United We Fish

[Aaron]

http://www.unitedwefish.com/

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What is everyone's interpretation of what is happening with congress
and the fishing industry? Is congress nudging towards criminalizing our
right to fish?

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For Immediate Release
3/26/10

An ad hoc coalition of recreational, commercial and party/charter fishing organizations brought thousands of fishermen to Washington to demonstrate to Congress how important it is to change the Magnuson Act, the federal law that underlies our national fisheries management program. In a loud and unified voice they made it clear that the unnecessary rigidity that has been added to the Act by foundation-funded environmental activists is threatening fishing-related businesses and the communities they support in every coastal state.


Keep Fishermen Fishing and Working is the name of the national organization formed by the organizers of the rally and bringing together all fishing user groups that were represented in Washington. The group's main goals are to keep fishing, keep working, and keep businesses that are dependent on fishing thriving.


Since the Magnuson Act was signed into law in 1976, the role of independent fishermen in the federal fisheries management process has been steadily eroded by Environmental Non-Governmental Organizations. Among other tactics, they have used their multi-million dollar budgets provided by a handful of “charitable” foundations with strong corporate ties to subsidize “fishermen” and fishing organizations to tout their brand of fisheries management. For the first time, independent fishermen will have a grass-roots mechanism to counter the effects of these “Astroturf” organizations and individuals.


Concurrent with the Washington rally, the organizers had a web-based petition that garnered almost 5,000 signatures including the leaders of over 40 national, regional and state fishing organizations. Representing all sectors of the recreational, commercial and party/charter fisheries, the people who attended the rally and those who signed the petition have formed the nucleus of an organization that will have unprecedented influence in Washington.


As one of the first orders of business, Keep Fishermen Fishing has targeted Florida, Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, New Jersey, Georgia and Texas for mini-rallies, demonstrating to the elected leaders how the Magnuson Act has been transformed into a tool that is being used against the fishermen in those states.


More information and membership forms are available at the Keep Fishermen Fishing website.


For more information about Keep Fishermen Fishing and Working, contact Jim Donofrio at
202-236-4867 (jimdrfa@aol.com) or Nils Stolpe at 386-409-0675 (nilsstolpe@cfl.rr.com).

[jibbguy]

Great link and cause, Aaron.

I know several professional, and semi-professional fishermen here. And i can tell you that all these new laws are about destroying small independent fishermen, to the advantage of the large corporations who are taking over the industry. NOTHING will affect THEIR ability to rape the oceans with their huge processing ships, all of these laws ONLY SERVE TO MAKE IT EASIER ON THEM... even to the point of FORCING the local fishermen to SHOW THE WORLD their secret fishing spots SO THE CORPORATE FISHING SHIPS CAN STEAL THEM (...the mandated locater beacons that fishermen must pay thousands a year for now; and that ANYONE can read with the proper radio equipment). Many of these fishing spots in the Keys have been a family secret for several generations... and in about a year since this law went into effect, we see exactly that happening.

The next law they forced on the local fishermen is the requirement to have a video camera onboard, running all the time during harvesting.. for several thousands more per year in government charges. THE LARGE CORPORATE SHIPS ARE EXCLUDED FROM THIS LAW.

Lol, something "smells bad" in the fishing industry. The fact is, that until these large corporate ships started their rape of the area (that collect EVERY TYPE of sea creature, not just line fishing for reef fish, selective trawling for Shrimp, or laying lobster traps as the locals do), the fisheries were sound and renewable. Yet, why is it that the locals must pay with their livelihood for this destruction caused by the corporations?

Because they cannot afford Washington lobbyists like the corporations have.