What is to stop the anti's...

[bullcan]

From getting 145,000 signatures and putting duck hunting or deer hunting on the ballot? When they did this for doves, the dove season was shut down for the 2 seasons until the vote came up. Could the antis get the needed signatures and shut down other seasons?

[Ninja]

From getting 145,000 signatures and putting duck hunting or deer hunting on the ballot? When they did this for doves, the dove season was shut down for the 2 seasons until the vote came up. Could the antis get the needed signatures and shut down other seasons?


They will...trapping is next.

[part timer]

There is nothing procedural to block any party from gathering signatures to place an initiative on the ballot. A ballot iniative would require slightly more certified signatures than a referendum (which was used for dove hunting).

The key difference is that a referendum can be held on recently passed legislation. If certified petition signatures are gathered and submitted within 90 days the legislation is suspended.

A ballot initiative would have to be used to challenge existing hunting opportunities. In that case the existing regulations would remain in effect until after the results of the initiative.

[Shlwego]

Perhaps now that we've suffered a defeat at the polls, it's time to look at the larger picture. There were "hunters" who voted against dove hunting, and that's unfortunate and it angers me. But it's in the past now. What we need now is an initiative that will bring all hunters back together, and it's not going to be trapping, believe me!
What we need is an ammendment to the State Constitution guaranteeing a "Right to Hunt." Currently in Michigan, hunting is just a "priveledge," and as such it can be taken away. Many other states have guaranteed hunting as "Right" that cannot be taken away.
If we don't protect hunting as a right, it will be slowly picked away at until we lose it all. The anti's have proven in this dove fight that they have WAY MORE MONEY available to spend on advertising than the pro-hunting side does. They were able to tell outright lies ("doves are used as target practice" "too small to eat") and we didn't have the funding to challenge them. They can do the same thing again, and they will, with trapping, and then bow-hunting, and then, and then, and then.... and they will STILL have more money than they can spend left over.
If we word the ballot language correctly, then we can TAKE IT ALL off the table, by guaranteeing a "Right to Hunt, Trap, and Fish" all game species, by all currently acceptable methods (i.e. bow, dogs, firearms, trapping, etc.). The anti's would scream and howl over this, to be sure, but since it would effect ALL hunters and fishermen, we'd probably be able to stick together and get it passed.

Just my $0.02