tvc184

Yes, kids need their parent's support. No, it is not fair that a coach needs to step up in place of the parent. But the fact is that some coaches do take the place of parents. Many people have grown up successful in life due to a teacher or coach or mentor stepping up in place of a parent. It has always been that way and it will always be that way. No matter how much anyone talks about it should start at home (and they are correct, it SHOULD) the simple fact is that there will always be kids left behind by parents that are not doing their job. What do you do with these children? Do you let them go because their parents are a failure or does someone else try to take the place of the parents? When someone figures out the way to make parents responsible, please let the rest of us in on the secret. Until then, let's hope that there are mentors that will at least try to step in and give some guidance in the lives of children that have no where else to turn.

Having absolutely no ties to LCM or care what they do, I can honestly say that it may be the most stupid survey ever devised by a school district. What is the intent? No matter what the results were, how is that going to find what the LCM community wants and that is a winning program. If all this survey cost was 15 seconds of a school district employees time, then the district needs to find a way to refund 15 seconds to the LCM taxpayers.

The TPWD Commission met in committee today to consider the proposals put forth at the November meeting. These included the expansion of youth rifle season for the entire month of October, opening a rifle season in Grayson County, and limiting the number of Alligator Gar to 1 per day. The LSBA with support from TBoT and bowhunters/bowfishers across the state rallied in opposition to these proposals. We were heard!! Today the commission recommended the following proposals: 1. Youth Season will be extended into January with no intrusion into the Archery Season at all. 2. Grayson County will stay Archery Only with an increased bag limit to 2 bucks but with antler restrictions. 3. No limits or restrictions on taking Alligator Gar except on Lake Texoma where it will be limited to 1 fish per day. These proposals will be published in the Texas Register for consideration to be made law at the Commissioner's meeting in March. There will be several public hearings before then to gather data regarding these and several other proposals. It was obvious from listening to commissioner's comments that bowhunters had made their feelings known. The leadership of the LSBA has agreed to work with TPWD to explore new opportunities to get the youth in the field and I believe we will be able to make positive contributions to that effort. The next time you talk to one of the folks from TPW or one of the commissioners please take the time to thank him/her for supporting bowhunting. I want to thank each of you for your hard work in supporting the LSBA and bowhunters of Texas.

What kind of fishing are you talking about. Getting a bass boat and going up into the bayous and rivers, fishing off of the bank for catfish, in a canal for bream or what?

If there was prizes or money involved, it would be fairly easy to be a big event. Not so much to start but if you start getting enough entries, sponsers start coming in.

It takes a blind man to see that the antler restrictions work but the "kill it if it moves" is deeply ingrained in east Texas and will be very hard to overcome. On a similar note, a joint resolution was introduced in the current Texas legislature for a constitutional amendment to be voted on by the citizens of the state in the next general election. This resolution would make it a Texas Constitution guarantee for the right to hunt and fish. I am guessing that this bill is a direct response to the recent moves by the PETA crowd and other liberal moves in the country to try and ban such activities. I hope that the resolution passes and we can get it into the Texas Constitution.

Not me. I was hoping to go hunting this weekend one more time and get another doe for the freezer but I don't think I will have time.

Click on the little icon above that looks like this . Then when the window pops up, paste your link in that box and click OK. Then another box will pop up and you type the name that you want to use for the link. Click OK again.

The article wasn't about anything in particular and is one paragraph from West's weekly Sunday diatribe. It is obvious that he was slamming the degree requirement but he wasn't writing an article about Memorial. It was just a musing at PNG's expense. I thought it was a good point..... as probably do a majority of the people in and outside of PNG.

Land's Custom Taxidermy in Bridge City used to do a great job but I haven't been to his shop in the last few years. It was great stuff the last time I was there.

I'd watch out for the nimwit talk. All information is not public contrary to your "EVERYTHING" comment. You then posted an article...... that says the "finalists" must be released according to the courts. So much for "everything". Then, how much of the application is to be released? The entire application including credit ratings or just names and schools? Better go back and rethink your post nimw... uh... The Young Coach.

Public funds does not make everything open to public view. There are plenty of things that are protected information internally. I have no clue if they have to release applicant names but to think that a public institution must disclose everything is incorrect.

Then why post them as "requirements"? I can see that all applicants will be considered but they would "prefer" a master degree. Something in this process seems like they are trying to keep some or certain people from applying. I could care less what PNG does but this doesn't seem to pass the sniff test.

You are ethical. I believe that many are not. Yes, criminals will be criminals. I think that this move would allow a criminal the "right" to be in the woods with a rifle without having to sneak around. The only way to catch a poacher in these kinds of situations is to almost be in the deer stand with the hunter to know which person pulled the trigger. I believe that it will be a way to almost legitimize poaching and make it much easier to break the law. Not for the ethical hunters but for the large number (maybe not a majority but it is substantial) of ones that are not.

Yeah, I am sure that Sulpher Springs players feel tarnished right now. Heck, next week they may even return their trophy to the UIL.

The whole point of forums is not to remain anonymous although that is a benefit to some. If a member doesn't want to meet other members then great. There are others out there that would like to meet their nemesis or maybe a like minded poster. For them, that is great also. People aren't stupid for falling in either category. Different strokes for different folks.

Just show up but don't tell any screen names. ;D

I'm just glad to see that LCM was at least added to the list.

"BUT IT"S FOR THE KIDS" I agree Lefty. I have been deer hunting for about 35 years and the October archery season was an add-on. Guns were not allowed to hunt back then and that put that extra season for bow hunters the extra time without all the extra pressure in the woods. You have to remember that bow hunters usually need to get within 20 yards of their game and normally shots are taken about about 12-18 yards. It is not like when the gun hunters are taking from 75-150 yard shots and have large shooting lanes. I hunt both gun and bow so I am not dogging out gun hunters. I just think they are trying to move in on a time that they have never been able to use for gun hunting. It is not like they took that time away from gun hunters to make room for archery. I think a lot of people that claim to be doing it "for the kids" are really doing it to get the kids out of their hair for the "real" season. Heck, the kids can hunt with the parent right now for 9 weeks of the regular season and additional time (part of it in archery season) when adults can't hunt with guns. That apparently isn't enough. That is why I have the suspicion that it is so the kid can kill a spike or a doe and get that out of the way so dad (and/or mom) can do the serious hunting or dad wants that extra chance at the monster buck before the other hunters get in there and uses the kid as the justification to be in the woods. Sorry but there it is. Also, anyone that wants to gun hunt for deer during October (or even September) can do so by starting with the MLD program. Of course, to do that they need to manage their lease and not just kill everything that moves. An MLD program lease will allow gun hunters to hunt the entire deer season (including archery) and even into February, way after everyone else has had their season end.

MLD is a little more flexible than LAMPS. From what our biologist told us is that if you are running it correctly, the state can authorize (and does) gun season to coincide with archery season. It also allows for enhanced bag limits. For example if the land is permitted to harvest 30 bucks, then 30 bucks can be taken off of the land with no regard to how many hunters you have or who kills them. That would really go well with leases with few members per acre. I hunt on less than 1,000 acres so if a state biologist decides that we can kill or need to kill 15 bucks, then they can be taken by anyone. The season can be extended from September 30th through the last Sunday in January without regard to archery, black powder or who kills the deer. It all depends on how you run your lease. If you don't follow the program then you will be denied MLD. Here is an overview of it. [Hidden Content] When our biologist talked about going to MLD (which we haven't), he said the state would start the lease out and give them goals. As they are reached and the program is followed, then the allow more levels. There are three levels to MLD. Basically you can manage your lease by the conditions on your lease and not be stuck within the state guidelines for general hunting. When you make general rules, you have to do it for the masses. When you can taylor a program for a certain piece of property, the state will be more lax in what they will allow to be killed since they want certain amounts of game taken off of the land but not without overkill. As you know on your lease as well as mine, with families hunting they can slaughter the deer herd in short order on that particular lease. The MLD tries to assure that you take enough game to keep a healthy herd with endangering it. The state may very well come in and say that your lease needs to take four does per membership and then gives the appropriate tags out. If one hunter doesn't hunt with his family, he can still take four does. On the other hand, if you have a family of 5 and they want to shoot 10 bucks, that will not be permitted since that would be permitted if you split the tags up per membership. I like the idea but I have doubts that the people on my current lease will go by it since it would restrict how many deer a family could kill. Of course, it would be up to the membership to decide how to distribute the doe and buck tags. If you read this web page from a south Texas ranch where it describes their "The Classic Whitetail Expience", it mentions that according to the MLD Level 3 plan, if you make a hunt on their lease you can kill all of the management (cull) bucks below 125" that you see. No big deal but it shows that on their ranch which is heavily managed, your basic hunting license doesn't even apply since you can take all of the culls below 125" in view. [Hidden Content]

It could be LAMPS or MLD. Of the two, I would prefer MLD.

Two bucks, two does with no permits needed in October bow season and gun season until December. Then doe opens again for 9 days during black powder season.

Yeah. That sounds more like a judge with "wishful thinking". He doesn't like the law so he doesn't think it will pass. Well the law has been in place in some Texas counties for several years and I haven't seen any appeals court challenges on the law. I will stick with, when in doubt, don't shoot.

I've got no problem with people hunting within the law. I have taken young deer also. It took a while to realize that I could kill a large older deer just as easily as I could kill a baby if we only let them grow on our lease. When we started our newer management rules, we didn't kill a buck for one year and only one the next. Now we are seeing and killing the biggest that we have ever seen in our area. That is why I am all in favor of the new proposed rules on horn size. As everyone knows, that is not the perfect answer. I wish they would say the horn size OR 3.5 years or older as some older deer need to be culled but will never fit within the horn restrictions. There will also be some nice deer with good horns that grow up instead of out and may never make the required width. If they went to a 3.5 year minimum age, it would be up to the hunter to decide if the deer was of age but he has to make that same call on horns also. I have an easier time noticing a mature deer by body size than trying to judge if the horns I am looking at are 12" or 13.5". The way we do it and the way it is taught in management circles..... if in doubt, don't shoot. That is the intent of the rules anyway. It is not to get a micrometer and see if the buck has reached the minimum inside spread or if he is three one hundreths of an inch short. Management of deer set minimum rules hoping that hunters will not take the risk of an illegal deer and allow the borderline bucks to walk. Then you take the same deer the next year when you see him and he is 15-16" and no doubt. This year you kill the borderline one from last year. East Texas can grow as big of deer as south Texas if people let them grow up. The leases down there are heavily managed with very high prices. People don't pay $2,500-$10,000 a gun (not a family) to kill a 110 pound 4 pointer. I would hate to see prices like that in east Texas but the management style would work if put in place. It seems that many east Texas hunters feel that if they see a deer, it must claimed at that moment and killed at all cost. By gosh, I so him so he is mine. I will never believe the meat issue. I only drive from south Beaumont to just past Woodville to hunt. My cost in gasoline, deer stands, feeders, corn, hunting license, lease fees and other items makes it impossible to kill deer for meat and claim that it is to feed a family. There are those people that kill deer on their own property where they live and that is different but anyone that pays for a lease to hunt and drives for any time at all is losing money for every pound of venison that they claim to be taking "for meat". I will bet that less than 2% of the "legal" hunters that take deer "for meat" are doing so on their own property and not paying lease fees.

By all means. Tyler County has a two doe limit with no tags needed. The herd needs to be thinned for better health and a better buck to doe ratio. Other areas need some does and I suspect most of the problem is with poachers in those areas of east Texas famous for such activity. It does not take long to increase the herd size however in either bucks or does if the people lay off of them for a couple of years.