Posted on 03/01/2012 1:20:03 PM PST by SmithL
Democratic lawmakers may attempt to oust California Fish and Game Commission President Daniel Richards as early as next week following outrage over his legal killing of a mountain lion on a recent Idaho hunting trip.
Assembly Democrats on Wednesday were looking into the possibility of a legislative resolution that would remove him from the board, one day after Richards sent a letter to the Legislature, the governor and other state officials defiantly defending the killing, mocking critics for their outrage and saying that - contrary to beliefs that the shooting was purely a trophy kill - he did, in fact, eat mountain lion.
"Do you really think a California commissioner is actually obligated to follow California laws across these United States? Really?" Richards wrote on Fish and Game letterhead in a two-page correspondence. "Did I try to change California's laws subversively? Did I encourage anyone to circumvent our rules and regulations? ... While I respect our Fish and Game rules and regulations, my 100 percent legal activity outside California, or anyone else's for that matter, is none of your business."
Richards, a commercial Realtor and developer from Upland (San Bernardino County) who has been on the commission since then-Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger appointed him in 2008, came under fire after a blog posted a photograph of him grinning as he holds up the dead mountain lion. The website, Western Outdoor News, quoted him saying, "I'm glad it's legal in Idaho."
Through a spokeswoman, he declined to comment Wednesday.
It is permissible to hunt the big cats in Idaho, but California has banned the practice since 1971, and voters have twice renewed the restriction in the years since. Richards told the blog that he shot the cougar with a .45-caliber rifle in January after spending eight hours on a $7,000 hunt...
(Excerpt) Read more at sfgate.com ...
Here is how the typical deer hunt went 30 years ago:
Several hunters (all men, of course) gathered at the hunting camp the night before the hunt. We play poker all night & get drunk. Maybe 2 hours of sleep (stupor) before getting up long before dawn.
We walk (stagger) down a pitch dark dirt road to our shooting positions about 100 yards apart. Miles away, somebody lets loose the dogs. We wait, cold & hung over. Something moves in the bushes in front of us, & it sounds like World War III.
Everybody misses the deer, & curses. We load up in the truck to go home. But somebody fails to unload the Mauser, & it goes off in the truck, blowing a hole in the transmission. The walk is long & cold.
That was my last deer hunt. I don't think I ever saw a sober hunter. Not to disparage hunters, but that's the way they did it back in the day in my rural town. Everybody from the mayor to the police chief to the preacher hunted that way - drunk.
From Michigan, huh?
Nobody I know...hunts like that.
Oh we might have a beer after the hunt...but nothing and never like you have described.
My friends and I are sportsmen, and true hunters.
I've guided women and some young men on wild turkey hunts...with good success. No drinking happened.
I'm sorry to hear of your experiences....
Oh, dear - the guy in charge of hunting went hunting.
What’s next - the guy in charge of mass transit takes a bus ride?
Oh, the humanity!
I’ve never met anyone who hunts like that. Not one. You describe some liberal caricature of what they think hunters are. Apparently we have you and your friends to thank for that.
What’s happening in this case— with regard to the CA DFW— is something that I’ve seen happening here in WA, and in AZ too. It used to be that the people who got into hunting and fishing enforcement did so because they were -sportsmen- themselves. They loved the outdoors. They hunted and fished and wanted to preserve the resource and the stock of game for future generations to enjoy.
But now, starting even a couple of decades ago, the people getting jobs in game enforcement are anti-hunting, anti-fishing, animals rights activist types. Not only do they not hunt or fish but they don’t think -anyone- should be hunting or fishing.
Does not bode well.
Meant as sarcasm but not marked properly?
Hunting with hounds is a long and respected American tradition, it is hardly a “Canned Hunt”!
Do not allow yourself to fall prey to the lies and distortions of the PETA-tards!
A genuine “Canned Hunt” (A term invented by anti-hunters) would have only taken eight minutes.
He had Cougar steak for dinner, I wish he would send me some!
I’ve never had it.
I am told it’s pretty good eating, it should be, the big cats eat several deer a month.
He will need several more hides if he wants to make a coat.
He will probably put the hide on the wall, at $7K per hunt he probably is not wealthy enough to make a coat.
He should hunt them in Nevada, much less expensive and a shorter drive.
The truth is neither liberal nor conservative.
It is hard to believe you have NEVER witnessed a hunter drinking.
I am NOT AT ALL suggesting all hunters are drunk. I'm just saying that is the way it was in my home town 30 years ago, & I didn't care to be shot by a drunken fool.
I am NOT against hunting. Though I no longer hunt, I support your right to do so & I support the conservation methods of hunters.
The difference between me & a liberal is that I believe people have a right to do potentially dangerous things if they choose to. It is their business, not mine or the gubmint’s business. Whether I choose to participate is my own business.
Again, the animal's life is just worth more than my entertainment.
You can't eat cougar, can you? Nobody eats cats??? Recycled venison doesn't seem appetizing.
Seriously, the way this Obama economy is going, I may need this info badly in a few months. The neighbor has a large, well fed tabby that would fit purr-fectly on my grill.
A cougar skin coat brings to mind Willie Nelson or Elton John.
Our local “Fur Bearer Specialist” with the state game department insist Cougar (Mountain Lion) is very good eating.
The meat is described as “Fine grain” and mildly flavored.
They are large mammals, just like the deer they eat.
I know several people who do eat Cougar, we have an open season on them here, but you do need a tag.
A coat seems more a practical use to me than a wall covering or fragile rug.
Winter hides would be best.
Wolf coats are good too, maybe we can harvest some in the lower 48 soon.
FYI, house-cats are edible, but not palatable, the meat turns blue on cooking.
As some German U-Boat crews learned when they bought skinned “Rabbit” from Dutch children during W.W. II.
Oh well, maybe I'll make friends with the poodle down the street, just in case Obama is re-..... (I can't even type it - my hand refuses).
You just need to find a good cook-book from the (first) depression era.
Recipes will be found for Skunk, Possum, Muskrat, Snakes, alligator, etc., in addition to the game most Americans are familiar with.
The basic rule is that meat is meat, if you are truly hungry.
Our local library had an excellent old edition, I tried to buy a copy but it was out of print.
The particular book was more complete than modern books, it was illustrated with line drawings and gave explicit instructions for removing varied glands before cooking so the meat would not be ruined.
Check your history, Lewis & Clark often traded with Indian tribes to obtain a dog to eat, an occasional bear was a necessity as most game meat is “Dry”, having very little fat.
Maybe you just want to stock up on SPAM while you can. ;-)
It’s just a poll. Who cares
Voting in these polls is simple and I think well worth while.
It’s my take that we shouldn’t allow Leftist ideology to reign supreme in any place where we can advance the Conservative vision.
I know it can seem like a waste of time, but isn’t it better to have Leftists run into something that challenges their world view constantly?
Why should we allow them to run into places that reinforce their world view? Can’t think of a single reason.
Your take on this is not unique here. There are folks here to refuse to take part in the polls, claiming they are not scientific anyway.
My response to that is, who cares? Let’s not let the Left pretend their views are the majority views.
I’m a conservative, a gun owner, and still think killing this animal is pointless. They’re beautiful animals, let them alone and lets return some the wild back to America. Ya, he’s really macho alright, a 4 year kid could have shot the same animal, the gun did all the work, jump on it’s back with nothing but a knife in your mouth then maybe you’re macho.
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