USP HUNTING CAMPS and SPORTSMEN CLUBS MEMBERSHIP RENEWAL All USP Club and Hunting Camp members are reminded that your membership is on a mid-year renewal cycle. So, if you have not already renewed your organization's membership for 2010-11, please do so at your earliest convenience. Sportsmen Club and Hunting Camp members are both important and appreciated by the USP. The USP boasts of having the largest individual membership base of any statewide sportsmen organization in Pennsylvania. The networking and communication opportunity provided via Club and Camp members does much to help the USP stay strong and effective. The 2010-11 dues schedule has remained unchanged. Sportsmen Club is $100/year Hunting Camp is $25/year Checks should be payable to USP, and renewals should be sent to: USP Membership 560 Shawmont Ave Phila., PA 19128   August Raffle   For the month of August 2010, the USP will be holding a PA Daily Number Drawing based upon the evening daily number. There are just 1000 tickets available. So, for just over 16 cents a day you can play a number for the entire month of August. Anyone who is interested in purchasing tickets, or in selling tickets, should contact Pete Kingsley at 717-687-9244 for more information, or to request tickets. Your support of this Fund Raiser will be greatly appreciated.  August Raffle Ticket   USP FALL 2010 MEETINGS Ramada Inn 971 N. Eagle Valley Road I-80 Exit 158 Milesburg, PA 16853 814-355-7521 BOARD OF DIRECTORS MEETING                                     MEMBERSHIP MEETING Saturday September 11, 2010                                              Sunday September 12, 2010 8:30AM - 4:30PM                                                                 Doors Open 8:30AM Board Members Only                                                             Meeting Starts at 9:30AM NOT Open to the Public                                                         OPEN TO THE PUBLIC   Plan to attend and participate in the Membership Meeting. Guests who share the views of the USP are welcome and they will benefit by attending our Membership Meeting.   USP RAFFLE WINNERS CROSS FORK SNAKE HUNT 27 JUNE 2010   7 Day Canadian Fishing Trip for 2 at Water Shed Outfitters - Ed Fichte Boar, Ram, or Goat Hunt at Exotic Island Hunts - Robert Meyer Weatherby Vanguard .270 w/Leupold Scope - James Claypool  Marlin 917 VS .17 Cal w/Carved Stock - Ed Bolick Remington 870 12 Ga. w/Carved Stock - Nancy Crissman Thompson Center Omega, .50 Cal - R. Bauersmith Wild Boar Hunt at Tioga Boar Hunting - George Mohr FoxPro FX3 Digital Game Call, FoxPro, Inc. - John Volkar Fly Fishing Outfit. Kettle Creek Fly & Tackle Shop - Charles Young $250 Cash - John Baker   The USP wishes to thank all of our supporters who purchased tickets for this raffle. In addition, we are very grateful for the support of the businesses that provided prizes for this fund raiser. Please show your continued support by patronizing those businesses that have participated with their generous and loyal support of the USP.   WMI Deer Audit Clobbers PGC's Deer Program         You may have heard or read by now that the Deer Audit conducted by the Wildlife Management Institute (WMI) was a complete vindication of the PGC's deer management program. Unfortunately, I can't stop anyone from rolling their own before they write a column. If you take the time to read this document, you will conclude that this is the biggest PGC embarrassment since the MAT Report.         In very professional terminology, Scot Williamson, V-P of WMI and author of this audit, literally chopped the legs right off the PGC's three-legged deer management stool. You've heard the spin; healthy deer, healthy forests and minimum human-deer conflicts. The last goal has somewhat morphed into stakeholder involvement or as we know it, Citizen Advisory Committees (CAC). Scot Williamson is a skillful writer and you must read the audit slowly and carefully.         WMI advised eliminating healthy deer as a management goal. Counting fawn fetuses pulled from dead doe has been a poorly managed program since its inception. WCO's hate doing it and it proves little. Our reproduction rate averages 1.5 now and it was 1.5 fifty years ago. Furthermore, it would take years to see a reduction in reproduction rates if we had too many deer. Actually, reproduction rates in PA are very stable indicating we have never been on the downside of the bell curve.         WMI dedicated pages to forest regeneration issues and did a rather complete analysis. It quickly becomes obvious that PA's forests suffer from a multitude of problems. WMI spoke freely about our highly acidic soils, the lack of fire and our poor forestry practices as major causes of failed regeneration. They acknowledged the mature sugar maple die-off caused by our acidic soils. WMI warned that if soil conditions don't improve our oak forests will ultimately be replaced by red maple and black birch.         Unfortunately, WMI stated that the "general consensus" in the scientific community is that deer are still the major cause of our regeneration failures. Our legislators didn't buy that remark, especially after reading Mr. Williamson's detailed analysis of our myriad of forest problems. Perhaps, Mr. Williamson isn't aware that advanced regeneration is failing up and down the entire eastern seaboard. Furthermore, we didn't pay Mr. Williamson to determine the "general consensus". He was paid to uncover the truth by gathering scientific facts.         The PGC received praise from WMI for establishing CAC's and involving the public, but not without criticism. WMI recommends utilizing more scientific survey methods to reach a broader group of stakeholders. They recommended establishing a statewide CAC.         Where the PGC took an additional major hit is their low harvest reporting rates and the resulting poor harvest estimates. It is absolutely critical to have accurate harvest numbers to plug into the deer model to estimate overall herd size. Additionally, WMI found that our deer model was inadequate to establish doe allocations. These are the exact allegations our sporting class has leveled against the Agency for decades. It is the garbage-in, garbage-out analogy in the flesh, or should I say, fur.         Furthermore, our deer model is a homemade affair, responsive to some inputs and unresponsive to others. There is no nationwide accepted deer model when antler restrictions are in place. The three-year look-back procedure necessary to establish deer densities create a complicated model subject to error and widely varying estimates. Our legislators are currently considering mandatory deer harvest reporting legislation to improve the accuracy and credibility of the PGC's deer management. WMI also suggested the publication of deer herd populations for each WMU.         While all of the above is enough to shake 2001 Elmerton Ave from its foundation, WMI did categorize the PGC's deer management as scientifically sound. During the hearing, which brought Scot Williamson of WMI before the House Game and Fisheries Committee, our legislators were astounded at how WMI could come to that conclusion. Frankly, parts of the deer audit could be categorized as masterful examples of contradictions.         You can obtain a copy of this 90-page document for your reading pleasure. Call the PA Legislative Budget and Finance Committee at 717-783-1600 for a copy. It is also available online.         There is talk of having WMI back for an explanation of their contradictory statements. Our PGC Commissioners are reviewing this audit with great interest. The PGC is currently engaged in a strategy to reverse the changes adopted at the January Commissioner meeting. There is much happening in Harrisburg. However, at this moment in PA game management history, the WMI deer audit just clobbered the PGC's deer management program. Jim Slinsky is the host and producer of the "Outdoor Talk Network", a nationally syndicated, outdoor-talk radio program. For a station near you or to contact Jim, visit his website at Outdoor Talk Network   USP Membership Center at Jake's Sunoco in South Williamsport on Route 15.   Unified Sportsmen of PA Legal Defense Fund Financial donations in support of the lawsuit will be greatfully accepted. Please make check payable to: USP and send your donation to: Dr. N. Charles Bolgiano 824 Dorsea Road Lancaster, PA 17601 Click here to print legal defense fund donation form.

About USP The USP has served the grassroots sportsmen of Pennsylvania by representing tens of thousands of sportsmen for regulatory relief and legislative help. Without your continued support, the Unified Sportsmen would not be recognized today as the most influential sportsmen's organization in Pennsylvania. For this reason, we ask that you continue to support USP efforts to defend and promote our rights of hunting, fishing, trapping and shooting. These are difficult times for our nation and state. They are also difficult times for sportsmen in Pennsylvania. We need to be united to exercise vigilance against those who intend to treat our sports as mere secondary items of importance. Why Join the Unified Sportsmen of Pennsylvania? Unified Sportsmen is leading the charge to pass HB 1512, which will guarantee the future right of all Pennsylvanian's to hunt, fish, shoot, and trap. Unified Sportsmen is strongly opposed to any merger of the Fish and Game Commission into one organization, and will continue to fight for the independence of our state agencies. Unified Sportsmen is leading the opposition to the Game Commission's massive deer reduction plan by adapting the following positions: Pennsylvania's deer population is grossly overestimated by the PGC. The PGC does not have a credible system for determining deer harvests, and consequently does not have an accurate count of how many deer actually exist in the Commonwealth. There is a major discrepancy between the number of deer on private land vs. public land, as we continue to reduce an already depleted herd on public land while private land is the source of our over-population problems. The buck to doe ratio is not nearly out of balance as the PGC claims. Antler Restrictions have been found to be detrimental to the deer herd in other states, and there is no reason to believe it will be successful here. The existing deer management plan is devoid of desired deer population numbers, and is instead basing the appropriate number of deer on subjective evaluations such as the existence of desired plant species. Unified Sportsmen has challenged the Game Commission to improve the habitat on State Game Lands to sustain hunt able game populations, instead of managing primarily for timber. Unified Sportsmen believe that our youth are the future of hunting, fishing, and trapping, and every effort should be made to enhance their opportunity. The Unified Sportsmen of Pennsylvania is a thriving organization looking to expand our membership as we seek to represent what we perceive to be the voice of Pennsylvania's sportsmen. We welcome members as well as influential people from around the state to attend our semi-annual meetings, and offer their input on current issues. We publish a bi-monthly newspaper, Pennsylvania Woods & Waters, which is mailed to members, Legislators, and Government agencies to keep the public abreast of sportsmen's issues. We also maintain a lobbyist in Harrisburg to take issues to our legislature when warranted. The USP believes that being politically correct is counter-productive to the quality of hunting, fishing, shooting, and trapping. Our Officers and Directors are all unpaid volunteers who are free to speak their minds without jeopardizing alliances with other factions within our state. If this sounds like an organization that represents your interests and beliefs, we would appreciate your support. Please visit our Membership Application page for our joining options.   Our Mission The purpose of the Unified Sportsmen of Pennsylvania is to bring attention to important issues relating to hunting, fishing, trapping and shooting. To promote and maintain high standards in conservation of our natural resources. To cooperate with State and Federal agencies and all sportsmen organizations to protect and achieve needs of both wildlife and sportsmen. To defend our heritage right to hunt, fish, trap, and to protect our Constitutional Right to keep and bear arms. To promote programs to educate the public about hunting, fishing, trapping and shooting for all future generations. Being the largest independent statewide sportsmen organization in Pennsylvania, we can accomplish a lot with just a small amount of money. All of the USP officers are highly motivated, interested, knowledgeable sportsmen and all are non salaried. Even our professional full time lobbyist in Harrisburg is a non salaried officer. However even the USP can not perform miracles, and cannot exist without you as a member.

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Another Disappointing Deer Season?

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