Groups unhappy with Idaho Fish and Game’s bighorn plan. By Sven Berg. South Idaho Press.
The plan was forced on Idaho Fish and Game by politicians and domestic sheep interests. If anyone thinks Idaho will do a good job managing wolves, look at the bighorn sheep issue (an animal everyone likes except for some livestock interests).
I remains my opinion that the livestock industry hates all wildlife.
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 past President of the Western Watersheds Project and the creator of The Wildlife News.
Isn’t it astonishing how much the current Governor of Idaho, cowboy Butch Otter, hates wildlife? Of course, his ties to the Simplot despoilers of the land are well known – from his vaunted trip to Cuba last year being all about getting ahold of phosphate for the Simplot fertilizer empire, to Otter sputtering nonsense about how prevent fires alongside Larry Craig during the Murphy Fires last summer. And the Farm Bureau runs Otter’s office – Bonnie Butler, Otter’s Natural resources person, is married to Wally Butler of the Farm Bureau.
This is about pushing the Federal Government around, reducing IDFG to a cringing minion of the woolgrower’s/cattlemen, and elevating the Idaho Dept of Agriculture – which means the Farm Bureau and Stan Boyd Canned Elk industry types. Government of cronies, by cronies and for cronies.
If you or I went out and started chasing bighorn sheep around, IDFG would term it “harassment”. If my dog was out chasing bighorns around, IDFG would shoot it. Now – these Bozos get to terrorize the bighorns ON PUBLIC LAND – with gleeful Pickett and Noh welfare sheepmen cheering them on.