• Responding to email notices you receive.
    **************************************************
    In short, DON'T! Email notices are to ONLY alert you of a reply to your private message or your ad on this site. Replying to the email just wastes your time as it goes NOWHERE, and probably pisses off the person you thought you replied to when they think you just ignored them. So instead of complaining to me about your messages not being replied to from this site via email, please READ that email notice that plainly states what you need to do in order to reply to who you are trying to converse with.

  • IMPORTANT! PLEASE READ!! About the Google Adsense ads being displayed

    =====================
    Posted 08/15/2025
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    Yeah, I know. They are a pain in the butt. But they pay the bills to keep my server running. Just a fact of life, I am afraid.

    Want to get rid of them? Simple. Just become a Contributor level member or above and they will be gone. -> Please click HERE."

    Is that too much for me to ask of you to keep this site running? Well, sorry about that. I too wish I could get everything for free. But alas.....

    =====================
    Addendum: 01/10/2026
    =====================


    Google Adsense ad revenue for December, 2025 was just $30 over the cost of the lease for the server running this site. So, in effect, the money providing the incentive for me to continue running this site is coming SOLELY from the paid memberships and sponsorships here. Which honestly ain't much....

USARK NO More

AGoodwin said:
I couldn't agree more. People really need to think about the big picture here and start being more reasonable. The fact is that some compromises need to be made. Does it suck? Yes. Is everyone going to be happy? No. But that is ALWAYS going to be the case, no matter what the issue at hand is.
Click to expand...

Question for both you and Chris:

Was the move PIJAC made with SB310 a compromise? Was it preventative? Or was it something else?

This is not a trick question - just seems like the "tea party" movement in the community and others feel like it was something else. Where do we draw the line at what type of preventative action is acceptable and what isn't?

In terms of the big picture, keep in mind that legislation can be amended, sometimes one sentence at a time. The big picture should be having an organization which has the vision, and just as importantly the bankroll to be able to protect the preventative and/or pre-emptive legislation they endorse.

Craig
 
The only problem with compromises of this nature are that they really aren't compromises at all. At least not on the part of both parties involved. A *real* compromise is one in which both parties give and take something from the table. In other words, give me something I don't already have but want, and I'll permit you to take something I already have that you want. There should be mutual giving and taking involved.

Instead, the way these compromises are arranged, is that THEY want to take 10 animals away, but will "compromise" by only taking 5. They can keep doing that forever till nothing is left any longer on the table. In my opinion, that's really not any sort of compromise at all. Saying that you got to keep half of what they wanted to take away isn't a compromise, it's a one way street concession. You still LOST without gaining anything in return.

But I guess this is SOP when dealing with government agencies.
 
If they could have worked out a deal with Big constrictors, venomous and large monitors where you had to pay a fairly hefty license fee for each animal it would have kept the 20 to 100.00 animals out of the reach of irresponsible peoples hands. The reptile industry needed to police themselves and didnt. Way too many people breeding retics and burmese and dumping the cheaper animals off to anyone with a few bucks. Now people who have knowledge, money and proper facilities for these animals are paying the price.
 
Skiploder said:
Question for both you and Chris:

Was the move PIJAC made with SB310 a compromise? Was it preventative? Or was it something else?

Craig
Click to expand...

I was in the hearings for SB310. The options presented by PIJAK and several other private citizens actually helped in Ohio. Without the agreement, there would be no reptile industry in OH. The extreme side of thinking that they didn't have the "right" to regulate anything, therefore cannot regulate anything was failed from the start and they only made themselves look worse with all the conspiracy theories. The all or nothing stance doesn't work anymore.
 
Gemf said:
I was in the hearings for SB310. The options presented by PIJAK and several other private citizens actually helped in Ohio. Without the agreement, there would be no reptile industry in OH. The extreme side of thinking that they didn't have the "right" to regulate anything, therefore cannot regulate anything was failed from the start and they only made themselves look worse with all the conspiracy theories. The all or nothing stance doesn't work anymore.
Click to expand...

The way I understand it - according to Wyatt and Chen-Walsh:

When Wyatt proposed a national model for PRE-EMPTIVE legislation (his words in his testimony, not mine) = GOOD.

When anyone else does it = BAD.

When Wyatt sits at the table with PIJAC = GOOD.

When anyone else does it = EVIL.
 
I agree. And I am still trying to understand why that is. I don't think there should be pre-emptive legislation though. I do feel that PIJAC does help reptile keepers our fights against unfair legislation.
 
I am not at all happy that Andrew clearly took usark's email lists with him, and is using those lists to promote his new group. (Just got an email from usark, followed by one from the new organization)
 
Yes same here, I got a email form him solicitation of his new group.

This im sure is not LEGAL as this is considered spamming and privacy invasion. I never once gave his new site my consent to have my email.
 
thanks for the heads up, I found it in my junk mail. Debating if I should unsub now or stay on the new list to see what they do. At this point I plan to continue to support USARK.
 
Looks like there isn't any straight answer forthcoming. (Color me surprised)

You know, I was actually thinking of supporting one or both of the groups now that things have been shaken up a bit. But after this I see that nothing has changed, the people who claim they care so much about our rights are dodging questions as usual.

I guess I'll just keep doing what I was doing. Writing letters, emailing, phone calls, education, etc. And I'll keep my money in my pocket (not paying salaries), if they can't answer simple, direct questions without all the political roundabout sidestepping BS. If they can't see that it's their own actions that are causing people not to trust or support them, and not this widespread apathy and laziness they claim is the culprit, then they've gotten too big for their britches.

I'm tired of being told I don't need to know.
 
The Current Board of USARK has not shared our email list with the United States Herpetoculture Alliance, Inc., (Herp Alliance), or any other organization outside of USARK. Our list is private, and is used only for Newsletters, Alerts and other important notices from USARK. Any other use of our mailing list is unauthorized and has been done so, without our consent. If you receive an email from an organization that you have not solicited, please respond to that organization directly, and ask them to remove your e-mail address from their mailing list immediately.

Thank you,
USARK Board of Directors
 
Warren_Booth said:
The Current Board of USARK has not shared our email list with the United States Herpetoculture Alliance, Inc., (Herp Alliance), or any other organization outside of USARK. Our list is private, and is used only for Newsletters, Alerts and other important notices from USARK. Any other use of our mailing list is unauthorized and has been done so, without our consent. If you receive an email from an organization that you have not solicited, please respond to that organization directly, and ask them to remove your e-mail address from their mailing list immediately.

Thank you,
USARK Board of Directors
Click to expand...

People are apparently doing just that on their Facebook page and the comments are being deleted.

Dr. Booth, apparently this is all some sort of crazy coincidence! The list must have come to USHA in a dream or through some sort of psionic pathway!

After all, I'm sure no one would dare take the list with them. That would be just a tad bit slimy.

Yes, yes, I am positive that someone will post a slickly crafty, evasive response with just a hint of chiding about how we should all not pay to much attention to this and move on.

I mean, you all wished each other well when Andrew left, so I am sure that the new USARK Board will just chuckle and chortle about how those playful little scamps at USHA took your mailing list, a couple of books of stamps, a label maker and some Evian water while packing up the old office.
 
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