They don’t do anything to restore the salmon runs, but they show up for photos when the small run of salmon finally makes it past Stanley, Idaho.
View of the Idaho Mountain Express: photo-op environmentalism.
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Ralph Maughan
Dr. Ralph Maughan is professor emeritus of political science at Idaho State University with specialties in natural resource politics, public opinion, interest groups, political parties, voting and elections. Aside from academic publications, he is author or co-author of three hiking/backpacking guides, and he is President of the Western Watersheds Project.
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Another public relations stunt. That’s all this was. And cheap publicity at that.
A follow-up note: In Senator Frank Church’s biography, by LeRoy Ashby and Rod Gramer, there is a wonderful photograph of the late senator, with spin rod in hand, fishing a high-mountain creek in central Idaho. Herein is the difference between today’s Idaho governor and a real honest-to-gawd conservationist of years past.
Give me a break!! Are you REALLY trying to say that ole Frank never staged a photo op??
Frank Church’s family owned the ranch on Robinson Bar (on the Salmon River) now owned by Carole King.
I’m sure he did plenty of fishing, including salmon; and there were a lot of salmon then.
Thanks for the follow-up note, Ralph. Sure, photo ops were part of running for political office then, but those that I remember weren’t done expressly as events themselves. Big difference. I’m a retired Air Force public affairs officer, so I know all about publicity events.