I am SOTS: MAKE STRIPED BASS A GAMEFISH!

[nightfighter]

Have to say there are more fish around my parts at this time than have been in past years. Been showing on top for the past four or five weeks, pretty regularly. And while not thirty or forties, a good mix of young to low twenty pound fish. And this is before we've even seen the pogies arrive. It is about the bait. They're on young herring and macks.

I agree with you about the restaurant though. Just be able to tell me what you are serving........

[Mike P]

Why stop there--let's make striped bass a catch and release only species, the way some trout steams have only C&R regs. Let's eliminate tournaments. And the EPOs won't have to tape every fish they see being carried off the waters. After all we kill at least 5 times the number of bass (estimated because there are no catch reports filed or accurate records kept) than the commercials do.

Seems to me the answer is clear cut---6 million documented pounds versus an estimated 28 million pounds, season after season. Who's the bigger threat to the fishery?

You really want to take the price off the heads of the fish--and ego boosting is a cost that they pay--do the right thing.

Yes, it's intended to be over the top sarcasm--but why not? All Gamefish will do is reserve more of a species to our death warrants.

If you guys really believe that the fishery is in decline--let's eliminate the biggest threat to them---us.

[afterhours]

mike, some of us believe there there should be no comm fishing AND cut the rec take in half. using your numbers this would reduce total take from 34m down to 14m...betcha that would help the fishery.

[Nebe]

sounds good to me.