So I am revitalizing this blog, at least temporarily, for the purpose of sharing the juiciest tidbits from my online debates in a concise and easy-to-access format. Yes, I have recently discovered a passion for debating with total strangers online over local news stories. I am fully aware that it is a complete waste of time, but it's fun, and the resulting arguments are certainly laugh-worthy.

Here's a story from KATU, titled "Oregon Cuts Sturgeon Fishing Over Sea Lions."

UNDATED - Since the time of the dinosaurs, sturgeon in the Columbia River had handled everything nature and man could throw at them.

But state biologists say the fish's numbers have declined since California sea lions decided sturgeon is what's for dinner, and the only fix they've found was telling the other top predator on the river dividing Washington and Oregon — humans — that they can't have as many to eat.

 The Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commission on Friday cut the total annual catch for sport and commercial fishermen in Oregon and Washington by 29 percent. Washington agreed to go along with the decision.

 Once surveys determine that 17,000 fish have been caught and tagged, the fisheries in the Columbia and Willamette rivers will be shut down. And chances for a second season in the fall appear slim. The cut comes on top of a 40 percent reduction last year.

 "We are concerned about recent declines in the sturgeon population," Tony Nigro, department program manager, said in a statement. "Therefore, we're being quite conservative in setting the harvest levels."

 White sturgeon are found in rivers from Alaska to Mexico, but the Columbia is the center of their universe, accounting for more of that fish than any other river. They can live to 100 and grow over 10 feet in length.

 As recently as 10 years ago, their prime threats were drought, dams and people; the image of a sea lion breaking the water with a sturgeon in its mouth was one recalled only by veteran anglers or others who spend a lot of time on the water.

 But now anyone going out on the Columbia from the mouth to Bonneville Dam is likely to see the drama of tooth and fin played out, especially in the prime spawning grounds below Bonneville dam.

 "That's a real change in behavior on the part of sea lions," said Oregon state fisheries biologist Tom Rien. "They have learned, or relearned perhaps, to hunt sturgeon."

 The problem is more than just sea lions, said Harry Barber, a volunteer for the Coastal Conservation Association.

 State fisheries managers allowed too many fish to be harvested for years, and the fish that sturgeon eat are declining. Smelt and lamprey have both gone on the endangered species list in recent years, and shad are in decline.

 Killing the sea lions is not an option; they are a protected species. But scaring them with fireworks and boats is allowed. And as a last resort, some are killed every year under a program to protect endangered salmon trying to get over the fish ladder on Bonneville Dam.

 But the hazing hasn't worked for sturgeon, which like to spawn in the fast water and clean gravel below the dam.

 Washington biologists estimate sea lions could eat as many as 10,600 sturgeon this year on the Columbia. Oregon biologists figure they killed 7,000 over five years old last year.

 Biologists aren't worried white sturgeon will be following salmon onto the endangered species list. Estimates put the overall population at around 1 million for those more than two feet long.

 But concerns remained for the number of fish that fishermen can legally take. Because sturgeon don't spawn until they grow more than 66 inches long, only fish from 32- to 54-inches long can be taken by fishermen. Those are estimated to number just 87,000 and are declining at a rate of about 15 percent a year.

 Another problem is finding more money for research at a time when budgets are very tight.

 "The prime thing that needs to be done, really, is looking at sea lion predation," said Rien. "We know of anecdotal reports we hear from fishermen who see for themselves this is a growing widespread problem. But we don't have the observers out in the river and research into sea lions to tell us what the actual predation is. It's a question we need to be able to address."

 Copyright 2011 The Associated Press.

Naturally, the redneck "shoot 'em all" types come crawling out of the woodwork in abundance. Here are some gems posted in response to the article:

SOLUTION : Sea Lion Stir Fry

Do we live in the biggest P**sy state or what?

Every sea lion above tidewater should be fair game, as it is out of the 'sea' part of their name.

as for hazing.... wouldn't it be much cheaper to buy a couple thousand cases of shotgun shells opposed to gasoline at $3 something a gallon for the boats that run about 3-5 mpg for 8 hours a day, 7 days a week? Kill them sons of biscuits!

Fresh Water is not the Stellar Sea lions natural environment!!!! They have migrated over 100 miles upriver in fresh water. They DON"T belong there!!! they need to be eradicated.

It finally occurs to the bleeding hearts that logging and industry and dams wasn't the culprit in fish declines after all. Its the Sea lions who are doing so much destructive damage.

They are called sea lions, not river lions. Kill any of them above tide water.

Good luck catching a starry flounder, 3 kinds of perch, ling cod, greenling or even a decent sized thorny bullhead in any river estuary with a penniped problem on the west coast.

I in turn:

Good luck catching ANY sizeable fish of ANY species that has been commercially fished by people.

Big debate between "Yaquina" and I ensue. He says:

My work was real, hands on, and very satisfying. Focus on what is real and forget the book statements without qualified field time.

As if attempting to prove his superiority over me and suggest perhaps my college education was not real or very satisfying (well, it really wasn't all that satisfying, but still, I just got such a kick out of that superfluous comment, especially considering I was providing consensus from fisheries professors with doctoral degrees in the field, not books).

My "let's be rid of one another for the sake of sanity" end statement:

I am just saying the overall trend of things is people have seriously depleted fish stocks. Just thought it was ironic how frazzled and worked up people get about the sea lions when we've done FAR more damage than any natural predator could. But the sea lions offer us a relatively easy solution. Rather than focusing on widespread habitat improvements and ecosystem health, we can just take out the most obvious direct cause of mortality. Once again, I'm not against culling sea lions. That is apparently the only thing the general public is willing to do.

Still more from other readers:

They are known as California Sea Lions. This is Oregon and Washington. That makes them an alien species to the NorthWest. If Fish and Wildlife cannot corral them up and deport them, then they should be fair game.

what sea lions do is not eat as much as rape, pillage and wipe out. They do not eat they bite and toss the rest.

They are a very destructive menace to our salmon and sturgeon resources in the rivers. The sea lions should be destroyed in the rivers.

This one gets me every time. My response:

And here we have the crux of the problem. People have this ingrained belief that the salmon and sturgeon are OUR resources. To heck with the natural predators they evolved with...kill them! The river is ours, so kill the sea lions. Might as well kill the natural predators that are competing with us in the oceans and the forests too. Oh right, we already do that. Look to your fellow fisherman and the huge demand for seafood to feed this overpopulated world as the bigger concern here.

To which “Freedom1267” responds:

We don't do it enough, thanks to mouthy bleeding heart idiots that don't have a clue about nature.

And now I’m thinking, “oh no you DIDN’T!” and things get really ugly as I feel compelled to list my experience with nature. Let’s just say I met fire with fire. Did I come away sounding like an "overeducated condescending jerk"? To at least one reader. But he called me a mouthy bleeding heart idiot...