Piper,

According to the author of Guns, Germs, and Steel, an anthology of human societal development, people in subsistence societies tend to average about 4 hours a day in living off the land. Greed evolved and is a learned human attribute.

Grandpa,

As already mentioned, treaty fishermen continue to fish because they can, because they enjoy it, and because it's the most viable economic activity readily available to some. That said, I'll repeat: the market is having a serious effect on treaty fishing. I've known a young Indian who is now his Tribe's fisheries manager. He told me that for three seasons now, the tribe has used casino revenue to pay several Tribal fishermen to exercise the Tribe's treaty fishing right by paying the difference between the ex-vessel price for fish and the cost of fishing. They sell some of this catch and use the rest for Tribal ceremonies and subsistence.

I'm all for them fishing for ceremonial and subsistence use, but fishing for chum eggs for Asia seems undignified to me.

Sincerely,

Salmo g.