Bear baiting debte sounds familiar theme
Both sides: Outside interests have influence
A black bear sow and her cub wander around Juneau, Alaska, in this undated file photo. A ballot measure to outlaw bear baiting will be on the Nov. election balltot. Both sides in the debate over the measure are accusing each other of allowing outside forces to come in and determine what is good for Alaska. Bear baiting, putting out food as a lure, usually something sweet or greasy, is illegal in 41 states. In Alaska, it can be used only to hunt black bears, not grizzlies.
AP Photo/David J. Sheakley
ANCHORAGE Both sides in the debate over a ballot measure to outlaw bear baiting are accusing each other of allowing Outside forces to come in and determine what is good for Alaska.
The Nov. 2 ballot measure would make baiting or intentionally feeding a bear for the purpose of hunting, photographing or viewing a misdemeanor punishable by up to one year in jail and a $10,000 fine.
Bear baiting putting out food as a lure, usually something sweet or greasy is illegal in 41 states. In Alaska, it can be used only to hunt black bears, not grizzlies.
Citizens United Against Bear Baiting, or CUBB, sponsored the initiative. CUBB's 12-member board includes local hunters, an Alaska Native, a bear viewing guide and a member and former member of the Alaska Board of Game.
''We are an Alaskan organization formed by Alaskans for Alaskans,'' said John Toppenberg, executive director of the Alaska Wildlife Alliance, a grass-roots group formed in 1978 that is CUBB's main source of support.
Alaskans for Professional Wildlife, a political action committee fighting the initiative, has cast the measure as an attack on the Alaska way of life.
The PAC's roster includes state-based groups such as the Alaska Outdoor Council and the Alaska Trappers Association, and national groups such as the National Rifle Association and U.S. Sportsmen's Alliance.
The PAC put the Alaska issue this way in a mailing to registered voters: ''Alaska's heritage is at stake ... PROTECT ALASKA Vote ''NO'' on Ballot Measure 3.
The theme resonates with Alaskans who pride themselves in being independent thinkers who do it their way, regardless of what people in the Lower 48 think.
Alaska has between 100,000 and 200,000 black bears. Baiting accounts for about 20 percent of approximately 2,100 black bears hunted and killed annually. About 1,300 permits are issued each year, according to the Alaska Department of Fish and Game.
Fish and Game contends bear baiting is a useful wildlife management tool, particularly in areas of Alaska where dense vegetation makes it difficult to get close enough to get a good shot at a black bear.
''If done right, hunting black bears over bait can be productive, exciting and inoffensive to others,'' according to the state Fish and Game Web site.
According to campaign disclosure reports filed with the state, the PAC as of Oct. 1 had an income of $384,199 and expenses of $362,655. The biggest contributors were Ballot Issues Coalition of Vienna, Va., a coalition of conservation, pro-hunting and pro-gun groups formed to specifically fight anti-hunting initiatives. Other big contributors were Safari Club International and its local chapter, U.S. Sportsmen's Alliance and the Alaska Outdoor Council.
CUBB's total income as of Oct. 1 was $51,219 and expenses were $47,090.25. It was running about $23,000 in debt. Nearly all the contributions were from the Alaska Wildlife Alliance, a group formed to protect Alaska wildlife.
Opponents of the ballot measure claimed in the official state election pamphlet that the measure was ''proposed by out-of-state extremists like Greenpeace and PETA.''
''That is a bald-faced lie,'' Toppenberg said, adding that the alliance has had no association with Greenpeace in 20 years and never has had anything to do with People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals.
The petition drive to get the bear baiting measure on the ballot was sponsored by an all-Alaskan group: former Lt. Gov. Lowell Thomas Jr.; John Erickson, a big-game hunter and master guide; and George Pollard, a retired big-game hunter and master guide.
While it's true the three are Alaskans, opponents of the measure contend that lurking behind CUBB are animal rights and extreme conservation groups that want to stop hunting.
''On every anti-hunting issue that you face you deal with a group of anti-hunting interests. They are in this collective group. Their target has now become Alaska,'' said Jerod Broadfoot, a spokesperson for the Wilson-ville, Ore.-based Pac/West Communications, hired by the political action committee fighting the initiative.
Toppenberg said CUBB is not anti-hunting.
''We have no history of being against hunting. We support ethical, fair chase, sound science hunting. We support subsistence hunting. We support Alaskans going out and meat hunting,'' he said.
Toppenberg said the other side, with its continued assertions that Outside groups are behind CUBB, is trying to divert attention from the real issue.
''We think the Alaska way to hunt is fair chase. We think putting garbage in our wilderness is not a good practice,'' he said. ''We think it is a contradiction that hunters should be able to feed bears. We think hunters should be able to hunt bears.''
Bear baiting mostly serves urban and out-of-state hunters who want an easy trophy, Toppenberg said.
''That is the main thing bear baiting is all about,'' he said. ''It is a lazy form of hunting.''
Phil Pringle, past president of the Alaska Bowhunters Association and a member of the PAC's advisory committee, said Measure 3 would take future wildlife management decisions out of the hands of Alaskans.
''Personally, I am tired of Outside organizations from the Lower 48 with deep pockets coming to Alaska and saying that they know how to manage Alaska's resources better than Alaskans,'' Pringle said.
Broadfoot said the inclusion of national groups on their side in the bear baiting issue should come as no surprise.
''The individuals and organizations that oppose game management are out-of-state extremist organizations, such as you fill in the blank the Humane Society of the United States, Defenders of Wildlife, Greenpeace, PETA,'' Broadfoot said.
CUBB has criticized the PAC for including the Jackson, Mich.-based Ted Nugent United Sportsmen of America.
''Ted Nugent isn't your typical washed up '70s rock and roller. He is a wildly outspoken 'hunter' who prides himself on his uncanny ability to kill things,'' the CUBB Web site says.
Broadfoot said Nugent's support is a no-brainer given the growing strength of anti-hunting forces nationwide.
''The fact that Ted Nugent said he supports our efforts should be no surprise,'' Broadfoot said.
AP Photo/David J. Sheakley A black bear sow and her cub wander around Juneau in this undated file photo. A ballot measure to outlaw bear baiting will be on the November election ballot.
Both sides: Outside interests have influence
Bear baiting debate sounds familiar theme
By MARY PEMBERTON
Associated Press Writer
ANCHORAGE Both sides in the debate over a ballot measure to outlaw bear baiting are accusing each other of allowing Outside forces to come in and determine what is good for Alaska.
The Nov. 2 ballot measure would make baiting or intentionally feeding a bear for the purpose of hunting, photographing or viewing a misdemeanor punishable by up to one year in jail and a $10,000 fine.
Bear baiting putting out food as a lure, usually something sweet or greasy is illegal in 41 states. In Alaska, it can be used only to hunt black bears, not grizzlies.
Citizens United Against Bear Baiting, or CUBB, sponsored the initiative. CUBB's 12-member board includes local hunters, an Alaska Native, a bear viewing guide and a member and former member of the Alaska Board of Game.
''We are an Alaskan organization formed by Alaskans for Alaskans,'' said John Toppenberg, executive director of the Alaska Wildlife Alliance, a grass-roots group formed in 1978 that is CUBB's main source of support.
Alaskans for Professional Wildlife, a political action committee fighting the initiative, has cast the measure as an attack on the Alaska way of life.
The PAC's roster includes state-based groups such as the Alaska Outdoor Council and the Alaska Trappers Association, and national groups such as the National Rifle Association and U.S. Sportsmen's Alliance.
The PAC put the Alaska issue this way in a mailing to registered voters: ''Alaska's heritage is at stake ... PROTECT ALASKA Vote ''NO'' on Ballot Measure 3.
The theme resonates with Alaskans who pride themselves in being independent thinkers who do it their way, regardless of what people in the Lower 48 think.
Alaska has between 100,000 and 200,000 black bears. Baiting accounts for about 20 percent of approximately 2,100 black bears hunted and killed annually. About 1,300 permits are issued each year, according to the Alaska Department of Fish and Game.
Fish and Game contends bear baiting is a useful wildlife management tool, particularly in areas of Alaska where dense vegetation makes it difficult to get close enough to get a good shot at a black bear.
''If done right, hunting black bears over bait can be productive, exciting and inoffensive to others,'' according to the state Fish and Game Web site.
According to campaign disclosure reports filed with the state, the PAC as of Oct. 1 had an income of $384,199 and expenses of $362,655. The biggest contributors were Ballot Issues Coalition of Vienna, Va., a coalition of conservation, pro-hunting and pro-gun groups formed to specifically fight anti-hunting initiatives. Other big contributors were Safari Club International and its local chapter, U.S. Sportsmen's Alliance and the Alaska Outdoor Council.
CUBB's total income as of Oct. 1 was $51,219 and expenses were $47,090.25. It was running about $23,000 in debt. Nearly all the contributions were from the Alaska Wildlife Alliance, a group formed to protect Alaska wildlife.
Opponents of the ballot measure claimed in the official state election pamphlet that the measure was ''proposed by out-of-state extremists like Greenpeace and PETA.''
''That is a bald-faced lie,'' Toppenberg said, adding that the alliance has had no association with Greenpeace in 20 years and never has had anything to do with People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals.
The petition drive to get the bear baiting measure on the ballot was sponsored by an all-Alaskan group: former Lt. Gov. Lowell Thomas Jr.; John Erickson, a big-game hunter and master guide; and George Pollard, a retired big-game hunter and master guide.
While it's true the three are Alaskans, opponents of the measure contend that lurking behind CUBB are animal rights and extreme conservation groups that want to stop hunting.
''On every anti-hunting issue that you face you deal with a group of anti-hunting interests. They are in this collective group. Their target has now become Alaska,'' said Jerod Broadfoot, a spokesperson for the Wilson-ville, Ore.-based Pac/West Communications, hired by the political action committee fighting the initiative.
Toppenberg said CUBB is not anti-hunting.
''We have no history of being against hunting. We support ethical, fair chase, sound science hunting. We support subsistence hunting. We support Alaskans going out and meat hunting,'' he said.
Toppenberg said the other side, with its continued assertions that Outside groups are behind CUBB, is trying to divert attention from the real issue.
''We think the Alaska way to hunt is fair chase. We think putting garbage in our wilderness is not a good practice,'' he said. ''We think it is a contradiction that hunters should be able to feed bears. We think hunters should be able to hunt bears.''
Bear baiting mostly serves urban and out-of-state hunters who want an easy trophy, Toppenberg said.
''That is the main thing bear baiting is all about,'' he said. ''It is a lazy form of hunting.''
Phil Pringle, past president of the Alaska Bowhunters Association and a member of the PAC's advisory committee, said Measure 3 would take future wildlife management decisions out of the hands of Alaskans.
''Personally, I am tired of Outside organizations from the Lower 48 with deep pockets coming to Alaska and saying that they know how to manage Alaska's resources better than Alaskans,'' Pringle said.
Broadfoot said the inclusion of national groups on their side in the bear baiting issue should come as no surprise.
''The individuals and organizations that oppose game management are out-of-state extremist organizations, such as you fill in the blank the Humane Society of the United States, Defenders of Wildlife, Greenpeace, PETA,'' Broadfoot said.
CUBB has criticized the PAC for including the Jackson, Mich.-based Ted Nugent United Sportsmen of America.
''Ted Nugent isn't your typical washed up '70s rock and roller. He is a wildly outspoken 'hunter' who prides himself on his uncanny ability to kill things,'' the CUBB Web site says.
Broadfoot said Nugent's support is a no-brainer given the growing strength of anti-hunting forces nationwide.
''The fact that Ted Nugent said he supports our efforts should be no surprise,'' Broadfoot said.