Governor Muscle Wants to Take, Take, Take the Ocean

[PAL]

I worked side by side with Terry Maas on the MLPA South Coast Regional Stakeholders Group to preserve reasonable fishing access. Like Terry, I witnessed the complete corruption of a so-called open and transparent public process, as for-pay environmental operatives played dirty to grab everything possible for their corporate trophy cases. Arnie cleared the way for this transparent greenwashing.

Terry is a legend in the free diving community, a great waterman, an ocean lover and conservationist. He posted the following on Spearboard. Read it - you'll get a quick MLPA education.

The F&G Commission meeting this month on the 20th or 21st (schedule pending for public comment) is our LAST CHANCE to speak out and possibly delay this process to the new administrations of either candidate, both of want a more reasoned approach to marine resources. SIMPLY PUT, IF WE GAIN A DELAY, WE WIN, IF NOT WE LOOSE. With the commission stacked against us it will take every restrictive option to the proposed IPA and may well add elements of the even more radical C proposal

Our time is running out and so is the governor’s who is hell bent on leaving a MPA legacy. So intent, that he has stacked the deck on the F&G Commission by recently switching out a reasonable commissioner with a Heal-the-Bay lackey in order to guarantee cramming his environmental no-take, anti-fishing vision down our throats.

As a regional stake holder in this latest process and the aborted attempt 7 years ago, I have become thoroughly disgusted with the entire politics of marine reserves. What really bothers me is that I think marine reserves are good ideas when implemented properly. I’m fed up with so-called environmentalists and preservationist who have no real connection to the ocean, who don’t swim it or fish it, who might throw on a scuba tank once a year if at all. I’m fed up with the scientists who sell their opinions for the promise of more grant money to study the reserves they create. Both groups contain many paid whores looking to protect their pay checks. It is tough to fight against full-time paid environmental lobbyists with volunteer time from folks with real jobs, who donate their time. I've watched these professional "environmental" folks spin their lies, manipulate the facts, and grab huge swaths of the shore for themselves and their well healed supporters. Follow the money: reserves at Malibu and Laguna are paid for by the land owners who want to sit at their beach front homes and enjoy their margaritas without having to look at you. They want it all for themselves.

What really gets me is that these paid hacks have no real connection to the ocean. Taking our prime fishing spots is simply of no concern to them. While they claim to champion the ocean, they don't care. They have never experienced the wonders of the ocean that we crave and that brings us back week after week. They sit at arm chairs and pontificate, and lobby, and misinform the public.

I’m fed up with this whole corrupt process. Thankfully, the Partnership for Sustainable Oceans PSO, of which the Watermens Alliance is a key supportive member, has been able to expose the closed-door corruption. In the lawsuit by the United Anglers and Bob Fletcher, the court held that the whole process is in fact a state body subject to the open door law of the Bagley Keen act. This means that the Blue Ribbon Task Force and the Scientific Advisory Committee must disclose their deliberations and their financial backing. It means that the IPA is suspect and that it was incorrect to make the environmental impact study only on it and ignoring the other proposals submitted to the commission.

OUR LAST CHANCE TO STOP THIS TRAIN WRECK AND DEFER TO A MORE REASONABLE ADMINISTRATION IS THIS MONTH! PLEASE SHOW UP!

The Watermens Alliance is spending all of its remaining donated funds on this all-out final effort. Free Pizza, Beer, T-shirts and donated prizes will be offered by us for all of you who speak at the meeting. We will help prepare talking points so that you are well armed.

Here is how the PSO sees the issue:

The PSO engaged in the MLPA process constructively and in good faith. But when we have been critical of the process, especially of the secretive decision making, our concerns have fallen on mostly deaf ears.

On December 9, 2009, the Chair of the Blue Ribbon Task Force testified to this Commission that the BRTF regularly has meetings that exclude the public. Further, when asked by Commissioner Richards if she is familiar with Bagley-Keene, California’s open meetings law, the Chair testified, “Absolutely. Even though we’re advisory in nature we act as if we are bound by those same requirements.” We have even heard a Commissioner condescendingly dismiss a member of the public while defiantly declaring that “the BRTF is not subject to Bagley-Keene.”

Clearly, the BRTF chair spoke and then contradicted her own testimony in less than two minutes time by saying that the BRTF acts as if it is bound by Bagley-Keene while admitting that they do not. As a matter of fact, the BRTF did not, does not and never has abided by either Bagley-Keene or its own “open and transparent policy.”

Now because of the Superior Court ruling on October 1, 2010, in the matter of Fletcher v. Blue Ribbon Task Force and the Master Plan Team of the Marine Life Protection Act Initiative, we know that the BRTF and the SAT are not “merely advisory” but are, in fact, public agencies bound as public agencies by statutes that govern their conduct. Those statutes do not allow such private meetings as disclosed by the BRTF Chair and requires that the meetings of public bodies and the writings of public officials and agencies, including the BRTF and the SAT, shall be open to public scrutiny.

California’s open meeting statutes also require that the public be informed on a timely basis of what is to be discussed and/or decided by public agencies in their scheduled meetings. Of the 12 different meetings of the BRTF in the South Coast study region, 10 meetings had revisions to the meeting agenda fewer than 10 days prior to the meeting date – a violation of Bagley-Keene. Revised agendas for eight of those meetings were issued either on the day of the meeting or one day prior.

Not only has the BRTF and the Science Advisory Team (SAT) made a mockery of California’s open meeting laws, they refused to provide their MLPA documents to which the public is entitled as required by the Public Records Act (PRA). Fletcher was forced to file a lawsuit to force such disclosure.

So much for the “most open and transparent public policy process ever” as the implementation of the MLPA has been described by the Initiative team and some members of this Commission.

Because the BRTF and the SAT are public agencies, the people of California have a right to expect that they act as such and conform to California’s open meeting laws. Instead, the BRTF and the SAT fashioned marine closures in back-room deals based on politics and pseudo-science. Further, because the actions of the BRTF and the SAT have so egregiously violated statutes governing the conduct of the people’s business, the result of their work is tainted beyond salvage and must be discarded.

Because of the improper actions and violations of statute by the BRTF and the SAT, including the BRTF’s disingenuous testimony to this Commission, we request that the Commission begin proceedings to invalidate the regulations imposed in the MLPA Central Coast phase and the North Central Coast phase and suspend the MLPA process for the MLPA South Coast and the North Coast phases.

If the Commission were to take such action, we would gratefully offer our commitment to cooperatively working with the Department and the Commission in a truly open and transparent, science-based, implementation of the MLPA that is acceptable both to consumptive users and the Department and achieves the true goals of the MLPA. Such implementation would address the real issues that threaten the marine habitat and ecosystem: pollution from off-shore oil drilling and oil terminals, chemical and other pollution, storm-water runoff, sewage outfalls, once-through cooling, and other environmental threats.

We hope both for the benefit of the marine resources of the state of California and for all of us who use the resource that you will grant our request. Otherwise, we will exercise our right to pursue any and all avenues available to us to ensure that the MLPA is implemented in a manner consistent both with the goals of the MLPA and governing statutes.

Terry Maas for the Watemens Alliance and for all divers interested in a fair balance between marine reserves and utilization of the ocean's resources.

[Tman]

That is probably the most important piece of reading regarding this whole process. Thanks for that Paul.

Mr. Maas has hit the nail on the head, with pinpoint accuracy. When I first got involved in this process, I had someone who shall remain nameless, tell me that we were about to be RR'd, and that these meetings are supposed to be open in every aspect and that he had seen it before, how the public was excluded on purpose which would be a clear violation of any government committee.

I wondered where I recognized the name...googled it, he holds the record for unassisted spearing of a fish - 398 lbs!

As I recall, to qualify, you've got to bring the fish to the boat. He did it with buoys, and after shooting the fish, after seeing cows come by knowing that a bus was on its way, after spending roughly a week without shooting something since he wanted a trophy, that bus came by.

After tagging the fish, it swam away, only to bull charge him and die out in front of him. Maybe I am off a bit, but that is how I remember the story, and I did not google the story - just the name.

He is a legend in my eyes. I have seen Blue Water Hunter, and I am stoked he is on our side.

Terry Maas - thank you...

[robmandel]

wow, very impressive. also, don't forget that the SAT was supposed to have members of Parks and Rec as well as SeaGrant. The Central Coast phase did, but the South Coast did not. and now the north coast phase does.

That's a clear violation of the mlpa law regarding the south coast phase. I know, it sounds like a trivial matter. but it's not. it's a legal requirement. it seems to me it's pretty clear cut.

I think that needs to be part of the lawsuit as well. the SAT was lacking. period, end of story.

gonna try like hell to get down there.

[Fiskadoro]

".....delay this process to the new administrations of either candidate, both of want a more reasoned approach to marine resources..."

"The PSO engaged in the MLPA process constructively and in good faith. But when we have been critical of the process.....our concerns have fallen on mostly deaf ears...."

You know it's hard to figure out if you should laugh or cry.

I never supported Schwarzenegger even when most of the fishing industry wonks said he was going to be our MLPA savior, and I was not that surprised when concerns about his egotistical self serving nature fell on deaf ears with the push your favorite party partisan crowd, but I got to wonder now since these guys have now flipped and flopped and claim he's the bad guy: who the hell they are talking about when they claim that the next administration (it doesn't seem to matter which) is somehow going to help us when it comes to the MLPA.

Do they mean Brown the leftest environmentalist? Or Meg the tech queen who loves people like the NRDC because they wield a large voting block, and though they go after working stiffs like fisherman they for the most part leave people like her and her high end tech industry alone. To my knowledge neither of those candidates have spoken against the MLPA.

I completely support fisherman and their actions to keep their waters open, I'm angry as hell about the closures especially what they have done at Malibu, but at this point I am also sick and tired of the stupid BS, and the stories these lobbyists make up that seem change from day to day, based on whatever sounds best, or what might give them an advantage at any given moment.

I'm not attacking anyone individually here, but there are times you have to separate the wheat from the chaff, and I'd say it's likely we are not going to get anything that's a better deal from the next administration then what we have already seen on the table. Ideologically both those candidates are to the left of Schwarzenegger when it comes to environmental issues.

That said we are at the single most dangerous crossroad we have faced in regards to the MLPA since the day this process started, and if you ever considered getting involved you should probably get involved now.

Essentially we now face a huge enemy who has major control over what's going to happen when it comes to the MLPA! Our Governor Schwarzenegger is out for blood an he is going to screw us.

First off you have to understand Schwarzenegger's personality, he's essentially ego driven not ideology driven. By that I mean he's not so much interested in ideology or ideas but more interested and how they make him look. When he entered politics he thought he'd become a famous politician in the pattern of Ronald Reagan, that he might even rise higher office like a Congressman, or Senator. The gist is he thought he could do politics big time, and he has failed. The problem was that is his interest in politics is just superficial. He did not have the convictions of Reagan, and worse he was not willing to follow the lead of his advisers, or essentially take direction like Reagan. As a result he's made a lousy politician, and he's probably done with politics at the end of this term. Look at his administration, He's essentially got nothing to show for it. He Governed California into it's worse economic collapse in history, and right now that is it..

This man is extremely ego oriented, he wants something out of this he can point to and say: Look I accomplished this great thing. Like I said he's probably done with politics so he's going to have to go back into the film business in order to get the attention he craves........and a passed MLPA will play very well in Hollywood.

I think he was listening to his political advisers when he put Sustos in Bennighovens place, though Schwarzenegger probably did gave Sutsos marching orders on how he wanted him to vote on MLPA matters before appointing him. The idea being he wants the MLPA process pushed to a close as quickly as possible so he can get the credit when it's done. Sutsos evidently did not listen, attended one meeting, and then got canned. Schwarzenegger doesn't want any more delays. He fired Sutsos for not following his instructions, and for voting to slow things down. Bad enough but Sutsos was not only removed by Schwarzenegger but in his place the Governor appointed Bayliss into Bennighovens old seat, Bayliss who is Chairman of the Coastal Conservancy, who is as green as they come.

I have no doubt the enviros told Schwarzenegger that if they got the seat, they'd deliver, and get the MLPA done on his watch, but I also think the appointment of Bayliss is also an intentional slap in the face to fisherman, and therefore it's a huge red flag.

Schwarzenegger's saying that if we try to slow this down he's going to F us, and cut us right out of the process, but at the same time he's given us a no win situation where we have no choice. We can't back off, we have to fight him, otherwise we might end up in a worse position then we are already in now.

Again...Schwarzenegger' wants the MLPA to go through before he is out of office, he wants credit for it, he's appointed an Enviro into Benninghoven's old position, which means he's now working directly with them.

They now have a huge opportunity to get the Governor to help them push through the law with subtle changes and get the maximum restrictions on fishing possible. He wants to check the box whne it comes to the MLPA, and to be able to say he did it, and he's willing to cut deals with the enviros, to make that happen, and I seriously doubt he cares much at this point about how much turf or compromises he will have to give to the enviros to get it done. That means the maps that already have been worked out could well be redrawn to benefit the enviro side, which means we have to stop it from going forward until he's gone.

I.E. If we get a "Schwarzenegger Marine Life Protection Act of California." It is going to be a proverbial wet dream for the enviros and we now have to stop the MLPA from going through on his watch at all costs.

Schwarzenegger's no longer listening to his political advisers he's listening to his press agents, and pushing through the MLPA purely to hype up his return to Hollywood, or enhance his career.

Yeah Meg or Brown might not give us anything more then what we've already seen on the maps but Schwarzenegger is now willing to cut our throats to benefit himself, which means we will have to fight all the harder then ever to keep what we can.

I don't care where you are politically, we've been put in this corner, and now we really all do need to work together to stop Schwarzenegger at all costs.



Jim

[zenspearo]

Originally Posted by Jim Day

".....delay this process to the new administrations of either candidate, both of want a more reasoned approach to marine resources..."

"The PSO engaged in the MLPA process constructively and in good faith. But when we have been critical of the process.....our concerns have fallen on mostly deaf ears...."

You know it's hard to figure out if you should laugh or cry.

I never supported Schwarzenegger even when most of the fishing industry wonks said he was going to be our MLPA savior, and I was not that surprised when concerns about his egotistical self serving nature fell on deaf ears with the push your favorite party partisan crowd, but I got to wonder now since these guys have now flipped and flopped and claim he's the bad guy: who the hell they are talking about when they claim that the next administration (it doesn't seem to matter which) is somehow going to help us when it comes to the MLPA.

Do they mean Brown the leftest environmentalist? Or Meg the tech queen who loves people like the NRDC because they wield a large voting block, and though they go after working stiffs like fisherman they for the most part leave people like her and her high end tech industry alone. To my knowledge neither of those candidates have spoken against the MLPA.

I completely support fisherman and their actions to keep their waters open, I'm angry as hell about the closures especially what they have done at Malibu, but at this point I am also sick and tired of the stupid BS, and the stories these lobbyists make up that seem change from day to day, based on whatever sounds best, or what might give them an advantage at any given moment.

I'm not attacking anyone individually here, but there are times you have to separate the wheat from the chaff, and I'd say it's likely we are not going to get anything that's a better deal from the next administration then what we have already seen on the table. Ideologically both those candidates are to the left of Schwarzenegger when it comes to environmental issues.

That said we are at the single most dangerous crossroad we have faced in regards to the MLPA since the day this process started, and if you ever considered getting involved you should probably get involved now.

Essentially we now face a huge enemy who has major control over what's going to happen when it comes to the MLPA! Our Governor Schwarzenegger is out for blood an he is going to screw us.

First off you have to understand Schwarzenegger's personality, he's essentially ego driven not ideology driven. By that I mean he's not so much interested in ideology or ideas but more interested and how they make him look. When he entered politics he thought he'd become a famous politician in the pattern of Ronald Reagan, that he might even rise higher office like a Congressman, or Senator. The gist is he thought he could do politics big time, and he has failed. The problem was that is his interest in politics is just superficial. He did not have the convictions of Reagan, and worse he was not willing to follow the lead of his advisers, or essentially take direction like Reagan. As a result he's made a lousy politician, and he's probably done with politics at the end of this term. Look at his administration, He's essentially got nothing to show for it. He Governed California into it's worse economic collapse in history, and right now that is it..

This man is extremely ego oriented, he wants something out of this he can point to and say: Look I accomplished this great thing. Like I said he's probably done with politics so he's going to have to go back into the film business in order to get the attention he craves........and a passed MLPA will play very well in Hollywood.

I think he was listening to his political advisers when he put Sustos in Bennighovens place, though Schwarzenegger probably did gave Sutsos marching orders on how he wanted him to vote on MLPA matters before appointing him. The idea being he wants the MLPA process pushed to a close as quickly as possible so he can get the credit when it's done. Sutsos evidently did not listen, attended one meeting, and then got canned. Schwarzenegger doesn't want any more delays. He fired Sutsos for not following his instructions, and for voting to slow things down. Bad enough but Sutsos was not only removed by Schwarzenegger but in his place the Governor appointed Bayliss into Bennighovens old seat, Bayliss who is Chairman of the Coastal Conservancy, who is as green as they come.

I have no doubt the enviros told Schwarzenegger that if they got the seat, they'd deliver, and get the MLPA done on his watch, but I also think the appointment of Bayliss is also an intentional slap in the face to fisherman, and therefore it's a huge red flag.

Schwarzenegger's saying that if we try to slow this down he's going to F us, and cut us right out of the process, but at the same time he's given us a no win situation where we have no choice. We can't back off, we have to fight him, otherwise we might end up in a worse position then we are already in now.

Again...Schwarzenegger' wants the MLPA to go through before he is out of office, he wants credit for it, he's appointed an Enviro into Benninghoven's old position, which means he's now working directly with them.

They now have a huge opportunity to get the Governor to help them push through the law with subtle changes and get the maximum restrictions on fishing possible. He wants to check the box whne it comes to the MLPA, and to be able to say he did it, and he's willing to cut deals with the enviros, to make that happen, and I seriously doubt he cares much at this point about how much turf or compromises he will have to give to the enviros to get it done. That means the maps that already have been worked out could well be redrawn to benefit the enviro side, which means we have to stop it from going forward until he's gone.

I.E. If we get a "Schwarzenegger Marine Life Protection Act of California." It is going to be a proverbial wet dream for the enviros and we now have to stop the MLPA from going through on his watch at all costs.

Schwarzenegger's no longer listening to his political advisers he's listening to his press agents, and pushing through the MLPA purely to hype up his return to Hollywood, or enhance his career.

Yeah Meg or Brown might not give us anything more then what we've already seen on the maps but Schwarzenegger is now willing to cut our throats to benefit himself, which means we will have to fight all the harder then ever to keep what we can.

I don't care where you are politically, we've been put in this corner, and now we really all do need to work together to stop Schwarzenegger at all costs.



Jim

Thanks for the sobering analysis Jim.

You are right. This is THE cross-road. A dangerous one. It makes our participation more important than ever.

With your permission, can I repost some or all of this on the spearo and other sites?

[Fiskadoro]

Originally Posted by zenspearo

Thanks for the sobering analysis Jim.

You are right. This is THE cross-road. A dangerous one. It makes our participation more important than ever.

With your permission, can I repost some or all of this on the spearo and other sites?

Thanks for the comeback. Your more then welcome to repost it wherever you want to.

One small thing I should probably tell you though in case your unaware of it. There is a small clique of internet posters that follow me around and talk smack no matter what I say, so if you do repost it don't be to surprised if someone comes back and tries to stir up something negative. It's not a big deal I'm used to it but I figured you should know.

It kind of reminds me of a quote from "Dark Night". If your opinionated enough online you either are made into a hero or if you last long enough may see yourself become the villain. I can say those things because I'm no hero.

Keep up the good fight!!! Jim