CFM - I hope your three hours on the river were productive. My winter steelhead season started out great with several landed on the Kalama around Thanksgiving but has since been a complete bust. I'm hoping the fish will be there after the water levels drop.

We may be working from a different definition of "right" and "privledge". As I see it, a "right" cannot be revoked. In this case, the authority to fish for public resources is a right that is held by either the State or the Tribe. Nobody can revoke these "rights". They are inalienable.

Conversely, a privledge can be granted or denied depending on the circumstances. An individual's authority to hunt or fish is conveyed when they buy a license and agree to follow the rules. This authority can be revoked by the State (or by the Tribe if it's a tribal member), if they do not buy a license, follow the regs, or otherwise fail to abide by the rules. But I would not suggest anyone try this. It's called poaching. Losing your fishing privledges for poaching is common.

Since the authority to fish can be granted or denied to individuals, it is a privledge, not a right. If you still disagree, ask yourself this question: If a poacher loses his/her authoriity to fish (i.e., lose their license), are they losing their "right" or their "privledge"? I will strongly disagree with anyone who believes the State can take away rights. They can only take away privledges.

I'm outta here until next week. Good fishing!