LJ Conditions has it all wrong, Clipboarders are good

[dos ballenas]

Originally Posted by MuddyMike

I met a clipboard lady coming in at Dana Landing. I asked "Who is this for?" She said DFG. She had a DFG hat and shirt on, not a uniform, just a hat with the emblem, and white shirt with the emblem. She was not driving a DFG marked car either.

DFG wardens wear uniforms.

DFG biologists DO NOT wear uniforms, or drive state vehicles.

You guys are classic. The sky is falling the sky is falling!

Do you guys believe in medical science?

There are many people that are passionate about the ocean. Most of them do not have hidden agendas.

Yes there are flaws in the way the data is collected. Yes there are probably better ways to get better data.

We still have a lot to learn about the ocean and all its resources.

I can't figure it out: The same guys that don't trust fisheries biologists are the same guys that get excited about stuff like the satellite tagging of albacore tuna and tracking them across the ocean from Japan to the U.S. West coast.

Without fisheries research and management many of our Ca fisheries would have collapsed a long time ago.

Can you imagine what it would be like if no one ever took the time to figure out how long it takes for a Calico to reach sexual maturity? What about banning inshore drift gill nets?

A wise man once said: Its not about closures, its about proper management.

[MuddyMike]

Originally Posted by dos ballenas

DFG wardens wear uniforms.

DFG biologists DO NOT wear uniforms, or drive state vehicles.

You guys are classic. The sky is falling the sky is falling!

Do you guys believe in medical science?

Chill out man. What part of my post mentioned I doubted her.

I was responding to the other post about people asking who they were. I had no reason to doubt she was taking data for DFG.

[MuddyMike]

ok, after re-reading it, i can see how it could have been taken that way. i was just reporting what i saw. the thought of her not being legit didn't even cross my mind. she even had a big metal fish measurer with her.

[T Bone]

I say just tell them the truth.If the other side wants to twist it so be it.Integrity is allways more important.

I had a clipboard lady call me on the phone.It wasnt about what I caught,It was about where I fish.It was an economic impact survey.

[dorado50]

You guys are classic. The sky is falling the sky is falling!

X2......lmao

[TCS]

The last time I got questioned by the 'clipboard people' I didn't feel like talking. This girl who had seemed nice and cute starts to get all mad and she touches the secret button on her collar and a black unmarked van came roaring onto the beach. These navy seal types hopped out, threw me in the van and off we go. Next thing I know the damn van is lifting off, we leave the atmosphere to outer space behind the moon to be a friggin alien mothership.

I won't gross you out with the other details of the abduction, except to say the the 'clipboard people' are not actually people at all and their 'survey' is really a part of a diabolical plan to take over and dominate our planet!

[Tman]

Personally, I had my doubts from the beginning. When we were asked to pinpoint the areas we fish the most, I pinpointed other areas...I just felt at that time it could be used against us, that an area with the majority of kayakers claiming said area as the area we most often fish would be termed 'overfishing'.

The same reason I never brought up Cardiff, Leucadia, or S Cbad in any of the meetings...

I felt it would be construed as an area that needed to be protected, not based on scientific data, but the simpleton mentality of "since so many fish that area, they must be depleting that area".

As Clay once told me back in his Pokeman days that still sticks in my head...

"Confusion is good, it does the most damage"

I could be wrong, but after asking many questions during this whole fiasco, watching the lower echelons squirm at my questions only to defer to their superiors, I have come upon the conclusion that shit not only rolls downhill, but uphill as well.

The clipboarders respond to the data inputs (the ones at the meetings that were always glued to their laptops). The data inputs respond to the advisory team, who then responded to the BRTF.

What left a very bitter taste was watching these so called 'advisory' members speak on behalf of closures, going completely against us and in my opinion, completely misrepresenting themselves.

As far as DFG goes, I still cannot fathom the need for 8+ officers at the meetings, nor can I fathom the need for the BRTF members to enlist them as bodyguards, especially since we were not consulted...after all, we are the ones who pay their salary.

I can go get a Boy Scout hat and patch, but would that make me a Boy Scout?

Hell, let's make it a new fashion trend for kayakers...let's all wear DFG hats...

Respect is earned, not given.

[Rusty]

If they want to research the fish population, they should be swimming in the water counting the fish. Its not my job to report how many fish are in the ocean based on how much I catch, nor is most of yours. Until we are getting paid to do their research for them I will continue to ignore their existence when they drill me for information.

I hope I don't get abducted

[dos ballenas]

Originally Posted by Rusty

If they want to research the fish population, they should be swimming in the water counting the fish. Its not my job to report how many fish are in the ocean based on how much I catch, nor is most of yours. Until we are getting paid to do their research for them I will continue to ignore their existence when they drill me for information.

I hope I don't get abducted

You're right, it's not your job.

And for that matter fisheries biology is not an easy job.

Information from the general public is only one aspect of how data is gathered.

Remember that as fishermen we are the only ones that see what is really going on with our local fisheries which makes the data we can provide very valuable.

Once again, if you don't contribute, don't complain. For that matter you shouldn't bother reading anything scientific about fisheries or fish behavior.

It is important that we understand that recording your catch has been an important part of fisheries data collection for years. Recreational catch is an important component to understanding fluctuations in the marine ecosystem. It has led to lots of important fisheries managment practices. You're all benefiting from a lot of hard work done by people who have devoted their lives to study the things they love. Fisheries biologists are low payed but passionate people. Most like to catch, kill, and eat fish. Its not too much to ask to try and make their jobs a little bit easier is it?

Reporting your catch can be extremely helpful and benefit fish, fisheries, and in turn, fishermen.

Do you want GOOD data or BAD data.

In the end, do what makes you feel good. Thats all that matters.

Everyone has made good points here. None of my statements are meant to be personal. It's just that I feel strongly about this topic and I think that it is often misunderstood.

Extremest environmentalists successfully swayed Ca to enact the MLPA while simultaneously discrediting fishermen and painting fisheries biology as the enemy.

-Owyn