Time to hunt bears in New Jersey (Opinion)

The Fish and Game Council in the NJ Department of Environmental Protection want to see a return of the bear hunt.

The reasons are simple, we have too many bears in Jersey for the space and food supply.

The governor, of course, is playing politics with the decision made by the council. He campaigned on stopping the bear hunt and despite the threat to people, pets and property from a hungry, over-populated bears, he's stopping the hunt.

What's worse is that instead of having willing hunters pay the state for a license and then kill and remove the bear at their own expense, the state is budgeting more than a million dollars of YOUR money to limit human bear interaction in a non-lethal way.

Ignoring the fact that the humane thing to do is thin the population so the bears don't starve to death before the winter, the governor has dug in and is refusing to budge.

Among the first things a new governor should do is extend the hunting season for bears and line-item veto the budget line for "bear control." It's time to have rational, common sense-based policy making in Trenton.

Has the GOP candidate for governor even weighed in on the issue? NJ can do a lot better.

The post above reflects the thoughts and observations of New Jersey 101.5 talk show host Bill Spadea. Any opinions expressed are Bill's own. Bill Spadea is on the air weekdays from 6 to 10 a.m., talkin’ Jersey, taking your calls at 1-800-283-1015.

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