I'm the one who's Fair and Balanced - not Fixed (FOX) News - the propaganda arm of the RNC. The article from Wyoming Hunting Today in the link above is informative and written from the hunters point of view. As an environmentalist and a person with an open mind who thinks for themselves I want to hear opposing view points. Consensus can be reached. Practical common sense and vision can solve problems.
After reading the above article I left a lengthy comment on the hunting web site. Hey I've got guts these guys have guns I hope I didn't get them mad...(just kidding). Basically the article discusses the Elk population in Idaho and it's demise. Wolves are getting blamed but man is accountable for his own actions whether he likes it or not. In response to the article let's pick up the thread here...
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Look it is a question of balance and you hit the nail on the head with this comment.
"How can F&G convince a judge that wolves must be killed because they are killing adult female cow elk whose numbers are below the minimum management objective, when F&G is allowing hunters to kill those same cow elk instead of protecting them?"
I'm one of those far out Defenders of Wildlife people, but that includes all wildlife - including man himself. I don't see humans as a part from nature. We are as essentially integrated into the total environment as Elk, Bears, Wolves, honeybees, and Eagles to name a few. What we do and how we live has the most significant impact. What we can control most successfully is our own actions.
I agree completely that non-residents should be restricted from hunting outside of their local. Airplanes, helicopters and high powered rifles and scopes were made by man and not part of the natural landscape. You want to hunt Elk in Idaho establish a full time residency, pay taxes, and contribute to the economy there.
15,000 people can shoot Elk but we are blaming 250 Wolves for their decline? On the face of it those numbers don't add up. Let's stick to some common sense.
Trophy hunting ought to be banned except to cull the herd, and that privilege should cost a lot of money. Encroachment of the suburbs ought to be regulated with offsets. 5000 acres go up to development - 5000 acres somewhere in the vicinity have to be permanently protected. You can not take man out of the equation.
The right to kill Elk is not a god given right. It's a product of invention, sophisticated hunting gear, equipment to make it easier, and an abundance of spare time our modern lifestyle has given us. What we do with that time matters. We can visit sick children in the hospital or kill wildlife - our actions define who we are. Calling it a way of life is just making an excuse for custom and habits - just because its an old custom doesn't make it currently appropriate, smart or intelligent for our constantly evolving situations and world.
Most of the hunting isn't for survival or harvest. Maybe Ted Nugent eats his kill but he hardly needs to. It's a form of entertainment another distraction and recreation and it includes the consumption of alcohol. Dick Cheney rammed that point home for us blasting a hunting partner in the face a few years ago. Well done Dick.
If we are concerned about the elk population stop shooting them.
I know, I know it's a big business but if we let big business dictate everything we do and profit margins are the sole arbitrator of all our decisions our Country and World will just be one big giant cesspool. The big dollar wild game industry caters to millionaires with time on their hands.
Who can afford a trip to Alaska to fly around in a helicopter burning fossil fuel unnecessarily shooting wolves from the air? Big, fat, lazy, rich dudes that's who - hey I call em as I see em.
I totally support eliminating non-residents from hunting in locals other than their home region, putting bounties on or charging large fees for big game like Bear that have grown beyond the natural surrounding areas ability to sustain them or removing them to other more sustainable locals, and fencing and preventative measures to protect livestock.
I propose the local hunters and outdoors men think about careers in wildlife management and forestry, and put down their guns as sport and use them only when necessary. Just because we can doesn't mean we should.
Trust me just like overfishing hunting for pleasure and the industry that supports it and the industry that promotes it is going to go out of business - it's multi-billion dollar industry is tied directly to the time line and fate of endangered and extinct wildlife.
Man needs to learn how to control himself adapt and recalibrate his assumptions, habits and behavior because none of us want the wildlife to go extinct. Why can't we hunt the elk with non-toxic paint balls that wash off in water. Let's think creatively!
Paul Burke
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