The Endangered Species Act Is Now Endangering Our Species

As the courts continue to decide what the Endangered Species Act is for, we have reached a point where it appears now that our wildlife that needs protecting is in eminent danger. Yesterday, Federal Judge Paul L. Friedman, ordered that the gray wolf in the Western Great Lakes region be placed back under protection and management of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. That decision and the subsequent ruling of the court I now see as jeopardizing the health and sustainability of our other wildlife and plant species all within specific ecosystems. Read the story »

Sen. Barrasso Says Wyoming “Double-Crossed” By USFWS

Wyoming’s U.S. Senator John Barrasso yesterday says that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s decision to withdraw its proposal to remove protection of the gray wolf from the Endangered Species Act was a “significant breach of trust”.

We shouldn’t stop at Wyoming. Let’s add Idaho and Montana to the list as well, as I’m sure several states could also be included as being shafted by the USFWS. Promises were made from the beginning, promises some said the federal government would never adhere to, had no intentions of fulfilling and couldn’t achieve if it wanted to. Yet, the USFWS got its way and dumped the unwanted wolves on the back doorsteps of thousands of citizens in the Rocky Mountain West areas. Read the story »

U.S. Fish And Wildlife Service Turning Its Back On Wolf Delisting

According to a report filed by the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, Ed Bangs of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced that the federal government is asking that their present plan to remove the gray wolf from protection under the Endangered Species Act be withdrawn.

Earlier this year the USFWS announced it would delist the gray wolf in Idaho, Montana and Wyoming. Immediately wolf-lover groups filed suit to stop the delisting and this spring Judge Donald Molloy issued a temporary injunction to stop the delisting. This effectively stopped any and all plans for wolf hunts and the opportunity for states to take over the management of the wolves. Read the story »

Through Better Men than I

By Master Sargent Mike Sibley

I can hear their whispers wherever I go. “Control your breathing, concentrate on the blade, and squeeze.” “Feel your way along with your toes instead of watching your feet.” “Work your way down through that black-growth and you’ll find ‘em in that stand of beech.” So persistent are they that I sympathize with a schizophrenic who feels as if he’s never alone. Unlike him, my voices are not a psychotic delusion created by chemical imbalances crying out for the saving grace of lithium. Real men spoke those words and no amount of time or distance will ever silence them. They are my last connection to a past that I crave but know I’ll never see. They define the man who hears them. And I pray they shape the lives of my sons. Read the story »