Ridiculous lawsuit to show who is boss over everything and everyone in Montana is being heard today.
Montana Stockgrowers Association is suing to make sure bison are removed from the Horse Butte, which is devoid of cattle, by May 15th of each year. They would force the State of Montana to violate private property rights of those who live on the peninsula each and every year.
Cattle are no longer grazed on Horse Butte and there are few cattle grazed in the entire Hebgen Valley. Even those cattle don’t arrive until late June long after there is any threat of brucellosis transmission. Even so, bison are hazed, captured, and slaughtered by State and Federal Agencies at taxpayer expense at the cost of $1.5 million dollars per year to protect a few operators from a non-existent threat.
Stockgrowers sue over Horse Butte bison
Bozeman Daily Chronicle
A reminder of the consequences of this policy:
Ken Cole
Ken Cole is a 5th generation Idahoan, an avid fly fisherman, wildlife enthusiast, and photographer. He is the interim Idaho Director for Western Watersheds Project. We do not accept unsolicited “guest” authors or advertising.
On behalf of two stockgrowers who live near the Butte …
One of them no doubt is the Povahs, formerly of Hamilton Stores in Yellowstone fame. They used to be my bosses in Yellowstone, and I didn’t like them then when they’d show up in the store like God’s gift to us … but that compares nothing to the loathing I have now for their part in the war against wild buffalo.
When I was first in Yellowstone the word around the girls of the concessions was to watch out. Hiring was “said” to be based mostly on the photo sent with the applicants papers… and then this “family hirer” would then hang around the booths hitting on those employees he hired. Photos are no longer allowed and it is a different applicant type now, but the fondness of rubber tomahawk days of ole Hamm Stores has to be tempered with the knowledge of what some of that business stood for behind the scenes.
I continuously wonder where our Montana Governor is in all of this. He is a great bully when dealing with an election clerk, but in this issue I think he keeps his robes tightly around him so his yellow belly doesn’t show.
Angering… Imagine if that money went to buying habitat or converting Horse Butte to be included as part of Yellowstone so this mess officially ended.
I usually try to encourage some middle ground approach to the whole anti-cow argument but I am left dumbfounded by these buffalo harassment actions. I guess sometimes people (and state governments) get so stupid they deserve every bad thing that might come their way. In times when an urban pet owner gets jail time for kicking his dog, how do they get away with it.
I am unfamiliar with this area. Can someone tell me where Horse Butte is?
I hope Earthjustice put their best team of attorneys on this case and kick the asses of these arrogant, controlling sobs.
Nevermind, I found some maps on the BFC website
I seriously doubt you will see earth justice do to much on this case…other than offering sound bites…
is there any litigation on this other than the request for the SEIS on the IBMP ? Is that even what’s being litigated ?