There are many more issues to this folks, as it has become very complex....
How can we trust numbers if you are saying some of them are bogus, Dark?
Why should we get involved if we are being used as pawns in a chess game we will never win?
How do we know this isn't some giant conspiracy by PETA and PEW?
Why bother fighting if many politicians continue to represent special interests, and in cases like the above fail to inform that they stand to benefit from legislation (case of NC trawlers above)?

There are so many questions --
The only clear answer I can give you is this....
If we continue the bickering, and infighting...
If we continue to be cynical (Do you know that somewhere around 70% of the fishermen out there on web-sites and in the real world today continue to claim there is nothing wrong with the striped bass population?) --That to me is incredible, but that's the reality of today.


We're faced with not just a possibility, but the reality of a moratorium.
We have to learn to pick through the statistics, look at the charts, and determine which ones are believable, and which ones aren't.

I'm lucky enough to have the old-timers here and elsewhere bringing this to my attention.
Most fishermen don't have time to do this research.
So if that applies to you, please apply your energy to supporting some one, or some group, who will dissect and fight for these issues for you. Letters and e-mail are helpful, but IMO the real battles here, if we are to win, will have to be won in the courts.

With the corruption and side-deals that are going on, it seems the only option will be to start suing people and supporting groups that will do that for us, just like they did to get the bunker reduction boats out of the surf in NJ in the 1980's.


I for one, do not have all the answers.
The best I can do is try to convey the info Fin and others pass to me, and try to make it interesting for you folks to read. I hope I am somewhat effective in doing that.

But given my claims that 70% of Rec fishermen don't believe we are in a crisis with Striped bass populations, I'm less optimistic at this point than at any point when I became involved in pushing awareness of Striped Bass Issues. I'm not ready to give up. However, right now I'm leaning toward a moratorium. With the apathy and infighting, I don't see many other paths for this to lead to.

Hope I'm wrong, I really do....