I don't see any "tribal bashing" in the above posts ... I see "net bashing".

I don't quite understand why it is that any time people bad-mouth nets, we're "Indian bashing" ... hear it all the time up here from both the Quillayutes and the Hoh.

Guess what, the state of WA, as messed up as it is, had the foresight to ban commercial netting of steelhead in the rivers nearly 70 years ago ... they also stopped in-river netting of salmon (with the exception of the Columbia of course) ... so there is just one user group indescriminately netting the rivers ... that happens to be the tribes.

Letty, can you honestly say that you see a difference in the bashing of in-river nets compared to non-tribal commercials (I-696??). Until the nets are gone ... they will be one day ... we'll probably have to see the runs totally collapse before they do go.

Let go of this Indian bashing thing ... it's the practice ... and we'd be screaming just as loud (if not louder as some stay silent in fear of being politically incorrect) if they were of some other heritage.

Here's some more bashing: heard at our local guide's meeting tonight that the state says that the Quillayute tribe is estimated to have taken 80% of the returning wild coho run this year ...

Have also heard rumor that the whale meat of the grey whale killed up north was stored in a locker ... supposedly it failed ... and the meat has been dumped.

One more thing I heard tonight that I hadn't heard before: some kids from E. Washington dipnetted Snyder Creek last spring near the guides' hatchery ... took about ten fish ... ran out of gas around Kalaloch and WFDW officer stopped to see if they needed help ... need I say more?? GOTCHA!

[This message has been edited by Bob (edited 11-30-1999).]