More Harassment from Watermen

[drewzim]

If you want to really be amused find the board where all those exiled from TF hang out now. I'm pretty sure most of them live in an alternate reality.

[CaptNemo]

just to play devils advocate for a minute, the ches bay rec anglers are the most possessive, holier than thou people I have ever run across on my worldy travels, not choosing sides here, but every intelligent discussion has to be represented from both sides. The rec anglers of the bay believe they own the resource just as much as the comms...If I was a comm on the ches bay I would hate you all too, thank god I found greener pastures and don't deal with either side anymore...but I can see both sides equally.

99% of TF is weekend warriors that go out twice a month, on sat morning, get skunked because they don't know how to fish and then hop online and blame the comms...if you are not limiting out on rockfish every trip out or close to it, you simply have not done enough of your OWN homework and dues on the water, there are more fish in that bay then could ever be poached by the "bad"comms...

if your not catching fish and blaming the comms your lazy...

[Capt Brady Bounds]

After reading the amendments and new text of the bill, I withdraw my offer of assistance. Have a nice day !

[TomGlenBurnie]

Thanks Capt Nemo, for your ideas, you make some worthwile points, from that submarine of yours...
.
I am the posterchild for a guy who has not had good success fishing lately. I have fished this Bay since "Diamond Jim" was chased around.
However It seems that my fishing skill can be separated from the poaching issue.
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Brandon is a better fisherman, but even if he fished with a rusty Shakespeare Reel, He should not be Harrassed. He did his civic duty.
I thanked him for speaking up for the fish, and going to that meeting. Why do you not thank him?
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There were numerous defendants in the District Court for Somerset County; Do you dispute that there were over 25 trials on Natural Resources [Somerset alone] Matters? There are numerous threads in " Protect the Fish " that detail where and when citizens faced a judge. The facts are mounting up and the large number of cases / citations are kind of speaking for themselves.
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Fish cannot talk or defend themselves. Some of us are trying to do some good. Some of us really care about the Bay.
I for one, welcome your comments and your ideas. We all anticipate your reply, Respectfully sent Tom G.

[Capt Brady Bounds]

just to play devils advocate for a minute, the ches bay rec anglers are the most possessive, holier than thou people I have ever run across on my worldy travels, not choosing sides here, but every intelligent discussion has to be represented from both sides. The rec anglers of the bay believe they own the resource just as much as the comms...If I was a comm on the ches bay I would hate you all too, thank god I found greener pastures and don't deal with either side anymore...but I can see both sides equally.

99% of TF is weekend warriors that go out twice a month, on sat morning, get skunked because they don't know how to fish and then hop online and blame the comms...if you are not limiting out on rockfish every trip out or close to it, you simply have not done enough of your OWN homework and dues on the water, there are more fish in that bay then could ever be poached by the "bad"comms...

if your not catching fish and blaming the comms your lazy...

Capt Nemo, A couple of valid points in there ! However I respectfully disagree on your statement, "......., there are more fish in that bay then could ever be poached by the "bad"comms.... " I do not hold that belief, simply because commercial fishing techniques are highly efficient tools in the hands of experienced watermen and what keeps them from wiping out striped bass,for example, is that most of them conduct themselves within the law or nearly so. Once a violator crosses the line, and starts to fish totally illegal, without regard to getting caught, what is to keep him from catching all that he can...only the problem of finding a buyer and the logistics of selling them, ie. sheer bulk of the fish, transportation, etc.

It is the prospect that a gill netter gone amuck, has so much more potential to do massive damage to local fish stocks. I compare it to the man who throws firecrackers on the sidewalk on the fourth of July ; it's illegal and should not be condoned. However if he decided that the device used for his amusement was sticks of dynamite, the potential for a bad outcome is considerably greater. Therefore we are all in agreement that there needs to be regulations, that they need to be enforced, and there needs to be the perception that justice is being evenhandedly administered.

Back to the topic of this thread; Brandon perceives undue harassment. It's his sandbox here, his rules, and his privilege to post as he wishes. The underlying question...the elephant in the room...is what to do about that and is Brandon asking us directly or indirectly, to do what ? Advise him ? Certainly if there was an email address or a return phone number,for the alleged harasser, posting it with a request to transmitt one's message to Mr Bad Person could be a ploy. Beyond that, simply identifying Mr Bad Person by name and other directory info. is a choice and informs us to be on the lookout regarding future dealings.

Going beyond that however, starts creating legal problems.

[Mother Ducker]

Capt. Nemo are rec's to stand by and watch all the illegal activity and do nothing. I believe the poachers many commercial have and are creating there own destiny and so be it. I'm not as smart as many Capt.'s but it you believe that the stock can't be remove from the water, your not in reality.

[blue lou]

What is ex-nor?

[Brandon]

Capt Brady

I am not asking for anyone to do anything, just pointing out the sort of tactics that these watermen take. I will post the ad that someone put on Craig's List as well. I removed it, but I need to edit the language in it. The lucky person who posted that is going to be in a world of trouble when that post is traced. The post was removed from Crags List as well as here this past weekend.

This guy Robert Hodge Newberry has published his own number in a comment to an article Candy wrote about his poaching. It's how I originally found out who he was, just googled his number. You can read a post by him at the end of Candy's article here.

If you want to see his record you can look him up here .

[J bones]

I believe Mr. TomGlenBurnie summed it up best. Once a waterman turns into a poacher, he has chosen to defy his stewardship for the sea and has accepted his fate. A poacher has only selfish intentions, whether out of greed or necessity, it does not matter. Once you cross the line, you have made a lifestyle decision and you are unlikely to return. My biggest concern is how many have crossed that line, and has the group as a whole crossed?

"All we can do is what we do and do the best we can at it. The MWA tries its best to ‘have your back’ so that you can make a living working the water." -Larry Simns, President of the Maryland Watermen's Association


The evidence is mounting. I wish for a more honest way, where recs and watermen could coexist with the same cause. In reality, we all want abundance of resource. It appears, however, the divide is widening, and that really is a shame. The resource dictates this, there just is less, of everything. I am willing to give my share back, but when you work for your share, it makes it much harder. The man who goes out to work the water is a noble one, until he choses otherwise. Maryland tradition of watermen is noble, not like the giants of Omega and the like. A single man or a small crew working his share within the law to support his family and his tradition. The bay can support this. The bay cannot support large operations, and aggregates of dishonest individuals. It also cannot support some of our recreational practices, honest and dishonest. We are all accountable, and I think it's sad that the watermen's way is disappearing. But it is a signal for us recs, our time is coming too. We all want the same thing, shame we have to fight over it.

[Wild Bill]

Brandon should re-post the Craig's List tirade against all Tidalfish members. It was placed on Craig's List under Eastern Shore Boats (did not really fit there) but was taken down. Then the comm sympathizer place it on TF at 9 PM on a Sat night, when board traffic was scant. Brandon had to take it down quickly because of the foul language. A slightly sanitized version should be posted here to let TF members know how the comm sympathizers operate and what they are saying about us. I saved a copy of it because it was so "colorful" and sadly typical.

J Bones--I will send you a copy.