"sfw" Montana WOW!!

[black eye]

http://missoulian.com/news/opinion/colu ... 963f4.html

SPEAKS FOR IT'S SELF!!!
Glad to see others can learn from Utahs failures!!!!

[kehrer10]

SFW can keep their grubby hands out of our pockets. I promise to do all I can to keep our hunting heritage in Montana the way it is. I've got 2 young boys and I want to make sure they have every chance to get in the woods! SFW can go away now!

[BIGBLUES]

SFW can keep their grubby hands out of our pockets. I promise to do all I can to keep our hunting heritage in Montana the way it is. I've got 2 young boys and I want to make sure they have every chance to get in the woods! SFW can go away now!

Jeremy I wouldn't go believing everything you read. This story in the missoulian is a bunch of bs. Montana SFW is a great group to join and voice your opinion. They are just a bunch of regular guys like us that are tired of wolves killing everything and want to protect our hunting heritage. Bill Mitchell wrote this in response to Nick Gevock's guest column. Oh and Bill has been a houndsmen for a number of years and stood up and supported HB144 to pursue bears with hounds. Did you make it that day to Helena Jeremy?


I am writing in response to Nick Gevock's guest column in the January 25th edition of the Missoulian. I was born and raised in the Missoula Valley, and other than one tour of duty with the US Navy, I have lived and hunted in Montana my entire life.

Mr. Gevoch may draw any conclusion he sees fit in regard to the effects of the path Utah and Colorado have taken in their efforts to manage their wildlife. However, when he implies that Montana Sportsmen for Fish and Wildlife is trying to implement any of the programs that are in place in Utah or Colorado I must strongly disagree. There are currently 7 states with Sportsmen for Fish and Wildlife Organizations, but there is no national organization. Each state has its own goals and mission statement. We are under no obligation or pressure to implement any goals from another state's organization. Our organization was started in response to the decline in deer and elk numbers and the resulting loss of hunter oppportunity by an overabundance of predators in Western Montana. That has remained our main focus. We have worked tirelessly to get hunting and trapping legalized for wolves. We are currently supporting several pieces of legislation that will give the sportsmen of Montana more tools to manage predator numbers.

I was among one of the first 25 to 30 people who signed up as members to get this chapter started. I have helped with the last two fundraisers and for the last year I have held a position on the Board of Directors. Never once have I heard anyone mention their intention to follow Utah or Colorado's lead on wildlife management.

Mr. Gevock, I find your accusations libelous and slanderous. It is time to put up or shut up. I challenge you to present any proof you have that Montana Sportsmen for Fish and Wildlife is advocating any of the programs that you aledge in your column. If your allegations are substantiated, I will immediately resign my seat on the Board of Directors and withdraw my life membership. I will work to oppose Montana Sportsmen for Fish and Wildlife in any way that I can. However, if you have no proof, I demand a retraction and a public apology.

Bill Mitchell
Director
Montana Sportsmen For Fish and Wildlife

[kehrer10]

No I was not able to make it to Helena for the house meetings due to work but I did send out hundreds of emails showing my support. So what does the money from your fund raising support? How is the money used to keep what we have in place? I would support an orginization that is for the good of Montanans but will strongly oppose any that want to try and sell "our" game animals to the highest bidder! You say there is no national orginaztion for Sportsman for fish and wildlife, but they all use the same name, so to me that would say they are interconnected would it not? I'm not accusing your orginaztion of what has happened else where but the track record is shady and I find it questionable that the same name is used everywhere but there is no organized connection. I don't mean this as an attack on you, I don't know you from Adam, I'm pretty ignorant when it comes to your orginazation and I'll be the first to admit it.

[black eye]

BB,
Your right the "$fw" wasnt birthed out of big money and auction permit sales and mi$$ing money. They are now!!!!
National or not.......same name same game!!! Give them time!!

And they have 2 "hound guys" as leaders now.I have watched countless times during meetings say NOTHING to stop the destruction of lion hunting in Utah. Will you be the one to stand up and say "NO" to destroying the Montana lion population? If so you wont last on the board.

Most in Utah dont trust them or want them!!!

Were still waiting on our "PUBLIC APOLOGY" for our destroyed lion population from the "$fw"

Save the deer really means $ell the deer!!!!

KEEP EM OUT MONTANA.......if it walks like a duck &quacks like a duck it must be a DUCK!

[BIGBLUES]

No I was not able to make it to Helena for the house meetings due to work but I did send out hundreds of emails showing my support. So what does the money from your fund raising support? How is the money used to keep what we have in place? I would support an orginization that is for the good of Montanans but will strongly oppose any that want to try and sell "our" game animals to the highest bidder! You say there is no national orginaztion for Sportsman for fish and wildlife, but they all use the same name, so to me that would say they are interconnected would it not? I'm not accusing your orginaztion of what has happened else where but the track record is shady and I find it questionable that the same name is used everywhere but there is no organized connection. I don't mean this as an attack on you, I don't know you from Adam, I'm pretty ignorant when it comes to your orginazation and I'll be the first to admit it.

Jeremy, The members of MT SFW are constantly going to Helena to help pass bills through legislation. If you look on our website it will show you the current bills. We are anti wolf and that's the bottom line. The wolf population has gotten out of control in MT and we are doing something about it. Jeremy if you have any questions then I strongly suggest you contact one of the board members like Bill Mitchell and he can fill you in. I can only answer so much. If you want Bill's number I can get it for you.

[black eye]

Jeremy,
Great idea call this bill fella ask him what the stance on lions is then report back. I have seen first hand what the stance is in Utah!!!

Nobody wants the wolf dont fall for the we will save you from the wolf speach!!! "$fw" almost screwed the wolf battle in Montana.

"$fw" working behind closed doors in Montana, has any of you houndsmen-sportsmen been asked your stance or what your intrests are???? Apparently you dont matter.

This is the biggame HOUNSMEN board!!!! Not mule deer,sheep,goat,elk,moose!!!!

Make a call Jeremy please.

[kehrer10]

When I get a free minute I will call. Still hard to know if the wool is being pulled over my eyes. A lot of these guys are just as good with words as a politician and I'm just a simple country boy!

[BIGBLUES]

First we are an all volunteer organization none of us are compensated. We used money in the last few months in our injunction against the MTFWP on the buffer zone around YNP. By the way we were victorious which also brought around and amendment we backed in HB 73 that forbids FWP from doing that in the future at the committee meeting that I attended in Helena yesterday the Senate Fish & wildlife committee approved HB 73 unanimously. We also used funds for our wolf photo contest winners so as to keep interest for sportsman to stay in the field and harvest wolves. MTSFW had our first annual wolf trapping workshop where we provided a expert government trapper to help trappers be successful in the field. We donated to the Chance Phelps foundation a veterans foundation from Wyoming that was started when they lost their son in Iraq. We spend a lot of our resources with our magazine, newsletter and website providing information to our members so they can keep up to date on issues that are critical to sportsmen.
Every state has there own issues our mission statement reads To preserve, protect and enhance Montana's hunting, fishing, and trapping rights while protecting Montana's rural heritage. By having an affiliation with a regional organization we can use their buying power to get sporting equipment for our fundraisers. Although we use as many local businesses as possible. The excellent magazine SPORTSMAN'S VOICE would be impossible to produce with out the help of the other states banding together. Having a regional platform helps us get out the word of the problems we face in Montana and get information on how they may have solved these issues in other states and decide if it is appropriate here.
We are Montana Sportsman for Fish and Wildlife plain and simple join us and see what we are about.

[black eye]

Montana houndsmen most of all,
Try "see what they are about before you join them" !!!!!!

We all agree on wolves its a no brainer!!!!
Thats the sales tool!!!!

Now he just admited an affiliation to the Utah bunch. Buying power$$$$$$$$$.

Surely that wont influence them???????

[Doogie]

Same ol song and dance from the mt sfw guys lol wish I would of taken a screenshot of their websites mission statement when we first had this conversation about them. funny bigblues states that they have nothing to do with the UT chapter but under the upcoming events it has the outdoor convention put on by the UT chapter of sfw hmmm

[BIGBLUES]

Doogie what have you done to contribute to getting rid of wolves? What organizations do you support that are active in the legislation supporting these bills? If MT SFW is not worth supporting than explain why and what they have done so far to damage our hunting opportunities and heritage. As far as I can see they have only increased hunter opportunities state wide not including fishing opportunities. I would like to hear your own words not some published B.S. from that hippie loving missoulian newspaper. thanks.

[mulehound]

I helped all I could to get SFW started in Utah. Hit the ground getting members etc etc. I am not a member in anyway anymore.

[Doogie]

Guess my wolf trapping tags, and the 400+ dollars ive spent on wolf traps, and trapping supplys alone don't count in your book, huh. I am not going to join a organization that calls for aggressive predator management.

Welcome to Sportsmen for Fish & Wildlife

Sportsmen for Fish & Wildlife (SFW) is a non-profit wildlife conservation organization of sportsmen members who are interested in preserving and increasing healthy, populations of wildlife throughout the United States and North America.

Healthy and abundant game populations require good habitat, protected winter range, aggressive predator management, a committed game and fish agency, and active federal land managers. All of these issues are controlled by politicians who make laws, set priorities and policies, and determine how sportsmen license dollars are spent. To produce large mature animals, there must also be reasonable control of hunter harvest. SFW works with elected officials at all levels-from the community courthouse to the Whitehouse-to improve and protect quality hunting and fishing on our great public lands and waters.

Predators to them mean Wolves, Bears, Coyotes, Bobcats and Lions
oh and look your chapter is linked on the bottom of their page hmmm thought you had nothing to do with them.
oops looks like someone figured out the screenshots

[LIONHOUND1963]

I was one of the first members of SFW, and helped with some banquets around here. Not anymore!!!! All they care about is money, and they are more worried about sheep and goats than deer.
There whole solution to get the deer back was to kill as many lions as possible.

Yep they have really made a difference here, not!!!