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FROM THE CROWE’S NEST
The practice here has been to produce the entire paper before writing the editorial. The result, hopefully, is an information base for a soapbox when need be. Bill believed that common sense, straight talk, and sharp pens were the recipe for useful editorials. He was good at it and it was one of the jobs he most liked. These days, like most everything else, fishing has changed and gotten more complicated. There may not be anything that more accurately characterizes how fishing has changed in recent decades, than the mazes of the regulatory system. The regulations appear to grow like fungus from one amendment to another, with options 3 through 17 that grow alternatives 1a through 9d, sprouting their own modifications before they all break out in OMB’s, GYET’s and OUI’s. The organization policy of the management seems to be to compound the complexity of the regulations shell game so that only the most determined, mentally rugged and blessed with spare time fishermen could possibly remain standing through it all. It’s a good thing there are a few to follow it. Without them there would likely be one fishing corporation on the sea or one environmental group banning fishing altogether and taxing us to pay for the fishes’ health care plans. The recent decision by the NEFMC on mid water trawlers is the first sign of hope in a long while. The decision was the product of the effort of those fishermen who knew there was a problem and stood fast until the management had to recognize it. Editorializing about the world of regulation mazes is neither easy nor much fun. Until you get to the human nature part where the guys running the show are tripping over themselves and knocking each other down. Now that I’m climbing into the crows nest or maybe being run up a pole, I hope to keep the editorial pens properly sharpened. |
