gaggling with migratory birds

On 5/7/2012 11:51 AM, Tony wrote:
so if i join a blob of gaggling pelicans and they leave thanks to my sloppy flying, is it considered harassment if i follow them into the next thermal? What about circling with bald eagles?

http://www.washingtonpost.com/nation...8rT_story.html

Tony,

I may be THE Original Citizen to have been threatened (in writing) by 'The
Bird Police.'

This was back ca. 1990 when I was (twice, via registered letters) informed by
some clueless, chair-bound USFWS bureaucrat that I likely had 'disturbed'
various raptors (endangered and otherwise), and any repetition WOULD result in
jail time up to 10 years and fines up to $100,000 per occurrence, and
confiscation of property (i.e. the sailplane). I wrote the jerk a polite,
civil, informative (at least *I* thought it was, ha ha) letter poking holes in
his various arguments (starting with it all being no better than 2nd-hand
information), which is why I got the 2nd (entirely unrepentant, further
threatening) letter.

Being SSB's newsletter editor then, I also put all 3 communications into the
newsletter without editorial comment. Sadly, pre-internet...

Furtherly sad to say, 'the Bird Police' have not gone away or even lessened
their zeal. (What a surprise...NOT!!!) Thank 'the drug war' for this sort of
expanding abuse of the citizenry and unconstitutional aggression (I was
threatened with 'the fact of confiscation' PRIOR to being charged with
anything) on the part of government.

I wish I'd kept the letters, because today people are skeptical, but about 10
years ago I mailed them to a non-pilot, younger brother...because he didn't
believe me!

Bob - apparently convicted but not yet charged felon - W.