Mob rule is certaintly not a good idea for hunters in this situation, certainly not. And like I said I dont want them wiped out, just thinned. BUT at some point we have to realize that theres more to it than just what hunters want. The landowners and people of this county are who has to put up with the bears. The landowners are who has to support them. And no matter how ignorant we as hunters think their opinions on it are, thats still their opinion and they have every right to have it. The meeting at the courthouse had the courtroom jammed packed full of people and it was all opposition.
You also have to understand alittle bit of history on the subject as well. You cant just look from the outside in and call these people ignorant. This county was STRONGLY opposed to the original reintroduction. We already had a few bears before 96. But the reintroduction was went ahead with in direct opposition to the locals. In order to smooth it over, WE WERE PROMISED A SEASON WITHIN 10 YEARS. When that didnt happen, steam started gathering and is now at the boiling point.
One other effect I forgot to mention that has alot of these people upset. Our local economy is very strongly supported by horse riders. These horse riders are in strong opposition to the bears due to negative encounters between horses and bears. Many saying that their horses have gone crazy while trail riding and cmoing into contact with bears. Many horse riders are saying thats why they no longer ride in the park. If less people are coming here to ride, the local economy just gets worse. Joe no longer rents his cabins out as often, that sort of thing. And when Joe hears that his livelihood is being affected by bears, well you can guess where that leads. Right to where we are now. Hard to say that a bear is worth affecting someones livelihood.