Richard Laney of Gardiner, ME In regards to Bill Randall's comments about me, I would like to give the correct facts that actually took place.
I hunted bobcats with hounds for many years and never set off any traps in the woods.
Truthfully I saw very few that were set. I knew a couple of trappers that trapped for many years in Hobstown, Upper Enchanted in Sommerset County, and if they knew I was going to be running my hounds in the area, they would spring their traps. I had a very good relationship between the trapper and myself. I would like to state further, I have the utmost confidence in the way the Inland Fisheries and Wildlife is managing the bearhunting and trapping in the State of Maine.
Dick Laney, Maine Registered Guide for 35 years.report abuse

Dena Winslow of Presque Isle, ME Great article and interesting comments from Cecil Gray and Bill Randall. I have the utmost respect for both of you! Al Libby, just so you know the real truth... PETA has absolutely nothing to do with this bill to ban bear trapping. Unfortunately, you have fallen victim to the false propaganda out there that the oppontnts of the bill want you to believe. Actually this bill comes directly from Maine and Maine people! It is Mainer's who overwhelmingly (according to recent polls, and the close vote of the referendum) want this horrible practice stopped! Now, I also believe that people outside Maine do not approve of bear trapping - otherwise Maine wouldn't be the only state that still allows it. However, those people from other states have nothing to do with this particilar bill. I listened carefully at the testimony opposing this legislation and interestingly enough, there wasn't even ONE single thing that could be considered a reasonable grounds to oppose it. Danny Martin even likened it to fishing with flies verses worms in his testimony! Hardly a valid argument for bear trapping in my opinion! The real reason for such poor logic is that there is NO GOOD reason to uphold this cruel abusive practice in Maine any longer. There simply wasn't anything he could have said to actually support the continuation of a practice that the vast majority of people in Maine want to see end. No wonder he had to talk about fishing in his testimony! I applaud Ms. Eberly for her courage to take a stand against a group of her fellow elected officials who so obviously don't give a darn about what their constituants think. If they did, they would have unanamously voted this bill "ought to pass!" Now that the bill goes to the full Legislature, I believe that the other elected officials realize that Mainers want to see this barbaric practice ended once and for all. Call your legislator and urge them to do the right thing and support this important legislation! report abuse

Bill Randall of Winthrop, ME And I should add that this MPGA group actually voted to ban bear trapping during this time. If the recreational hunters with dogs spoke the truth, they would tell you they hate traps and snares. They have seen their dogs killed and maimed in these things, just as I have. I saw an old bobcat hunting friend, Dick Laney of Gardiner, at the bear hearing on Tuesday who used to set off all of the traps he ever saw in the woods. That was back when traps were legal to set for bobcats during the winter time. I know other bobcat hunters who used to do the same thing.report abuse

Bill Randall of Winthrop, ME I made a typo and here is the correction.

This group of hunters and guides did not care a twit about other Maine recreational hunters and sportsmen and the MPGA membership was at that time solely a group of greedy bear bait hunting guides who ultimately took over and now effectively own our public resource, the bear. report abuse

Bill Randall of Winthrop, ME Brian, I have never been a member of the Maine Professional Guide’s Association and here is the basic reason why. In 1980, after the Maine Legislature told those of us who hunted bear with hounds and bait to clean up our act by voting overwhelming in the House of Representatives to ban both practices, I and other bear hunters met as a group for the sole purpose of forming the MPGA. I actually went to the IF&W building and handwrote all of the names and addresses of guide license holders. We met in Patten at Finley Clark’s lodge as he and bear baiter named Schmidt were the first to bring commercial bear baiting to Maine. But I refused to join the MPGA after hearing what their single interest was – commercial bear baiting and to a lesser degree, the commercialism of bear hunting with dogs. This group of hunters and guides did not care a twit about other Maine recreational hunters and sportsmen and the MTA membership was at hat time solely a group of greedy bear bait hunting guides who ultimately took over and now effectively own our public resource, the bear. They have done this by paying the North Woods landowners through Albro Cowperthwaite for exclusive bear baiting and hunting rights. I have a copy and paste of what all of these commercial bear guides say like “bum to millionaire” Helmstrom who claims (and does) to have exclusive hunting rights on 1 million acres. Few recreational hunters know that they are forbidden to hunt bear in the North Maine Woods whether they wish to pay for a bear baiting site or not. If you wish to go bear hunting with bait, Brian, you can only get to the 3.5 millions acres of woods behind the North Maine Woods gates by paying a daily fee to get through the gates and then paying a bear baiting guide an exorbitant fee to sit on his bait pile. Good luck, Brian. You have been kicked out of the woods and I’ll bet you don’t even know it and you can thank the Maine Professional Guides Association for doing it. And this is my short story of the facts.report abuse

Bill Randall of Winthrop, ME Badoog: I never thought that simply changing my views about the merits or demerits of bear trapping would result in the verbal assaults and endless castigation I have received from the trapping community. Some of the mail I have received is the most vicious and profane things I have ever read. Yes, I know we have a few Neanderthals in Maine, but holy smoly. I think I now understand why so many hunters don’t dare to speak out against bear trapping for they know there is a price to pay if they do. It has not been fun to be treated like a pariah just for telling the truth about something I did in the past. Do I need to say more?report abuse

Bill Randall of Winthrop, ME I am a member of SAM as well as one of its founders in 1975. It bothers somewhat that my executive director, Mr. Smith, constantly labels people as "animal rights fanatics" who might differ with SAM's position such as the current bear trapping issue. And SAM also applies this same label to all of the Maine organizations that are not against hunting but support the humane treatment of domestic animals like dogs and cats. I don't want to label the SAM organization or my director as a "radical extremist" and I won't if Mr. Smith will stop his deceitful agenda and the labeling of sportsmen and others who do nothing more than support the killing of wilderness animals in a more dignified manner. Simply said, bear trapping does not meet this standard.report abuse

Cecil Gray of bingham, ME Brian: I let my Membership expire after seeing their politics. In my opinion there is a lot of professionalism missing. Name one place where hunting has been eliminated. Nowhere. Tired argument and an invalid one. Bear trapping threatens hunters.report abuse

Brian of West Gardiner, ME This is just another ploy by the anti-hunters in their attempt to rid maine of all hunting activity. The current laws are working well, stop tampering.

Bill Randell...you are a very colorful writer...nice spin! Bill you should tell your buddy and all sports knowing cecil grey does not appear on the Maine Professional Guides Association member list!

HMMM, makes ya wonderreport abuse

Bill Randall of Winthrop, ME My credentials are: I have been a lifetime hunter, a professional guide, a trapper, a bear gall dealer, and a former fur buyer. I still avidly support the taking of wildlife so long as the methods used are done in an ethical and fair chase manner. All of the wildlife harvesting that is done today in Maine meets that standard with one exception - the hunting and trapping of bear - our big game animal that is also one of the world's most intelligent creatures. For those of you who don't know much about bear, they are nurturers and teach their young for two years not unlike a mother of human beings. I respectfully ask our fish and game department, our legislators, and our citizens to abolish this archaic and unnecessary way of harvesting these magnificent animals. And to those who are reading this comment, you should know that trapping bear is the only thing I have done as a Maine sportsmen that I am now ashamed of doing. I say this after having trapped or participated in the trapping of many bear. In closing, I must say that Cecil Gray is one of Maine's all time professional guides in addition to being an ethical and fair chase hunter. I encourage other Maine sportsmen to take heed in what Mr. Gray he says about this blemish on our State. report abuse