The following article appeared in the Outdoors section of the Jackson, MS. Clarion Ledger Newpaper on Sunday November 28, 2004.
I still oppose, with every ounce of my being, the practice of hunting and killing deer with the aid of bait.
It is illegal, as it should be. Those caught hunting over bait should face substantial consequences for their action, but they do not.
By substantial I mean heavy fines plus a loss of hunt- Bobby ing privilege, simi- Cleveland lar to the penalties given people caught hunting deer at night with spotlights or shooting from a vehicle on a public road.
Those folks can be fined several thousands of dollars, made to forfeit their vehicles (a rarity) and their firearms, and are not
allowed to purchase a hunting license for three years.Such penalties have not eliminated headlighting and road-hunting, but they have reduced it.
Fines are a joke. Baiting continues to grow. The current fine of $25 to $100,plus court costs, for hunting deer over bait is a joke.
Zoom in View of the above image.
That is no more a deterrent than for me to write 4now you folks behave and don’t do that anymore. I’m serious.
The biggest penalty for baiting involves nothing legal, just ridicule baiters get when caught — ridicule they get from other baiters for being stupid enough to be arrested.
Otherwise, they can plunk down what usually amounts to less than $100 for a fine, stop by the store for another $6 sack of corn and go back to hunting camp.
We need to either add a substantial deterrent penal or— and I can’t believe I’m fixing to type these words—we need to legalize it. One way or the other, it’s time to fix this ridiculous situation. The status quo isn’t working.
Consider this:
That is so wrong.
Contact Bobby Cleveland at (601) 961-7225 or email to bcleveland@clarionledger.com.
The following article by Bobby Cleveland appeared in the Clarion Ledger in the 'Outdoors' Section on Sunday, January 23, 2005.
By Bobby Cleveland ( bcleveland@clarionledger.com)
State officials were warned that the cull cow beef plant would never work, yet they chose to overlook the experts' advice and not listen to researchers' predictions of doom.
We all know what happened.
Those experts were right. The plant failed, and Mississippians, already short on government funding, are stuck with a $50 million-plus- and-growing, bill to pay for that stupid mistake.
We are also left with this huge slaughterhouse in Oakland that is now nothing more than a monument to letting greed blind our common sense, and to our gullibility.
Somebody suggested that it could be turned into the world's largest deer processing plant.
Sounds funny until you figure that if it were to be mentioned at the Capitol or the Ag Department, it might be taken seriously.
Heck, as ridiculous as it sounds, someone would probably find a way to tie it into support for legalizing the baiting of deer.
That would be no less stupid than, "they do it in Texas ," which seems to be the leading argument to support baiting bills (seven this year, see related story ).
The cull cow plant and baiting deer have one facet in common.
Just as experts suggested the state's investment in a cull cow plant was risky, we have experts who say baiting, and even feeding of deer, is a risky proposition.
Biologists, including those at the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks and at Mississippi State University , are on record as saying that baiting deer could lead to a disease problem in deer and other species.
If the state were ever to have an outbreak of any number of deer diseases, such as chronic wasting disease, congregating deer in a baited area could hasten its spread.
Also, by changing a deer's feeding habits, we also change its behavior and, biologists say, its health. Deer depend on browse and other natural foods for important disease fighting nutrients. It's the only drug store they have.
This list of biological concerns, as well as ethical concerns, could go on and on, but fewer and fewer people seem to care.
Support to legalize baiting deer is growing in many factions.
Farmers, at least several I've talked to, are for it because they feel it could lead to a higher deer kill (and less depredation on crops), and because it would produce a bigger market for their crops - including problem grain that has been declared unfit for livestock and human uses (read the disclaimer on bags stamped "Deer Corn").
Farmer co-ops and other retail groups have obvious reason to favor baiting - money.
Weekend-warrior hunters support it because it makes the killing of deer easier (why not include an overdose of drugs in the bait to save the price of a bullet).
So many hunters are already baiting, despite it being against the law, that some legislators feel their only choice is to legalize it.
Lawmakers shouldn't forget that the people hired to protect our wildlife say baiting is a risk.
That should be the chief consideration when deciding whether or not to cull the baiting idea.
Contact Bobby Cleveland at (601) 961-7225 or email to bcleveland@clarionledger.com .
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