gonefishin

Great pics Phil. Looks like you had a great time. I agree, too bad there aren't more bear pics. Especially some of the tie-dyed bears. that would have been hilarious. I have never been to Alaska but my brother had some in-laws that lived up that way, they always allowed that a person had to be really resourceful. I think it would be great.

Thanks and happy 4th to you too.

Glad you made it in safe John. Looking forward to seeing the pics of your Alaska trip.

Great pic. Those gar can be a blast to catch.

http://www.nwk.usace.army.mil/cgi-bin/dail...ite_name=truman

Yep. That is the one. Great quote huh.

I would like to see some pics posted on here of the flood areas.

Ok Thom. I just wanted to say there was no political spin in what I said. It is just what happened. No need to argue about Dems or Repubs. There needs to be something done about it and we can't depend on the politicians to do anything about it. We the people are going to have to take care of it.

My intent was not to start a political debate but rather to point out both of you were right and both wrong at the same time for pointing fingers at political parties. The simple fact is Bush 1 was for it and signed it but there was so much opposition that he didn't have the clout to get it ratified. He then lost the election to Clinton so NAFTA was dead in the water. Clinton switched positions once he won the election and got NAFTA ratified while his party still had control of congress. If he had not made a priority of getting it passed NAFTA would be a footnote in history. So there are rights and wrongs on both sides of the issue and no need to point fingers at any one political party, it was both.

Thanks Gavin. You are right there are some big number lines there that should draw a lot of scrutiny.

Should read up a little bit on the history of water here in the USA. It is enlightening.

CC: what was it Thomas Jefferson said about exercise. Something along the lines of in the matter of exercise I recommend the gun it ......

BOOO Bill. The bad pun police are gonna getcha for that one. I guess I missed that. Looked to me like it was a slur against fishermen who use crawlers. It also seemed that everyone who ever used a crawler eat every fish they ever caught. No, I am not bad on the bass population at all. I don't care for them much, to catch or to eat. I almost always throw any bass I catch back. It is only on a very rare occasion that I will keep one. HAH! :=P: Silver Mallard never seen the day..... :=P: You are right about that or at least not very many. Cool! Are we talking a challenge? Heck, I would like to go fishing with you Bill. I think we would get along fine. 4 hours huh? Fishing for? Using lures or crawlers? What does 4 hours cost me if I lose? My point is that through shear numbers caught and handled guides,(and tourney fishermen for that matter) kill more fish than they will admit. It is a known fact that a certain number of bass will die just from the stress of being caught and handled. The more days a person spends on the water and the more fish they catch the more they kill. Doesn't matter if they are eaten or not they are still dead. I knew down deep you were a crawler fisherman. Bill, I have nothing against you, more often than not I agree with what you say. If I offended you in my posts I am sorry there can't be a horse race unless there are two horses involved.

Gavin: I am not that mad at MDC. They are a taxing the public and I think they should be open about what they are doing with our tax dollars. You, being a CPA may know the questions to ask and who to ask them of and if so good for you. I am not a trained CPA and am asking for simple answers. I have asked at MDC but there are no answers only double talk. Unlike you I think a public forum is the perfect place to discuss this. Maybe a few other people will call or email and ask them what they are doing with the money. Maybe make them realize people want them to be a good steward of the tax dollars given to them. Here are a few things we do know: MDC received (Leaving out income from license fees) A special tax that is generating an additional 100 million dollars a year What are taxpayers getting in return A pretty propaganda sheet Update of Shepard of the Hills fish hatchery A few new access points Higher license fees for fishing Lower trout limits Higher fees at the Trout Parks Higher fees to camp Otters Black Bear Cougars Just seems a bit lopsided to me.

Terry: I hope everything works out well for you and I hope you can stay around the Springfield area.

Welcome back Phil. Glad you made it home in good shape.

I think you are exactly correct NoLuck.

You are right you can get plenty of info on Google but then try to make sense out of it. If you ask someone in the MDC what it means you get the run around or get an answer like your post. A lot of talk but nothing is really said.

You are right Google it but don't forget to read what was found. I very clearly remember Clintons first run for office. The one thing I favored him on was his stance on NAFTA of course as we all know that was short lived that was. Anyway you are both right and both wrong. George Bush 1 was in favor of NAFTA and even though he signed the treaty he was unable overcome the opposition tto get it ratified. Bill Clinton ran his first campaign on NO NAFTA but as soon as he took office he immediately started supporting it, made a major agenda out of it and got it ratified. Look it up on Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_America...Trade_Agreement History of the implementation NAFTA Initialing Ceremony, October 1992. From left to right: (Standing) Mexican President Salinas, US President Bush, Canadian Prime Minister Mulroney, (Seated) Jaime Serra Puche, Carla Hills, Michael Wilson. Source: George Bush Presidential Library and Museum NAFTA Initialing Ceremony, October 1992. From left to right: (Standing) Mexican President Salinas, US President Bush, Canadian Prime Minister Mulroney, (Seated) Jaime Serra Puche, Carla Hills, Michael Wilson. Source: George Bush Presidential Library and Museum The agreement was initially pursued by conservative governments in the United States and Canada supportive of free trade, led by Canadian Prime Minister Brian Mulroney, U.S. President George H. W. Bush, and the Mexican President Carlos Salinas de Gortari. The three-nation NAFTA was signed on 17 December 1992, pending its ratification by the legislatures of the three countries. There was considerable opposition in all three countries, but in the United States it was able to secure passage after Bill Clinton made its passage a major legislative initiative in 1993.

I think it actually started out as a slur on people who fish with worms. How to use? Just slip him on the hook, toss him in the water and you will catch more bass in one hour than all the lure fisherpersons combined do in a year. Only one catch, if you catch a bass on a crawler you have to murder it so you can eat it. :P

I still say there are no bass in Taney. You guys are just trying to get people from TR so you can have it all to yourself.

I agree everyone should have some savings but, the MDC is not an individual, it is a organization that taxes people. A couple of years ago I seen a report on the news where they filed charges against a woman (three kids) on welfare because she had saved a something like $500 over a period of three years. The complaint was that she was living off tax payer money and people drawing tax payers money should not be saving. If it was illegal for her why isn't it illegal for MDC? That isn't my real point however. My questioning of them earning a million in interest is this. A money market pays about 2% so how many dollars is required to earn a million pre-tax dollars in interest? Isn't that a lot of dollars for a tax based organization to have in the bank? If a tax based organization is able to save that many dollars aren't they possibly overcharging for services rendered? Let me put it another way. I don't know if you have kids or not but if you do, with the public schools being a tax based organization, how would feel if the state made you buy a $20 license annually for a key to open the door of the public school then, for any days they held recess (BSP, Roaring River ect) they charged you another $3. Would you think that fair after you had paid taxes to fund the public schools? MDC is doing just that. They got a nice comfortable tax to provide services then started charging more for the services. I just want to know what kind of a deal that is. I want to know how they justify it. I want to know what they are doing with the money. I am not really trying to be a pain, these questions really shouldn't be that hard to get a straight answer for. As a tax payer I think I have a right to ask them. I want to know whats happening and I would think everyone should want to know.

Very eloquently said. Like I said in an earlier post about this, you cant fix stupid. I might add that dying bears is about the most stupid thing I have ever heard of.

Gavin: I agree with you in that I don't want MDC to go away. I am not mad at anyone. As I said I am just questioning what is happening to a LOT of tax payers money. One question I keep coming back to is the amount of money they have drawing interest. Did tax payers give them the special sales tax so it could be banked or did they give it to them to provide more services? If they gave it to them to put into savings I want to know why. If they gave it to them for more services I would like to know where these services are. Why do they feel it necessary to raise fees when they have so much money that they are putting it into savings? Why don't they have more handicapped access points? Why don't they give the less fortunate a break? Why do they act broke when they are in fact extremely well funded? I don't believe their books, I think they are cooked but, even so why is only 6% of the budget alloted for fishing? Why is only 7% alloted for hunting? Why is 20% alloted for Management?

Thom: You are right we do have it pretty good here in MO but just because we have it good is not a reason to turn a blind eye to abuse. I am just questioning what is happening with what is a really big chunk of money. As a tax payer it is not only my right it is my civic duty to do so. I do not deny we have it pretty good I just think for the bucks we spend we could have it a lot better. I may be wrong but I am sure most states would be more than happy to trade their license fees for the money a 1/8th cent sales tax would generate.