More on Gary Alt
 

I heard a little rumor about Gary Alt. I' m not saying I believe it, but it is an interesting angle. The rumor is that the ever-increasing doe tags has to do with kick-backs from the auto insurance companies and that might have something to do with Alt almost quitting. It' s probably just a rumor and many people are against change in the hunting rules in PA. Many people are against shooting does and therefore would be anti-Alt. I have to think this is hog wash but you never know. Anyone else heard this rumor?

Scott Meier
White Oak Lodge

RE: More on Gary Alt
 

I haven' t heard that rumor...until now! I have heard for years that the insurance companies have been lobbying for higher deer kills....never actually saw factual evidence of such though.

RE: More on Gary Alt
 

I don' t put much creedance in that rumor. However, I will say that I believe the state is way too concerned with the money they can make off timber sales on the GSL' s. The GSL' s are bought and paid for exclusively by the hunters by license sales but you can' t so much as put a tree step into a tree or even use a a climbing tree stand that does some rubbing on the bark for God' s sake. Just who paid for those trees anyway and who gets the most consideration? Seems like the state will let us pay to maintain a private timber industry for them.[:' (]

RE: More on Gary Alt
 

It' s rumor. Been around for years.

Many state employees retired early instead of losing benifits to Rendells budget. Why should Alt be any different?

The timeline was extended for the retirement benefits so Alt is still around for now.

You or I would have done the same thing.

RE: More on Gary Alt
 

I agree w/ T. That rumor was been circling for some while now. I think it is just that - a rumor.

RE: More on Gary Alt
 

It sounded a little far fetched. I didn' t want to spread it further but I did want to see what everyone thought about it.

Scott Meier
White Oak Lodge

RE: More on Gary Alt
 

Old rumor...for sure...auto insurances don' t care about people hitting deer....they have all the money they need and what happens if you do...they raise your rates and they make more money...

Now, the forestry industry...hmmmm Think about it...the deer are overbrowsing the new tree growth...no trees, not forest industry....now that' s another rumor in the mix but it makes more sense...and more important.

RE: More on Gary Alt
 

I personally don' t think that any private timber co. is influencing the deer management in PA. I do think that the almighty dollar is influencing a lot of decisions about how things get done on SGL' s, ie its all about the money that can be made from timber sales instead of pure game management for the hunters that are footing the bill for the SGL' s in the first place. No permanant tree stands, no tree steps, a climbing tree stand may not harm the bark, no trimming of vegatation in any way, shape, or form (to make shooting lanes is illegal). Now I ask you, are the SGL' s being managed for the hunters or for timber sales?:(

RE: More on Gary Alt
 

The funny thing is - the areas that need does wiped out the most (special regs areas) are mostly private property. You can sell 10 million doe tags in the counties around the Philly suburbs but nobody is going to be able to use them.

Scott Meier
White Oak Lodge

RE: More on Gary Alt
 

Amen Scott, my sentiments exactly.

RE: More on Gary Alt
 

By our hunting camp we have a state park and 45,000 acres of state game lands. It' s all forest. This is not where there are problems with deer/human conflict and , therefore, is not a special regs area. Down in the suburbs, there are deer hit on the roads all over the place. New developments and strip malls go up and shrink the deer' s habitat even more. In Delaware and Philadelphia Counties there are no areas open to hunting and in all of Montgomery County there might be about 1000 acres. The rest is private. These are the areas where doe licenses are the easiest to get. They' re never going to get the balance right.

Scott Meier
White Oak Lodge

RE: More on Gary Alt
 

I' ve been in the insurance biz for 26 years and NEVER have I seen any evidence of any concern over deer here in Pa. Insurance companies love anything that causes claims that they can reasonably track and predict! Deer collisions are statistically predictable over large numbers. If an insurance company can expect x dollars per car in deer related claims in the state, they get to charge x+ their expected profit in premiums!

The only kind of claims that bother insurance companies (in the big picture) are the ones that they have a tough time predicting with their bean counter formulas.

RE: More on Gary Alt
 

I' ve heard these rumors for years. I really don' t think there' s anything to the auto insurance rumor or the managing for timber profits. I actually never had any beef with the game commission. I was a little irritated with the antler restrictions at first but that' s about it. It just so happened that the first deer I saw was an 8-pointer. Talk about luck. Nothing changed - I still shot the first deer I saw.:D

Scott Meier
White Oak Lodge