We are writing to ask that The State of Maine stop its policy of encouragement of bear feeding since the numbers of bears has grown out of control.  The bear population is growing by 2 to 4% a year. As a result of this so-called “management”  Maine’s bear population has grown from some 23,000 bears in 2004 to approximately 45,000 bears today. This is some 10,000 bears above and beyond the natural carrying capacity. Bears are now showing up in residential backyards and people worry about their children and pets being harmed. This artificial increase is meant to bring in out of state bear hunters and line the pockets of the state agency in control of wildlife. And for the revenues hunters bring in.  It has never seemed to be the right thing to do to import killers into a state for any reason; surely there are better ways to make a living.