"Seal protections create imbalance"

[Joe]

Tourism is not the lifeblood of your economy if you made your money someplace else and are now retired and living on Cape Cod.

[piemma]

Thanks John. I was lucid for a short time this morning. Probably will pass.

[Pt.JudeJoe]

So other than sharks taking care of them one by one, how do you start decreasing the seal population? I doubt they will issue hunting permits.

[numbskull]

Swine flu?

[MarshCappa]

I was with 13 other people this weekend on ACK and while I fished a seal kept popping up. I was getting annoyed and the wives were saying how cute he was. I tried to explain how they upset the balance of things but they couldn't get past how cute he was. It's a loosing battle.

[piemma]

Originally Posted by Pt.JudeJoe

So other than sharks taking care of them one by one, how do you start decreasing the seal population? I doubt they will issue hunting permits.

I am not bright enough to know the answer to that question but I don't think it wise for the population to be allowed to grow
untethered.
Brings to mind an interesting story. Back in the 80s there was a massive infestation of Gypsy Moths in my area. No one knew what to do about it. When I say massive I cannot fully describe the numbers but to give you an idea, they ate everything in site to the point where the forest was entirely defoliated. There were so many that, for some reason, they would mass on car tires at night. Now, these were still in the catapillar stage so your tires would look furry there were so many. On morning we got up and there were millions of them dead on the ground. The biologist said that there was so many that a virus developed and we had a total population collapse. Seems nature took care of the problem for us.
Perhaps that will happen with the seals.

[Joe]

It's pretty sad when there is a clear management problem and the answer to the problem is, "Wait until a disease develops."

[Slipknot]

Yes Joe that is sad.

I don't know why the law can't be amended???

Man has been upsetting the balance of things for centuries.

now where did I put that vial of dog distemper?hmmmm


Good article

I sold my camper I had in Wellfleet because of the nonsense, I'll support the economy around the canal instead.

[piemma]

Same here Slip. I use to do 600 miles every weekend (2 R/T from N. RI to P-Town and back.) Now I do the Canal for half the mileage and no seals, mung, plovers and a lot less abuse on my truck.

[Karl F]

Originally Posted by Pt.JudeJoe

So other than sharks taking care of them one by one, how do you start decreasing the seal population? I doubt they will issue hunting permits.

You are correct... 1972's law won't allow it, and will not be changed, or ammended, they have more Federal protection than human beings.

Originally Posted by Joe

Tourism is not the lifeblood of your economy if you made your money someplace else and are now retired and living on Cape Cod.

Spot on, and those are the voters...not all the voters, but, the ones that go to town meeting and the polls, the monied up retirees with time to spare, gets their arse on the committees, and their opinions in the ears of those at Town Hall, they pull the strings of the puppett's...they will go to the meetings and the polls...they show up.
They have the time, and the dough, to get done, what they want done. They care not for local business, nor the long time residents needs or wants.

Like I mentioned...great piece, well written op-ed...but...Where is it going???