazine to encourage fishing to the masses, how does that affect the stocks?

GLASS HOUSES DUDE, you just make money a different way off the fish!!!!

[ThomCat]

"And those who want to participate in this discussion should probably read the thing first lest all context be lost."

Above is a sentence borrowed from one of my friend Zach's posts. This is not simply about striped bass, it's about commercial fishing licenses. The scope of the topic includes many species and is much broader than a simple pie in the sky reply like "make striped bass a gamefish" Like the man said "read the thing first"

[Nebe]

Originally Posted by ThomCat

"And those who want to participate in this discussion should probably read the thing first lest all context be lost."

Above is a sentence borrowed from one of my friend Zach's posts. This is not simply about striped bass, it's about commercial fishing licenses. The scope of the topic includes many species and is much broader than a simple pie in the sky reply like "make striped bass a gamefish" Like the man said "read the thing first"

I did read it- my response was directed at this comment-
this is a striped bass fishing site BTW

Originally Posted by ZuluHotel

A five-fish limit for the MA striper season would stretch the season, keep the price out of the toilet where it inevitably lands every season, and allow the guys historically involved in the fishery to actually make some money without slaughtering 30 fish a day. Don’t call me a turncoat: The end result is less dead bass, which at this uncertain point seems like a more important goal than toeing the party line.