HUNTER: as the newest member on the Commission I’m being flooded with science and being lobbied, whether it’s a stack of postcards for one position, or personally lobbied, or phone calls.

HUNTER: as the newest member on the Commission I’m being flooded with science and being lobbied, whether it’s a stack of postcards for one position, or personally lobbied, or phone calls.

So far.... no evidence that the WSC has done anything wrong, yet innuendos and accusations of wrongdoing abound.

Originally posted by cowlitzfisherman:
Aunty

Quote:

So far.... no evidence that the WSC has done anything wrong, yet innuendos and accusations of wrongdoing abound.

You’re the only one that is saying that!

Cowlitzfisherman

Originally posted by AuntyM:
One has to wonder WHY now?

... yet innuendos and accusations of wrongdoing abound.

"Zen, that backroom deal knife can cut two ways - One could make
the arguement (I'm speaking rhetorically here, don't necessarily believe
this to be true) that the Dept. did a "backroom deal" to not forward
this on to the Commission for debate. After all, it was the single most
requested rules change in this cycle.
I've read the transcript - I'll bet you have as well. It is fascinating
in that the Commissioners brought up virtually every one of the points
that have been debated on the various boards with this issue. Certainly
Commissioner Ozment (sp?) was very concerned over the public perception
of enacting the moratorium at the Feb. 6th meeting with no further
public input. Once again, I would like to understand why WDFW chose not
to forward it on to the Commission for their debate. I've read their
reason and maybe because I really want WSR - I'm blind to their logic,
but, for the life of me I can't understand what logic they used in not
forwarding it on. If they had forwarded it to the Commission, there
still would have been no public debate or input on the issue - the
Commission had very clearly stated that they had no intention of taking
further testimony on ANY of the Rules changes they were deciding on.
One item that no one has seen fit to comment on - I still believe that
there was some motivation on the Commission's part to put WDFW "in their
place" after the Region 5 request regarding increased mortality of ESA
listed stocks in the Springer fishery. That motivation alone may have
caused one Commissioner to cast their vote for the moratorium regardless
of the concerns that some on the Commission had. It is quite unusual in
public bodies to have the level of disagreement present and such a close
vote on the matter before them. Most of the time, these boards and
Commissions get together beforehand, make their horse trades, call each
other names, etc. out of sight of the public and the public record.
That kind of backroom deal is SOP at every level of Government (and Big
Business for that matter) that I have seen.
We will see where this all leads. My hope is that it would lead to:

1. A better situation for Wild Steelhead and Salmon
2. More unity among Sports Fishers
3. Less personal attacks and cross board name calling

But, heck, I'm in sales, I have to be optimistic"

and "… I will not (wouldn't be prudent) be dragged into a discussion of
who did what to whom first and who should be blamed/banned because of
it. Marsha is a strong willed woman who I have disagreed with in the
past and agreed with in the past. So it goes.

I'm just glad that I am not a moderator faced with making the decision.
I already have a couple of kids that sometimes do things that don't make
sense. I don't need a couple thousand more" ?

Most of the time, these boards and Commissions get together
beforehand, make their horse trades, call each other names, etc. out of
sight of the public and the public record. That kind of backroom deal
is SOP at every level of Government (and Big Business for that matter)
that I have seen.

"Hairlip, The WSC has nothing to hide nor does it have concearns to"back pedal". You can go to the website and look over our action/business plan and our mission statement is simply who we are. We do need to update our officers, trustees and reps link as well as a few others, but that's what happens with free help =).

AACK!!! It's a conspiracy. I need some of Grandpa's foil (where is Grandpa anyway?) Bruce, here's a response from Double Haul in another thread that may have missed your notice. I think it clears up some of the questions that you are asking.

Hairlip, The WSC has nothing to hide nor does it have concearns to"back pedal". You can go to the website and look over our action/business plan and our mission statement is simply who we are. We do need to update our officers, trustees and reps link as well as a few others, but that's what happens with free help =).

Bob is our Regional Rep for the West Oly Pen area.

I must of missed the inquiry for membership numbers, The WSC has approximately 150 members and many supporters, hence a Coalition. Our membership cuts across the cloth of steelhead fishers and is very diverse geographically. I believe the strength of the organization is it is an educational/learning organization that works very hard to uderstand the issues that are affecting wild steelhead. Also, for the record again, We are not anti-hatchery, but we believe in hatchery reform.

What's interesting, in light of the Forks topic, in the composition part of our mission statement it reads-
"The WSC is comprised of concerned citizens determined to reverse the factors that have negatively impacted wild steelhead, and in so doing, restore healthy and viable populations of wild steelhead to the Pacific Northwest. In so doing, wild salmon and other salmonids will also benefit. The WSC represents conservationists, recreational fishermen, businesses that depend upon wild steelhead for their livelihoods, and citizens who seek to preserve the future of the Pacific Northwest's greatest resource."

I am one of the founding board members and was the VP of Membership, now I am the President of the organization. If you are interested in becoming a member, send me an address and I will be happy to send you a membership packet. I can also email you the recent online version of the adipose (our newsletter) if your intersted.

We also host the bi-annual Steelhead Summits where diverse groups are working together on Pacific NW Steelhead issues. We are not just a WSR organization.

I am one of the few who update the website and the only thing that has been added recently is the WSC Wild Steelhead Facts Sheet, nothing else has been deleted as far as I know.

The Forks fish in disclaimer was to simply clairify to readers that the WSC is not organizing the fish in, but I am sure there will be a few members or supporters there to show support for the Forks community.

[ 03-05-2004, 09:45 PM: Message edited by: Double Haul ]
--------------------
Sincerely,
Rich
http://www.wildsteelheadcoalition.com/

" Will we allow ourselves to be foresightful & preserve the healthy wild steelhead runs now by applying fishing methods that can help preserve future fishing opportunities?"
--------------------
"You're not a g*dda*n looney Martini, you're a fisherman"

R.P. McMurphy - One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest

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