Please show me where I said you can't speak for yourself Shawn? I missed it. Same with wondering where I was "snide" about bobcats? All I said was one sentence- "Yes, I have asked for expanded opportunities for bobcat."
I think everyone is entitled to an opinion, provided they can be expressed in civil terms. Saying someone is acting like USP when that isn't true isn't civil. Its that kind of thing that needs to end.
To answer your question, I did not speak to the legislature about bobcat alone, as it was never on my radar that anyone wanted it added. Had I known, I certainly would have done so. If I recall correctly, and I'll check with Roxanne, I was the only person to ask for bobcat to be expanded to WMU 2A a couple of years back. Between the number of roadkill I was seeing, and the numbers I was calling in when coyote hunting, a season there was certainly warranted- Why didn't you ask me to put in a plug?? You know I'm at the capitol often, and I'd have gladly done so.
I did speak favorably about Godshall's woodchuck on Sunday bill; and every other SH bill in the last decade.
I also worked hard for, and Brad and I wrote the mentored transfer legislation. Did you know it can include bobcat, or any species a tag is needed for? Its the way we wrote it, so it could be expanded by the agency, and each species wouldn't require its own legislation. We have another bill for mentored adults- since we wrote it its passed in Virginia and Michigan; Florida and Texas I believe, but not here in PA. We're working on that too.
In fact, we work for everything positive about hunting; removing legislative barriers and extending more flexibility to the agency; and fighting some of the bad stuff that takes it away or puts it in jeapordy.
This case is going to be fairly straight forward. As I said before, laws must be fairly applied. In this case, they aren't; because as was pointed out, some species are lawful on Sunday and others are not. It no longer serves a valid secular purpose, and the laws are pro SH for so many species; that it can't be upheld to excude some- just like the Sunday trading laws.
In this instance; the agency approves of having regulatoty authority. Its kind of like taking someone to court who admitted they hit your car, but their insurance company refuses to pay. We know its not the PGC who has to change the law- its the legislature- but the way its set up; we will likely have to name the PGC even tho they can't change it, and they want it. It has me shaking my head too.
