Something very bad for New Jersey’s wild animals is about to happen.
This time, after years of others’ preventing it, only Governor Murphy can stop
it -- and only those who care about our wild animals can encourage him to veto A3242/S2419!
(609-292-6000).
Here’s what’s going on.
On June 10, the state senate passed S2419, also known by animal
advocates as “the poaching bill” because it would legalize some hunting
practices that animal poachers -- illegal animal killers -- typically use. And not only legalize them, but spread those
practices as well.
You read it right: S2419 would not only
permit and thereby make legitimate a number of horrible practices toward
wild animals here, but also broaden the areas where they can be used.
For 11 years, humane organizations and the NJ Sierra Club fought
successfully to keep this legislation from becoming law. But now, it has made it through the
legislature and will go to Gov. Murphy’s desk for the signature that will make
it law. It will empower hunters to kill
animals virtually any way they can.
That’s what we must keep from happening!
The following are just some of the
worst things about S2419:
1 -- “Baiting” animals -- attracting them with food, then killing them
as they “take the bait” -- is illegal in New York and Pennsylvania, yet
encouraged here. (What kind of “sportsmen” would bait animals to kill them?) S2419 would add hundreds of thousands of NJ
acres where baiting can take place.
2 -- Still other poaching practices would also be permitted in the acreage
added by S2419. They include shooting
deer from moving vehicles at night and “jacklighting,” or stunning deer with
bright lights. (What kind of “sportsmen”
would do that?)
3 -- Giving hunters even more territory where they can kill animals, as
well as far more animals to kill, S2419 broadens what is known as “depredation
permit killing” -- that is, killing all
animals believed to cause crop damage on specified lands: those under
forest stewardship, forest management and woodland management plans.
The legislation does not define the amount of crop damage necessary to
permit killing animals on the land; it does not identify crop-damage causes
other than animals; and it does not even suggest humane, non-lethal ways of
dealing with the animals believed to have damaged crops.
To all appearances, S2419 is a wide-reaching hunting permit under the
guise of protecting crops.
Detailed
information on this subject is available on the website of the Animal
Protection League of NJ: https://aplnj.org/wildlife-advocacy/deer-resources-information/.
For
the animals, it’s urgent that Governor
Murphy hear, early and often, from New
Jersey residents who are against this legislation becoming state law. Please phone 609-292-6000, and urge as many others as possible to do the same.
a reference for animals in war ...................................................
In my blog post
for Memorial Day, Monday, May 27, I referred to London’s Animals in War
memorial and included photos I had taken there.
Later, I realized that some readers might want more information on the
subject of animals in war, upsetting as it might (and should) be. I recommend Jilly Cooper’s book, Animals in War: Valiant Horses, Courageous
Dogs, and Other Unsung Animal Heroes.
(The Lyons Press, an imprint of the Globe Pequot Press, c. 2002)
The animals in
war mentioned in Cooper’s book include pigeons, mules, horses, donkeys, dogs,
camels, elephants, cats, canaries, sheep, mice, goats, pigs, bats, bullocks,
oxen, monkeys, rabbits, guinea pigs and dolphins.
Right
now, please: phone Gov. Murphy about the horrible A3242/S2419! (609-292-6000)
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