Patricia Keene’s letter (March 25) eagerly anticipated the Maine Legislature’s public hearing on the fair bear hunting ballot initiative. Alas, it seems the audience she most needed to reach wasn’t listening.

Incredibly, the Legislature has declined a direct vote on the initiative, instead, tabling it indefinitely. That result was directly attributable to the Joint Standing Committee on Inland Fisheries and Wildlife’s decision to forgo the committee process, effectively denying the matter a public hearing. That hearing would have provided a unique forum to examine the ideas underlying the initiative, to hear from experts, and to allow all sides to be heard in a fair and open assembly. Its omission is a loss to the voters of Maine and its bears.

After 80,000 signatures and countless endorsements from hunters, non-hunters, local organizations and businesses, the public’s voice will be heard regardless.

The science behind this initiative is clear:

— Bears become used to eating the near limitless supply of pizza, candy and rotting meat poured into the forests and wilderness each year as bait and come to associate humans with that food, creating nuisance bears.

— Baiting grows the bear population and threatens public safety by concentrating bears in smaller areas. With the added calories from bait, females produce a greater number of healthier cubs, unnaturally swelling the bear population.

Baiting is the problem, not the solution.

Come November, Mainers get to vote to restore fair-chase bear hunting and our natural environment, with or without the involvement of the Legislature.

Geoffrey Lewis, Bridgton