SFWCA Rally Wednesday 11AM at the Michigan Capitol in Lansing

[djkimmel]

All of the groups who have worked so hard to get our citizens' initiative the Scientific Fish and Wildlife Conservation Act before our Michigan House of Representatives are rallying on the Capitol steps in Lansing tomorrow morning (Wednesday, August 27, 2014) at 11AM.

We want to make sure our elected officials see clearly that keeping scientific fish and wildlife management with the Natural Resources Commission is of top importance to all of us anglers, hunters, trappers and other Michigan citizens who care about the proper management of our Natural Resources!

We need to show up to offset the rally by our enemies allied with the radical animal rights, anti-hunting, anti-fishing people who want to take our favorite recreation away from us completely! It would be nice to see many more people who truly care about the fish and wildlife rallying in bigger numbers over the people who just want to take all of it away from us including the possibility of a new bass season in 2015!

We have to get the Scientific Fish and Wildlife Conservation Act passed tomorrow by a majority of our elected state Representatives for it to become law, save our bass season work and keep the working system in place so we can continue to manage fish and wildlife with science, not misleading and dishonest marketing campaigns.

[djkimmel]

Sitting in the Michigan House gallery at the Capitol in Lansing waiting for a vote on our Scientific Fish and Wildlife Conservation Act. Impressive turnout by our elected state Representatives. 107 out of 110 present! Fingers crossed.

[djkimmel]

Okay... finally here we go... !?!

[Mojo]

PASSED !!!!!!

[Mojo]

The email request and response speaks for itself. I am so proud of these guys to see through the BS. Please enjoy:

From: Rep. Klint Kesto (District 39) [mailto:KlintKesto@house.mi.gov]
Sent: Thursday, August 28, 2014 9:46 AM
To: Michael Schoemann
Subject: RE: Please respond to this email pertaining to today's vote.

Michael,

I voted yes for the following reasons:

  The right to petition state government to adopt a law via signature collection is a process enshrined in our state's Constitution.  It is not designed to put something on the ballot. It's designed to initiate a law, just as an elected legislator does by introducing a bill.

  This constitutional process has not been altered by this Legislature, nor any other in recent years. It has stayed much the same over time. Therefore, cries of circumventing the constitutional process are inaccurate and meant to distract voters from the actual issue.

  The certified petitions were signed by nearly 300,000 registered Michigan voters, representing a broad spectrum of voters from the entire state.

  In 1996, a statewide vote on the ballot asked Michigan residents whether the NRC should have the exclusive authority to decide game species, and was approved with nearly 70 percent of the vote.

  Voting to approve this citizen-initiated law does not create new public policy, rather it reaffirms the authority of the Natural Resources Commission to name new game species and establish hunts.  There is a reason that we have a Natural Resources Commission, and that is to make these types of decisions based on sound science, not politics or emotions.

  An abundance of wolves in northern Michigan as of late has caused an uptick in attacks on livestock, family pets and even people.  Due to these safety concerns that present a real threat to Northern Michigan families and their livelihoods, the NRC established a limited wolf hunt to contain this type of aggressive behavior and temporarily reduce the wolf population in this region.

  An out-of-state organization paying out-of-state people to collect signatures and decide public policy for the state of Michigan is not democratic.  What is democratic is having a commission made up of residents from across the state with varying backgrounds, but all of whom have knowledge of our natural resources, making decisions based on sound science. 

  As representatives, we are elected to study an issue, take feedback from constituents, weigh all of the information and vote in the best interest of the people of our districts and the state. I met this burden before casting my vote on the Conservation Act.

  The right of citizens to petition their government to change a law is intact.  The citizens have had their voices heard, and the government has acted. 


Klint Kesto, State Representative
Michigan House of Representatives
Proudly representing Commerce Township, West Bloomfield, Wixom and the Village of Wolverine Lake!
517.373.1799 – Office

From: Michael Schoemann [mailto:michael.schoemann@chrysler.com]
Sent: Wednesday, August 27, 2014 4:28 PM
To: Rep. Klint Kesto (District 39); Rep. Eileen Kowall (District 44); Rep. Tim Greimel (District 29); Rep. Gail Haines (District 43)
Subject: Please respond to this email pertaining to today's vote.

I wanted to take a moment, regardless of how you voted, for considering your citizens with this vote. It shows that not all issues can be bought or sold, and that citizen action can help change. From my heart, thank you. Could you write back, and with a simple sentence, let me know how you voted and why ?

Mike

[djkimmel]

There was a fair amount of BS that day. I sat through it all wondering why some of them weren't worried about your rights or my rights. But in the end, the strong majority voted in favor of Michigan being a hunting and fishing states not open carte blanche to the radical animal rights agenda of eradicating all hunting and fishing. Some of those people did not sound very happy after the vote... too bad I say. Go away and don't come back.