fishorgolf-
Emailed my politicians a few nights ago.

Looking for solutions to the PROBLEM. If you're not willing to accept that there is a problem, then take your opinions elsewhere. Start a new thread. Is it also a tradition of the band to use powerboats, commercial nets, and give the fish to casinos? You're in extreme denial if you think the 122,000 lbs. of fish "feeds" hungry tribal members. Moving on...

He won't explain because he can't. He offered to explain and got called on it and can't deliver.

[Note from admin: Edited. Please read forum policy before posting again. Thank you.]

I will agree with him though, do your own research, call the GLIFWC, get creel survey numbers. Call the MN DNR. Some moron posts a propaganda video and someone reports over 100 nets missing and it is all believed to be 100% truth and fact. I'd be embarrassed if I were that easily swayed.

Google 1837 treaty rights.

Have your really read all the posts or just commenting out of emotion?

Also..the reports were 100 nets were put out and aprox. 15 lost. Are you saying these reports were wrong?

Ok. I am done!

Look at the very first post "Gill nets under the Ice". The "report" had been made- "100 stuck under the ice".

Another poster even tried to squelch it, but it kept going.

Let's keep race and sarcasm out of the posts in here.

If you see factual errors please feel free to correct it without name calling.

To answer the majority of the questions on this thred; The Native Americans can Net fish because in 1837 we (the United States of America) promised them they could, for ever!

I'm a little surprised that so many people have no problem going back on thier word

American sportsman and conservationists alike have learned a lot from the Native Americans over the past two hundred years. Things like you should only take what you need or there won't be anything left for the future (as we saw what happened when the white men killed off almost all of the buffalo in the last half of the 19th century).

Personally, I don't have much of an issue with the fact that Native Americans are granted the privelage of netting fish. Fine. In fact, if they did it in the traditional manner I would like to bring my boys down to a lake and watch them net or spear by natural torchlight.

What I don't like to see is people filling up their nets full of fish just because they can. If a guy wants to throw a net out so he can catch enough fish to feed his family or tribe, fine. But I have personally witnessed fish being left to rot at the boat landings by Native Americans after they have spent the night before spearing. This was not at Mille Lacs, but up in Northern Wisconsin on a lake that I have property on. How would you feel if you witnessed what I saw? Would your opinions change then? I was angy as [PoorWordUsage]...but what could I do? Nothing, except complain to my legislator, which I did. Nothing changed.

The fish and lakes are ALL of ours to enjoy and to protect. And we must ALL do our part to ensure that future generations are able to enjoy the sport of angling just as we do.

We are all aware of the injustices that the Native Americans experienced at the hands of the white men throughout our country's history. But two wrongs don't make a right.

I guess my main question is what do the Native Americans do with all that fish harvested from netting? Anyone know?

I've also read the 1837 Treaty, and Article 5 states:

"Article 5. The privilege of hunting, fishing, and gathering the wild rice, upon the lands, the rivers and the lakes included in the territory ceded, is guaranteed to the Indians, during the pleasure of the President of the United States."

It doesn't mention anything about gill nets or spearing. It just says that, at the pleasure of the President, they are guaranteed hunting and fishing rights.

They regulate their own and do a good job of it! If they wanted they could be netting MANY more lakes their rights go far beyond MilleLacs.

If they regulate so well, and they are required to have logs showing when they placed net, what access they are going to pull them from, and the GLIWF is there to record all the data, why can they not tell us how many nets were lost and where?

Seem like easy information to give if it is so well regulated. the only logical conclusion is that they are not well regulated. The GLIWF did not know how many nets were out and where and they are covering their butts by refusing to give this information.

And if they do a good job of regulating, please explain to me the huge collape or Red Lake. Looks like a great job to me.

LMAO
The bands ( the ones netting) already got exclusive gaming rights WHY would they or any other band ( ones that dont nett) want to renagotiate there gaming pact ( the whole gaming agreement would have to be renegotiated not just with mille lacs band) with the state? They obviously cant take either away from them. The State run casino got shot down and the state lost the 1837 lawsuit right? This stuff has already been tried! You should just accept the fact that The mille lacs and other bands reservered this right and its theirs! Live with it

liljohnson-

That's not quite true. Through litigation, things can ALWAYS change. If the State could submit evidence that unless things change the Mille Lacs fishery could wind up like the Red Lake fishery thereby wiping out local business and the local economies, the court COULD determine that the agreement needs to change in the interest of everyone involved.

We should never just "accept the fact" that a prime walleye fishery is potentially being destroyed by the actions of a few.

I wonder what the current state of affairs would be if the Feds and Indian tribes had never signed the 1837 Agreement. At that time, had the agreement not been signed, what would've happened to the populations involved - all tribes and races? Live together? Fight until one is gone? War to determine a winner and a loser?

Just wondering for the sake of discussion.

Nope we would all be living in one society instead of two seperate.

Or the tribes would be truely self-ruled and independent. They would not be getting my taxes and yours.

And what exactly is the problem? Is there not enough walleye in Mille Lacs? I've fished that stinking lake for 3 summers and I caught more walleye in one month then I have in a lifetime in the Detroit lakes area. The population is stable and through great work between GLFWIC and the DNR there will be for years to come. I say this because I have faith in our DNR and with GLFWIC. Mille Lacs band is a lot more responsible when it comes to their resources then you think. As for your question on what they do with the fish that they net... Why do you need to know? I imagine it ends up in the same place as the other 300,000+ pounds of walleye harvested by anglers... The dinner table...