January 21, 2005

1/21 - California Fishermen: Have they "suffered enough"?

Just got back from 2 days in Central California interviewing fishermen for a 5 minute video we are putting together titled, "Rebuttal to the Tiny Fish PSA." It will be a glimpse of fishermen's response, in their own words, to having seen the Tiny Fish PSA on their televisions (and yes, I managed to survive my encounters with them without any physical harm).

One thing I can tell you right off the bat, there is an enormous amount of anger and frustration among every fisherman I have spoken with in the Central California coast over the past two weeks, which is probably about 25 fishermen now. Every one of them. Does it have to be that bad? That's the question we are pondering. The new video will be ready in a couple of weeks or so and will be posted on the website.

In the meanwhile, here's an article in the LA Times yesterday from veteran ocean writer Ken Weiss, about another troubled California fishery. It quotes the California state Fish and Game president who told authorities at a sentencing hearing for a fisherman friend whom he said had, "suffered enough."


fisherman2.jpg

Monterey Fisherman, 1973 (photo by Bill Hocker)


Posted by Randy Olson at January 21, 2005 02:40 AM