Posted on 07/29/2010 1:39:45 PM PDT by Coleus
Before the state approved its last bear hunt in 2005, hundreds of farmers, homeowners, animal rights protesters and hunters voiced their opinions in a final, raucous hearing that had to be moved to the State Museum auditorium in Trenton to accommodate the crowd. The scene was far different today, when the state Fish and Game Council voted unanimously — and with considerably less fanfare — to recommend a six-day bear hunt for northwest New Jersey in December.
Gathering in a small room in Monmouth County, the council met before just 20 people, most of them state employees. Three people spoke quietly against the hunt, followed by one man who supported it, saying the state’s bear population is growing out of control. "A lot of people think it is a done deal," animal rights activist Barbara Sachau said as to why she believes the crowds were smaller this year.
Department of Environmental Protection Commissioner Bob Martin must sign off on the hunt, part of a new policy designed to manage the state’s growing bear population. Martin’s approval is considered a mere formality since he has already signaled his support for the plan, saying non-lethal techniques, such as educating the public to secure trash that attracts bears, are not enough. Martin said he will make his final decision by early August. If approved, the hunt would be the first in the state in five years.
Gov. Chris Christie also supports the hunt, unlike his predecessor, Jon Corzine, who banned them when he took office. The plan approved today calls for a six-day gun hunt, starting Dec. 6, in an area north of Route 78 and west Route 287, the same spot where hunts were held in 2003 and 2005.
(Excerpt) Read more at nj.com ...
They have no more room out there in the sticks, so now they're heading for the malls.
not midwest, but outdoors if you’re interested.
one bear in my state...NY...is an out of control population in my book...
Black bears hunted? how long before they accuse us of being racists?
Its OK, these black bears are sort of mongrels.
Plus they’ve got reptile parts to their brains.
Why not CAPture them and TRADE them to state that have a deficit of black bears? NJ could get BEAR CREDITS.................
I bet Obama and Holder will fight to protect these Black Bears. Not to mention visits from Sharpton and Jackson.
Why hunt black bears and leave the cracker bears alone?
You can't put your kid's lunch in his backpack for fear that a bear will rip him up while waiting for the bus. And if you have a backyard and swingset, well, if you don't have a pack of family dogs running around with the kids, you'd better keep everybody inside.
For NJ Hunters: If you took the (free) bear hunting course back in 2003 or 2005, it still counts. Be sure to register in October for the hunt, even if you won't hunt for bear, just to show high numbers of interested persons. Ditto for those deer guys who didn't take the course--it's interesting and it's free, so sign up for it. Show some solidarity!
PS NJ bow season starts in some places on September 12, so get practicing. Better yet, go buy a crossbow--newly legal, lots of fun, and almost impossible to miss what you're aiming at.
Rember this year its "no weapons" and only hand to paw combat allowed!
Hope you get your limit!
North of Rt. 78 is not enough. There are bears further south than that. The area should be expanded.
Never been brave enough to try bear meat.
I live in an area where bears are often seen. I have a few seconds of video taken some weeks ago of a bear enjoying a snack from my neighbor’s trash can. When I take the dog for a walk, I wear a whistle (can’t hurt, might help). We’ve had a few close encounters.
The best part of the bear hunt will be the silly letters to the editor from those against it that will be printed from now until December.
What about east of 287? I can easily see that there could be problem bears around the Great Swamp area and maybe in and around Watchung Reservation. It’s been a while since I have lived in the area. Left in 1988, have not been back since.
I was hiking in that neighborhood on July 4th, got to see a bear up close and personal as I was crossing the main street to continue on the AT trail.
Just about 1.5 miles east of this guy is the insane bear activist leader Susan Kehoe who was convicted due to her daily feedings of over 15 bears in her backyard in a suburban development.
http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2008/04/advocates_charged_with_illegal.html
I have great respect for those who eat bear meat, and great respect for those who won't kill anything they can't eat. I pretty much eat what I kill--deer, turkeys, etc.--but I have no hard and fast rule about having to eat what I kill.
So I won't eat bear meat. But I have no problem killing a bear for (1) its fur or (2) to be a useful game management tool or (3) the thrill of the hunt.
I think any one of those is a valid reason for killing a black bear in NJ--or for hunting any non-endangered animal, for that matter.
For those who disagree, again, I respect your opinion. But too many in the outdoor community are attacking each other--our own--over matters of hunting "purity." A few examples: All fishermen must catch-and-release all fish; a crossbow isn't real bow hunting; a modern in-line muzzeloader isn't real muzzeloader hunting; AR-style rifles shouldn't be used for hunting; shooting a button buck is wrong; baiting is wrong; using dogs is wrong; etc. etc. etc.
So whatever one's opinion is on eating bear meat, just beware divida et impera. That's all I'm saying.
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