Looking for Some Help with the Bear Question

     So - I need some help with the bear question on the November ballot. It reads,“Do you want to ban the use of bait, dogs or traps in bear hunting except to protect property, public safety, or for research?” I'll be honest...my instinct is to vote yes. We are the only state that still has all three, other states seem to be doing ok, and trapping seems especially cruel.
     That being said, I also tend to trust the experts in our fish and game department and they want me to vote no. Their advice way back in the early 80s got me to back the moose hunt and that has been successful.
     I've seen four bears in the wild while hiking and its been a thrilling experience...they are magnificent animals. I'm asking for some opinion, but I want any comments to remain respectful. I RESPECT both sides of this question. Thanks.
~MET

St. John, New Brunswick!

 M-S and I just returned from a couple of days in St. John, NB - and we had a fantastic time. Its about a 4.5 hour drive which includes a bunch of time on Maine's "Airline", which is the worst road in the state. Lots of big trucks, NOTHING to look at, and we had lunch at the diner of the living dead in Crawford. Once we got to our destination (skyline above) we stayed here:

 The Homeport B&B. It was a great house and about a 25 minute walk to "Uptown" - the NB version of downtown. Our room was clean and very comfortable:

 The house also had a widow's watch where we enjoyed a glass of wine:

 View from the widow's watch:

 A very short walk from our place is the famous reversing rapids of the St. John River. Here it is at low tide:

 The water is moving away from the camera at a good clip as the river moves toward the Bay of Fundy. But during high tide the river actually reverses onto itself in this spot. In this picture the river is moving toward us:

 We spent a lot of time uptown walking around. Moosehead id everywhere.

 In every bar there are many different kinds on tap - here I'm having the oak cask version:

 We shopped a lot, looked at old buildings and went to the New Brunswick museum. Its huge, and my few pictures don't do it justice. Here I'm learning to tie nautical knots:

 Whales:

 M-S and some beautiful quilts:

 Besides history and animals there was a lot of art on display:

 My favorite piece:

 We really had a great time and got plenty of relaxing in. Cribbage in the card room of the B&B:

 Very old theater:

 Trinity church:

 The walkway we took to the city:

 My favorite meal was lunch at Brit's pub where I had, and I'm being serious, the BEST hamburger of my life:

 It is absolutely number one, and numbers 2-50,000 are not even close. You can taste the peanut butter every bite - so good. We also met a couple of nice dogs. Diva walked up to me on the street and didn't want to leave:

 Kane the Great Dane weighs 185 pounds:

 Not a dog:

 We decided to avoid Route 9 on the trip home and had a lovely ride on Route 1. All I wanted was to stop at a smokehouse and buy some fish, and we found a great one:

The rest of the week is filled with meetings and school is starting soon, but a quick trip with M-S always puts me in the right frame of mind. Life is good.
~MET