The combination of right wing militant behavior, strong anti-predator propaganda from the ranching community, and misinformation in the hunting community have fully converged, allowing for a push in the western states to exterminate wolves.
The last few years we've been subjected to feverous anti-wolf outcry from Idaho, Wyoming, and Montana. Consider that there are perhaps 1600 wolves across those 300,000 square miles. Contrast that with Cook County Illinois, at 1,635 square miles with a human population of 5,100,000. You begin to see just how blown out of proportion the anti-predator groups have made this issue.
This attack on an American icon was facilitated by Representative Mike Simpson , Senator John Tester, and President Obama when they agreed to include a devastating rider in a budget bill which removed the wolf from the endangered species act in hopes it would boost Tester's sagging poll numbers against another anti-wolf activist, Denny Rehberg. http://www.kaj18.com/...
With wolves off the endangered species list in Idaho, Wyoming, and Montana, state agencies took control and created a hunting season. But now those same agencies are claiming they didn't get to kill enough wolves. And Idaho is preparing to kill wolves via helicopter gunships and trapping. There are major concerns about people losing pets to the wolf traps, as well as “collateral” damage to other animals such as moose, elk, and so forth. There’s even been a few classes on how to remove your dog from a wolf trap. The problem with this is any animal trapped by these inhumane wolf traps is going to bite and claw at you, even your own pet. That’s how bad they are. If hiking in Idaho during this trapping season, carry a good pair of wire cutters and have a friend with you who can assist in removing one of these deadly traps, or you could lose your pet. The truth is, elk, moose, cougar, and other animals will die slow, painful deaths as a result of this trapping.
1,600 wolves over 300,000 square miles. Yet with the rhetoric and outcry, you’d think wolves were squirming out of the woods each day. The truth is Idaho and Montana are having trouble finding and killing wolves, leading many to believe their numbers were greatly overinflated to begin with. Soon, heavy government trapping and helicopter attacks will flood the Lolo Zone in Idaho, where only six wolves were taken during hunting season. The problem is, knowledgeable individuals understand that wolves abandoned this zone long ago, and that elk numbers dropped due to habitat changes, especially fire. The Lolo Zone is seen as Point A in anti-predator propaganda.
As Idaho readies its attack helicopters to shoot and kill wolves, we must remember that how we treat all of our neighbors, not just the human ones is of utmost importance, and the only thing that matters in the end. It’s shocking to me that with record foreclosures, unemployment, and budget woes, that we have the money to fly around in gunships and shoot an animal minding its own business.
Helicopter gunship article:
http://www.oregonlive.com/...
Worth reading – The New War on Wolves:
http://www.latimes.com/...
Office of the Governor
State Capitol
P.O. Box 83720
Boise, ID 83720
Phone: (208) 334-2100
Fax: (208) 334-3454