tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-48513681086685942372024-03-19T16:17:31.642-07:00Montana Mountain ChronicleAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08737107020771110518noreply@blogger.comBlogger28125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4851368108668594237.post-63692449572949549302013-08-18T10:51:00.001-07:002013-08-18T10:51:19.382-07:00Are You Pro Obama...Or Pro Democratic Party? If So, Please Go Somewhere Else!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKLELM41lDxro5ZpAVysHckwLy5S-JdXDzk6QEhcivP9kHrxDiMcqBIjpsf_sMhgSGw0go9z9ua6Po2JJsVUdb2dJDU_t-88XOYKpxfp2xPvfrQ0MsvsPn5BI-k7DqlYeBAEdvqF3BNmQ/s1600/Obama+Don't+Care.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKLELM41lDxro5ZpAVysHckwLy5S-JdXDzk6QEhcivP9kHrxDiMcqBIjpsf_sMhgSGw0go9z9ua6Po2JJsVUdb2dJDU_t-88XOYKpxfp2xPvfrQ0MsvsPn5BI-k7DqlYeBAEdvqF3BNmQ/s400/Obama+Don't+Care.jpg" width="346" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
Quite honestly, I started this blog a couple of years ago for one reason and one reason only...mostly so I could write about things that just didn't seem to fit anywhere else. Here you are sure to find many topics and opinions that are most definitely politically incorrect - and that's largely due to the fact that I don't much care for anything that's political in nature. With that said, I want to make very, very clear that I have absolutely no use for the idiot we currently have in the White House...or for that matter, pretty much the entire Democratic Party.<br />
<br />
So, if you are extremely <strong><em>"PRO OBAMA"</em></strong> or <strong><em>"PRO DEMOCRAT"</em></strong>...now is the time to exit this page...to go where you can flock with birds of the same feather. You're not going to find it on this post.<br />
<br />
In reality, this post is actually about <strong>SYNONYMS</strong> and <strong>ANTONYMS</strong>...sharing what the <strong>Democratic Party</strong> and the <strong>Republican Party</strong> have in common...and what truly separates their values...their beliefs...and their agendas.<br />
<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1Y6C8VSCCm_mog1u0obfOC_fh7geCc2ot7X78tfpHyyAORapBAxkkHHVz3oDqlwLI0vJ5_qnsribXPqNgg0JDJdGTtQ0I486zUnr4NG2TJzbj7S3nZ4L_7XXcfHB1itmnfntLrOd1Uw/s1600/baucus_divider.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="20" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1Y6C8VSCCm_mog1u0obfOC_fh7geCc2ot7X78tfpHyyAORapBAxkkHHVz3oDqlwLI0vJ5_qnsribXPqNgg0JDJdGTtQ0I486zUnr4NG2TJzbj7S3nZ4L_7XXcfHB1itmnfntLrOd1Uw/s400/baucus_divider.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<span style="font-size: x-large;"> Political Synonyms and Antonyms</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;"></span><br />
In a couple ways, the so-called <strong>"Democratic Party"</strong> and the so-called <strong>"Republican Party"</strong> are very synonymous. Both are political parties, representing the wants and wishes of American citizens when it comes to political campaigns for electing officials to government offices, whether it be on a National...State...Regional...or Local level. However, probably the most common similarity is that the word <strong>"Democratic"</strong> and the word <strong>"Republican"</strong> are each comprised of ten letters.<br />
<br />
<strong>That's where the being <em>"alike"</em> comes to a screeching halt.</strong><br />
<br />
I grew up in a <strong>Democratic</strong> household. My father and mother voted straight <strong>Democratic</strong> tickets pretty much their entire lives. It really didn't seem to matter who was running for what office, they ran with the <strong>Democrats</strong> all the way. By the time I was old enough to leave home and enlist in the Marine Corps, I had come to the conclusion that if a real four-footed jackass would have been fitted with a bow-tie and ran for public office, mom and dad would have had absolutely no reservation marking or punching their voting ballots for a candidate with a name like Donkey Kong. Then two or three years later, they would sit around the kitchen table complaining about how the price of this or that had sky rocketed, or how taxes kept climbing in order to pay for this or that public service or benefit. <br />
<br />
And more often sooner than later, Dad would blurt out something to the effect of, <strong><em>"Who in the hell voted this jackass into office?"</em></strong><br />
<br />
Well, Dad, you did! You and a whole lot of other jackass followers.<br />
<br />
It is very clear now, ever since the biggest jackass of them all was elected to the Presidency in 2008, the goal of the <strong>Democratic Party</strong> is to make government ever bigger, ever more controlling, and the citizens of this country ever more reliant on the government making all decisions for them, and providing their basic needs. That has been pretty much Obama's platform ever since announcing his candidacy for the Oval Office. Perhaps that is why he has had such strong financial backing from major supporters of the <strong>United Nations' Agenda 21</strong> - which is to establish an extreme socialistic world under one government, with the world population dependent on government allotments and handouts. You know, kind of how it is right now in North Phillie, East St. Louie and in the Detroit Hoods - where <strong><em>"Big Daddy Obama"</em></strong> won by a landslide during the last election. No one works...no one shows any drive to do any better...and neighborhoods are nothing more than falling down slums, as government dependents sit on their asses waiting for the first of the month to roll around and the start of another monthly welfare hand out.<br />
<br />
That pretty much sums up the agenda of the <strong>Democratic Party</strong>. Their only investment in the future of America is to make U.S. citizens more dependent on government...more dependent on government welfare and hand outs.<br />
<br />
I've never truly considered myself a <strong>Republican</strong>, but can honestly say that I've never taken a government handout in the form of welfare or unemployment monies. Oh, there have been plenty of times when I was <strong><em>"unemployed"</em></strong>...but it doesn't mean that I couldn't find enough work to keep my family fed, a roof over their heads, and clothes on their back. It just took some real effort and some real creativity instead of just waiting for the postman to drop off a government check and food stamps.<br />
<br />
What truly separates the majority of <strong>Democrats</strong> from the majority of <strong>Republicans</strong> is that the latter tend to have much better work ethics and are far more willing to work to enjoy the nicer things in life...while the other side does nothing but bitch and moan about having nothing, and feeling that those who have worked for their gains should freely <strong><em>"Share The Wealth"</em></strong>. Hmmm...sounds like another Obama plan.<br />
<br />
The <strong>Republican Party</strong> believes in an extremely scaled down government, far fewer public employees, fewer government hand outs...and establishing the incentives that will put more Americans to work and establish more private sector working opportunities. In other words, to rebuild the U.S. workforce and the U.S. economy.<br />
<br />
Politics in this country have become extremely dirty, and extremely <strong>UN-American</strong>. Those elected to the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives no longer truly represent their constituents. They are their to pad their pockets, and most all are on the take one way or another. Even Montana's two Democratic U.S. Senators are very suspect of receiving <strong><em>"under the table"</em></strong> money. Both continue to support radial environmental agendas that are largely rejected by those they are supposed to represent. One great example was when a Western Montana resident and voter went by Senator Jon Tester's Washington , D.C. office earlier this spring to see if he could talk with the Senator. He was not in the office, so his constituent ended up talking with his top aide, and when the conversation turned to the need for more stringent wolf control and less efforts by Tester to close off public access to more public lands, that aide told him that the Senator would not support or challenge anything that was contrary to the goals of environmental and animal rights groups like the <strong>Humane Society of the United States</strong>.<br />
<br />
So, who's payroll is Tester on anyway?<br />
<br />
The world is in turmoil, and our officials in Washington, D.C. fully realize that Americans are now living in a powder keg with a smoldering fuse. Obama's efforts to attack our <strong>2nd Amendment</strong> rights to <strong><em>"Keep and Bear Arms"</em></strong> has been a violation of our Constitutional Rights, and fully shows that he fears a full blown revolution, such as those now taking place around the world.<br />
<br />
If it happens here, what outcome would you predict? If there are <strong><em>"winners"</em></strong> and <strong><em>"losers"</em></strong>, do you think the winners will be those who have earned the cash to well arm themselves and stockpile ammunition, or do you think it will be those who sit around waiting for the government to provide them with a substandard gun and a handful of the 6-billion rounds of ammo our government recently stockpiled?<br />
<br />
Toby Bridges,<br />
MONTANA MOUNTAIN<br />
CHRONICLE <br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08737107020771110518noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4851368108668594237.post-88343142843509252022013-04-20T09:25:00.001-07:002013-04-20T11:07:21.956-07:00Senator Max Baucus Responds To LOBO WATCH E-Mail In Regard To His Back And Forth Stand On 2nd Amendment Rights...<table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" style="margin: 0pt auto; width: 700px;">
<tbody>
<tr><td style="width: 500px;"><div style="color: #555555; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px; text-align: left;">
<h1 style="color: #603913; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",Times,serif; font-size: 20px; font-weight: normal; line-height: 18px; padding: 20px 0px 0px; text-align: center;">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhjqLsWBAqMuVOj6mZtaGwZJhylLkXr046Np52MlbXyzehKZYCLAP6ICAZi2b3lzprtKOVX_VoE7ZsZdnah9_aoKKMQwsHev1vDceqfaaXiPOj6t3O52VTIugku4Jo4btYl3h975ROOf8/s1600/baucus_header.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="118" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhjqLsWBAqMuVOj6mZtaGwZJhylLkXr046Np52MlbXyzehKZYCLAP6ICAZi2b3lzprtKOVX_VoE7ZsZdnah9_aoKKMQwsHev1vDceqfaaXiPOj6t3O52VTIugku4Jo4btYl3h975ROOf8/s640/baucus_header.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
</h1>
<h1 style="color: #603913; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",Times,serif; font-size: 20px; font-weight: normal; line-height: 18px; padding: 20px 0px 0px; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: 10pt;">April 19, 2013</span></h1>
</div>
<div style="font-family: Times; line-height: 110%; margin: 0px 0px 0.5em;">
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"> Why I Opposed Expanding Gun Control</span><br />
<br />
Recent tragedies have shaken all of us, and everyone wants to do their part to protect our children and communities from violence of all kinds. That debate has sparked conversations around kitchen tables all across Montana. Over the past few months, I have heard from thousands of Montanans, and it was very important to me that every one of you had a chance to weigh in on an open and transparent debate. <br />
</div>
<div style="font-family: Times; line-height: 110%; margin: 0px 0px 0.5em;">
What I heard from you was clear: Montanans are overwhelmingly opposed to new gun control laws. That is why I voted against legislation before the Senate this week to expand gun control. And that is why I will oppose anything that infringes on the 2nd Amendment rights of responsible, law-abiding Montanans.<br />
</div>
<div style="font-family: Times; line-height: 110%; margin: 0px 0px 0.5em;">
Montanans are passionate about our 2nd Amendment rights. We teach our kids to respect that right, and we teach them to live up to the responsibility that comes with it - just like my father taught me when he gave me my first .22 when I was 13 years old. What makes sense in other states, doesn't make sense for Montana.<br />
</div>
<div style="font-family: Times; line-height: 110%; margin: 0px 0px 0.5em;">
Everyone agrees we need to do a better job keeping guns out of the hands of criminals, but infringing on the rights of law-abiding citizens isn't the solution. The facts are clear: under the Obama Administration, federal weapons prosecutions have fallen to the lowest levels in over a decade. The Administration isn't doing a good enough job enforcing the laws that are already on the books, so piling on more regulations just for regulations' sake won't do anything to make our communities safer.<br />
</div>
<div style="font-family: Times; line-height: 110%; margin: 0px 0px 0.5em;">
We need real solutions that will actually make our communities safer. That is why I supported funding for school safety and mental health resources. And I supported a measure to force the Department of Justice to take a good, hard look at how they can use the tools they already have to keep guns away from criminals, without adding burdens on law-abiding folks in Montana.<br />
</div>
<div style="font-family: Times; line-height: 110%; margin: 0px 0px 0.5em;">
A top-down, one-size-fits-all approach like the President is pushing simply won't work for Montana, and it won't work for me. I will not support anything that infringes on the 2nd Amendment rights of responsible, law-abiding Montanans.<br />
</div>
<div style="font-family: Times; line-height: 110%; margin: 0px 0px 0.5em;">
All the best,</div>
<div style="font-family: Times; line-height: 110%; margin: 0px 0px 0.5em;">
<img alt="Max Baucus" src="http://baucus.senate.gov/newsletter/newsletter_images/max_signature.jpg" /></div>
<div style="font-family: Times; line-height: 110%; margin: 0px 0px 0.5em; text-align: center;">
--<br />
<br />
<br />
________________________________________________________________________________<br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">LOBO WATCH Response To Montana Senator Max Baucus</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaXjMrFgECmmmj4Ccr8XS-ZmpKDui2GEYo_XzhyrRZkkb8XwUUsUvTVRyACX1JWzDki1ttd8mTZz3nkxJ5LXspT4a4L3hZt-oSh7vYhuV6XKjlLTjem0nUNTHsr68Y0b_go9o_k9AZmBc/s1600/Stevens+Crack+Shot.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="160" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaXjMrFgECmmmj4Ccr8XS-ZmpKDui2GEYo_XzhyrRZkkb8XwUUsUvTVRyACX1JWzDki1ttd8mTZz3nkxJ5LXspT4a4L3hZt-oSh7vYhuV6XKjlLTjem0nUNTHsr68Y0b_go9o_k9AZmBc/s320/Stevens+Crack+Shot.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: medium;">Dear Seantor Baucus;</span><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;"></span> </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: medium;"> </span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: medium;">Thank you for sending the following*. And please thank the college intern or aide who actually wrote it for you, they did a fine job. I know it is in response to my e-mail to you dated 4-19-13, in regard to your fence riding when it comes to gun control in America.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;"></span> </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: medium;"></span> </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: medium;">My first <strong><em>"gun"</em></strong> was also a .22 rifle - an old Stevens <strong><em>"Crackshot"</em></strong> single shot model. My father never bought that gun for me, and didn't even know I had it, and I managed to keep it hidden from him in the rafters of our garage for several years. I traded a bicycle that I had assembled from junk bicycle parts for the rifle, which was close to 50 years old when I acquired it in 1959, a couple of months before I turned 10 years old.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;"></span> </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: medium;"></span> </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: medium;">America was a much different, and much better, place at that time. We actually did have freedoms, and could enjoy them. Back then, I would ride my bicycle up to a small rural gas station, and buy a 50-round box of Winchester .22 long rifle ammo for 45-cents. And I would take that old rifle out and shoot a box of <strong><em>"bullets"</em></strong> just about every week - but my father eventually found the little rifle, rolled up in a piece of blanket. When he learned I had been shooting it for that long, he reached into his pocket and pulled out two quarters, handed them to me, and said... "<strong><em>If you've had it that long and shot it that much, and haven't shot anyone yet, I guess you're okay with it...go buy yourself a box of ammo."</em></strong></span><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-size: medium;"></span></em></strong> </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: medium;"></span> </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: medium;">This took place in the democratic socialist republic that used to be the State of Illinois.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;"> </span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: medium;"></span> </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: medium;">Whatever happened to that country? A country where we didn't have a federal government that was so all controlling, and felt that it had to dictate everything in our lives.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;"></span> </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: medium;"></span> </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: medium;">Max, the residents of the Great State of Montana, which has become foreign soil to you, see right through the ruse. When it came to your vote against Obama's call for extremely stringent gun control, you and Jon Tester simply cancelled out each other's vote. He's in for another term, and you face an upcoming re-election.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;"></span> </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: medium;"></span> </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: medium;">In the following <strong><em>"Why I Opposed Expanding Gun Control"</em></strong>, why didn't you share with your constituents your reason for voting in favor of the U.S. signing the United Nations pact known as the <strong>Small Arms Treaty</strong>? The gun control clauses within that treaty are far more stringent, far more controlling, and would effectively void our Second Amendment rights. Still, you voted for Obama to sign the treaty.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;"></span> </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: medium;"></span> </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: medium;">Be honest now, do you truly believe in <strong>World Dominance</strong> by the United Nations? Do you truly feel that America as we have known and loved it should be abandoned, and the good <strong>Ol' U.S. of A</strong>. be simply absorbed into a single world government...one run by the United Nations?</span><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;"></span> </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: medium;"></span> </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: medium;">Also, why did you not address the manner in which Obama's private military, a.k.a. <strong>Department of Homeland Security</strong>, sure hasn't practiced any <strong><em>"gun control"</em></strong> and has been actively arming up in order to wage war against Americans? Why else would they need 1.6 BILLION rounds of ammo (enough to conduct 20+ years of combat against U.S. citizens)...and armored personnel carriers? Much of the ammo procured by DHS consists of specialized long-range sniper rounds, and hollow-pointed ammunition - which has been internationally outlawed for combat use.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;"></span> </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: medium;"></span> </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: medium;">Now, at a time when the U.S. has become a target for international terrorists, why are so many Democrats so hell bent to disarm American citizens? If there was ever a time in history for every home to have an AR-15 and several 20- or 30- round clips fully loaded...it is right now. Never before has this country been so threatened by enemies - both very domestic and foreign.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;"></span> </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: medium;"></span> </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: medium;">The wolf is at the door...and the time for Americans to take up arms is right now.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;"></span> </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: medium;"></span> </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: medium;">Toby Bridges</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: medium;">LOBO WATCH</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: medium;">Missoula, MT</span><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;"></span> </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: medium;"></span> </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<a href="http://www.lobowatch.com/" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: medium;">www.lobowatch.com</span></a> <br />
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<strong>*Note: The "following" mentioned in the first line of this e-mail is actually the Baucus newsletter sent out in response to our first e-mail in regard to his back and forth gun control support/opposition. That message can be read in the following post of this blog, titled "An Open Message To MT Senator Baucus - Taking America Back!"</strong> </div>
<br />
<br />
</div>
</td><td style="width: 75px;"></td></tr>
</tbody>
</table>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08737107020771110518noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4851368108668594237.post-77676389111661572612013-04-19T13:45:00.000-07:002013-04-20T06:25:45.631-07:00An Open Message To MT Senator Baucus - Taking America Back!<div>
<span style="font-size: medium;"></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8Kxw0R7NXhLFLREweh6EZ5bUa4_Akk4W_tovH9Iuc4nYib2Jg_7bGP2TI_tgLI6laUnPL3_lxdUAhP3iYGy2W-idmp4RneJcHMG4nCr1aBvj-DOxxVO-tqMGTwQZ9ZAM9UpElMZJ4teo/s1600/combat+photo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8Kxw0R7NXhLFLREweh6EZ5bUa4_Akk4W_tovH9Iuc4nYib2Jg_7bGP2TI_tgLI6laUnPL3_lxdUAhP3iYGy2W-idmp4RneJcHMG4nCr1aBvj-DOxxVO-tqMGTwQZ9ZAM9UpElMZJ4teo/s640/combat+photo.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
</div>
<div>
<span style="font-size: medium;"></span> </div>
<div>
<span style="font-size: medium;">Dear Senator Baucus;</span><br />
</div>
<div>
<span style="font-size: medium;"></span> </div>
<div>
<span style="font-size: medium;">I'm sure you have received many e-mails of thanks for voting against the President's strong arm </span><span style="font-size: medium;">push, at the cost of millions of taxpayer dollars, to enact more stringent gun control - which would </span><span style="font-size: medium;">indeed infringe upon the right of American citizens <strong><em>"to keep and bear arms."</em></strong></span><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-size: medium;"></span></em></strong> </div>
<div>
<span style="font-size: medium;"></span> </div>
<div>
<span style="font-size: medium;">I too would like to thank you for standing up against the pressure I'm sure that was put on you, </span><span style="font-size: medium;">as a Democrat elected to the U.S. Senate, to run with the pack of other Democratic senators </span><span style="font-size: medium;">which were attacking the Second Amendment of the United States Constitution.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;"></span> </div>
<div>
<span style="font-size: medium;"></span> </div>
<div>
<span style="font-size: medium;">What I cannot understand is, if you truly believe in our rights to own and find comfort in the lawful use </span><span style="font-size: medium;">of a </span><span style="font-size: medium;">wide range of firearms, how could you stand behind President Obama's support of the United </span><span style="font-size: medium;">Nation's S</span><span style="font-size: medium;">mall Arms Treaty? </span><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;"></span> </div>
<div>
<span style="font-size: medium;"></span> </div>
<div>
<span style="font-size: medium;">You were one of 46 U.S. Senators to support the President's equally strong push for the U.S. to agree </span><span style="font-size: medium;">to the harsh restrictions on the private ownership of firearms as laid out in that extremely agenda driven </span><span style="font-size: medium;">treaty. Firearm owners across the country, and especially here in Montana, now view you and the other </span><span style="font-size: medium;">45 senators who were </span><span style="font-size: medium;">ready to hand over our Constitutional Rights to the U.N. as little more than </span><span style="font-size: medium;">traitors.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;"></span> </div>
<div>
</div>
<div>
<span style="font-size: medium;">Fortunately, 56 senators had the common sense to reject participating in the treaty.</span> <br />
</div>
<div>
<span style="font-size: medium;"></span> </div>
<div>
<span style="font-size: medium;">The President's equally agenda driven desire for the U.S. to cave in to the demands of the U.N. does </span><span style="font-size: medium;">better explain why the Department of Homeland Security has been stockpiling all of that ammunition </span><span style="font-size: medium;">(1.6 BILLION rounds to be more precise), and that agency's acquisition of a non-disclosed number of </span><span style="font-size: medium;">armored personnel carriers. Were you aware that at the height of the war in Iraq, U.S. troops were </span><span style="font-size: medium;">expending about 6-million rounds of ammunition EACH and EVERY month? Even at that rate, DHS </span><span style="font-size: medium;">is now sitting on top of enough munitions to wage war with American citizens for more than 20 years.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;"></span> </div>
<div>
</div>
<div>
<span style="font-size: medium;">The manner in which you voted in favor of the U.S. signing the U.N. Small Arms Treaty, then to turn </span><span style="font-size: medium;">around </span><span style="font-size: medium;">and vote against Obama's (and Biden's) attack on gun owners' Constitutional rights sends more </span><span style="font-size: medium;">than mixed </span><span style="font-size: medium;">signals to </span><span style="font-size: medium;">the Montana residents you are supposed to represent. It tells them that you </span><span style="font-size: medium;">cannot be </span><span style="font-size: medium;">trusted...or believed.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;"></span> </div>
<div>
<span style="font-size: medium;"></span> </div>
<div>
<span style="font-size: medium;">Real Americans are ready and willing to take this country back, if not at the election polls then by force, </span><span style="font-size: medium;">as rightfully guaranteed by the Second Amendment. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;"></span> </div>
<div>
<span style="font-size: medium;"></span> </div>
<div>
<span style="font-size: medium;">On which side will you stand...with the American people, or with the tyrants who are working so hard to </span><span style="font-size: medium;">destroy this country?</span><br />
</div>
<div>
<span style="font-size: medium;"></span> </div>
<div>
<span style="font-size: medium;">Toby Bridges</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-size: medium;">LOBO WATCH</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-size: medium;">Missoula, MT </span><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;"><a href="http://www.lobowatch.com/">www.lobowatch.com</a> </span><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;">Semper Fi</span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08737107020771110518noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4851368108668594237.post-31594535962152556552013-04-07T09:03:00.004-07:002013-04-07T10:04:21.491-07:00Great Gear & Great Volunteers Are Sure To Highlight 2013 Tri-State Veterans Stand Down In Plains, MT May 4th & 5th!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPq3uGxJmVo50Avm8y3e7gNN55Iv5kRZOCO-AtkM8gDaQHKPWq-FENUFDP3s8e4a1NOCQn9YuA-2F8nWAPdG1sCA8i5zWuQsdP3ZdLUTSfqc4GaSmorgM7wwog_EZMOxOAfKRss97C7Ig/s1600/Stand+Down+13+-+2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="536" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPq3uGxJmVo50Avm8y3e7gNN55Iv5kRZOCO-AtkM8gDaQHKPWq-FENUFDP3s8e4a1NOCQn9YuA-2F8nWAPdG1sCA8i5zWuQsdP3ZdLUTSfqc4GaSmorgM7wwog_EZMOxOAfKRss97C7Ig/s640/Stand+Down+13+-+2.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">Womens Army Corps veteran Christy Steigers-Bridges, far left, of Missoula enjoyed the gear she took home from the 2012 Tri-State Veterans Stand Down...Plus worked as a volunteer to make it enjoyable for all vets attending. Following photos show some of the $2.5-million in great gear to be redistributed to military vets at the 2013 Stand Down. Click on photos to enlarge.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 24pt;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 24pt;"> Tri-State Veterans Stand Down In Plains<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Expected To Draw A Great Turn Out <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhREdC4RFf4ACM4C2ch_ACM2ohHUEQFgAGgAIkJtUdS_fy8DeBw1ahQweWPklZpne48ra7miV88lvZ3O87Ezm5OzQDrfm9cMProrN6tcBVHaKKZoqN35Er7I0OIF1DTlPvwqZ2eBO0gaNs/s1600/Stand+down+13+-+15.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhREdC4RFf4ACM4C2ch_ACM2ohHUEQFgAGgAIkJtUdS_fy8DeBw1ahQweWPklZpne48ra7miV88lvZ3O87Ezm5OzQDrfm9cMProrN6tcBVHaKKZoqN35Er7I0OIF1DTlPvwqZ2eBO0gaNs/s320/Stand+down+13+-+15.JPG" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Per
capita, Montana has the largest number of veterans of any state in the Lower
48.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In the six counties that make up the
northwest corner of Montana, there are more than 11,000 military veterans,
including<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>4,000 in Missoula County
alone.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>With just as many next door in
northern Idaho, and in eastern Washington as well, the Sanders County
Fairground in Plains, MT is expected to be a very busy place the weekend of May
4 and 5 as the second annual Tri-State Veterans Stand Down welcomes veterans of
all ages from all three states.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Last
year, more than 1,000 veterans gathered for the event. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>So,
just what is a Veterans Stand<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Down?</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJ-xZeXKP_qnO4_n7bC2sXwg871e9UsfybIHgkUvHgwRskWB27wdqu__EFMRWkF-89ho889HA7bX01gxg11yU_7K6NlOLOEO5AOe8jkFeH42OJCgVW__3YibJMRW0Ki2aNN0zgEsJr4gg/s1600/Stand+down+13+-+7.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="237" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJ-xZeXKP_qnO4_n7bC2sXwg871e9UsfybIHgkUvHgwRskWB27wdqu__EFMRWkF-89ho889HA7bX01gxg11yU_7K6NlOLOEO5AOe8jkFeH42OJCgVW__3YibJMRW0Ki2aNN0zgEsJr4gg/s320/Stand+down+13+-+7.JPG" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Originally,
the term <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">"Stand Down"</i></b> meant to pull combat troops away from
battle, and get them to a place of relative security and safety where they
could rest and recover. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Today, the term
stands for a program that reaches out to veterans needing a helping hand.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>More than 200 such events now take place
across the country every year - where military veterans can receive medical
assistance, legal advice, food, clothing and gear, along with information on
veterans programs and benefits.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjs_w73PwPTRIgOQznDTbJ_XhMuZzTA8idQZo_ZpKKjMIJFt65OioCxdX8hxM40P4Fv1r-xOzUoO6-0XCKBdL8FvZAzwq5W40Fu8h3bpoWbzIDJDMC31CRrUFJwU8-pA_0Cx_3QOVJbVTI/s1600/Stand+Down+13+-+11.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjs_w73PwPTRIgOQznDTbJ_XhMuZzTA8idQZo_ZpKKjMIJFt65OioCxdX8hxM40P4Fv1r-xOzUoO6-0XCKBdL8FvZAzwq5W40Fu8h3bpoWbzIDJDMC31CRrUFJwU8-pA_0Cx_3QOVJbVTI/s320/Stand+Down+13+-+11.JPG" width="213" /></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Much
of the clothing and gear comes in the form of military surplus.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For last year's Tri-State Veterans Stand
Down, coordinator Billy Hill, of Trout Creek, MT, had accumulated surplus items
valued at nearly $1.5-million.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The 2012
event was such a success, even more of that military surplus has been provided
this year - and since mid March, Hill and a handful of Sanders County
volunteers have been extremely busy unboxing and organizing close to
$2.5-million of surplus boots, sleeping bags, clothing, blankets,<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>and other surplus gear.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">"It
takes a lot of work to get this much stuff unloaded...unpacked... organized...and laid out...and it takes the help of some great volunteers to make an
event of this magnitude run smoothly and be successful,"</i></b> says
Hill.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Last
year, two completely packed fairground show barns of surplus were handed out to
Montana, Idaho and Washington military vets.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>There is so much gear this year that a third barn had to be added, and
it is expected to be nearly all distributed during the two-day Stand Down.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsB7reHqEbqPIy14zbEcwD__x7-20Q64rwB6G1d5WcBAzlRI_PSlj2Jfxok8xinDR11d5ZWaaGIhll8FWwVw_4m_Q8HcDgxXYZSzhyphenhyphenof9NFOyi1lQ-BEHNoSuX5vX5BBA3EYx1e-iq0Ss/s1600/Stand+down+13+-+9.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="210" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsB7reHqEbqPIy14zbEcwD__x7-20Q64rwB6G1d5WcBAzlRI_PSlj2Jfxok8xinDR11d5ZWaaGIhll8FWwVw_4m_Q8HcDgxXYZSzhyphenhyphenof9NFOyi1lQ-BEHNoSuX5vX5BBA3EYx1e-iq0Ss/s320/Stand+down+13+-+9.JPG" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Hill
is quick to point out, <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">"This is not a hand out...it is a hand
up.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It's veterans helping
veterans."</i></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Among
the free goods to be redistributed to qualified veterans will be hi-tech
modular sleeping systems, extreme cold weather sleeping bags, aluminum pack
frames with rucksacks, wool Navy pea-coats, wool socks, wool blankets,
insulated underwear, boots, and other surplus military gear.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When Veteran Stand Downs were first widely
organized, they were geared to serve the homeless veteran who found <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">"camping
out"</i></b> a new way of life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>With so many people now strapped by a struggling economy, barely being
able to stretch one paycheck to the next, or having no job at all, today's
Stand Down events are now open to all military veterans.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0rcNhsny_oU5Xd4_cAqEDxdBnGTlcH_Ke1tV2T5kue1OTxnPbw7mB0hlkXqZXAzueT9XMttjugUDqkD1aByaw1KdZA5YKqFfRGFx9_qwMUIhJuDRtu6Jo-LVupgVbW3xqq1c8xbkCqmw/s1600/Stnad+down+13+-+10.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="224" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0rcNhsny_oU5Xd4_cAqEDxdBnGTlcH_Ke1tV2T5kue1OTxnPbw7mB0hlkXqZXAzueT9XMttjugUDqkD1aByaw1KdZA5YKqFfRGFx9_qwMUIhJuDRtu6Jo-LVupgVbW3xqq1c8xbkCqmw/s320/Stnad+down+13+-+10.JPG" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>The
Tri-State Veterans Stand Down takes place at the Sanders County Fairground, 30
River Road, Plains, MT on May 4th and 5th, from 0800 Hrs. (8 a.m.) to 1600 Hrs.
(4 p.m.) each day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Hot breakfasts and
lunches will be served both days, and for those who are in need, haircuts and
showers will be provided.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Event
coordinator Billy Hill says all veterans are welcomed, whether they come for
the surplus clothing and gear, the meals, to learn more about V.A. services and
benefits, for health services, to seek employment, or for the camaraderie and
being with many other military veterans.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;">"</span></i></b></span><span style="font-size: large;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN" style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN;">Everybody's entitled to one of each item and
by the time they leave, each should have a sleeping bag.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The bag will be full of items and also a
duffel bag will be full," </span></i></b><span lang="EN" style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN;">says Hill.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 12pt 0in 10pt;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0kLbKA27cMmve-nAZcUnpNEJmjVgn44KaOisDjfGPn09IxjqzJMev2TwRbJz8KESFdJ_Asz-J8R-So2PH-hov0FTIHAmhljXskmuKzTQkN09gbDtFC4WgJnv5qcpqExBrDgc4eeogTO4/s1600/Stand+down+13+-+17.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0kLbKA27cMmve-nAZcUnpNEJmjVgn44KaOisDjfGPn09IxjqzJMev2TwRbJz8KESFdJ_Asz-J8R-So2PH-hov0FTIHAmhljXskmuKzTQkN09gbDtFC4WgJnv5qcpqExBrDgc4eeogTO4/s320/Stand+down+13+-+17.JPG" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Those attending must bring a form DD-214, discharge, V.A.
or military I.D. as proof of military service.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>For more details contact Billy Hill at (406) 847-2407.</span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Garamond","serif"; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Garamond","serif"; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 115%;">Volunteers
Needed - Especially needed are able bodied young men and women who can help
veterans, some who are disabled, to pack gear from the fairgrounds to the
adjacent parking areas.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Volunteers
should contact Billy Hill at (406) 847-2407. </span></b><br />
<br />
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Garamond","serif"; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 115%;"></span></b><br />
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Garamond","serif"; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 115%;"> _____________________________________________________________________________________________<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></b><br />
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Garamond","serif"; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></b><br />
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Garamond","serif"; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"></span></span></b><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjx5FPKN9RQGCsvi2Pithih7foJFtHKEi6vycBNTZNw53poObrAbmKtGk7cNO-9JKOEZxLgV2a3hq4FWaW7zy-6DBL8y4uCX-k1GMXA7OB8xEVul6XPcl4CGWMtD7_Bq8QLa_R-onF9SZA/s1600/Stand+Down+13+-+4.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjx5FPKN9RQGCsvi2Pithih7foJFtHKEi6vycBNTZNw53poObrAbmKtGk7cNO-9JKOEZxLgV2a3hq4FWaW7zy-6DBL8y4uCX-k1GMXA7OB8xEVul6XPcl4CGWMtD7_Bq8QLa_R-onF9SZA/s320/Stand+Down+13+-+4.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Garamond","serif"; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"></span></span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: "Garamond","serif"; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Billy Hill, second from left and far right in the photo at the top of this post, organized the first ever Tri-State Veterans Stand Down, held in May 2012. Thanks to dozens of volunteers from the Sanders County area, it was not only one of the largest such events held in the state, it was also one of the smoothest run Stand Downs ever held in Motnana. Billy is shown here with some of the volunteers which are now working hard to organize all the gear to be redistributed to qualifying veterans May 4th and 5th. Click on photos to enlarge.</span> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08737107020771110518noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4851368108668594237.post-63245240405731144092013-03-12T10:28:00.000-07:002013-03-13T05:18:41.548-07:00Second Annual Tri-State Veterans Stand Down In Plains, MT Scheduled For May 4 And 5, 2013<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjstiiv7EwYieoBHcZRd7epAwA1jDmmRGyOka_dFD4b-m1xSQGF5UhOP5SguYV9gW-Cq0SVeEITu6pwaQdwOUc2buRd6x3yQMEVnPB8fbkbBH-daj5s8APw1ZUVBTf2sG6XvV77WNgdAaw/s1600/Stand+Down+photo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="258" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjstiiv7EwYieoBHcZRd7epAwA1jDmmRGyOka_dFD4b-m1xSQGF5UhOP5SguYV9gW-Cq0SVeEITu6pwaQdwOUc2buRd6x3yQMEVnPB8fbkbBH-daj5s8APw1ZUVBTf2sG6XvV77WNgdAaw/s400/Stand+Down+photo.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 22pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 22pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span></span><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">On a chilly and blustery Saturday
morning in May of 2012, more than 1,000 military veterans and their family
members gathered at the Sanders County Fairgrounds in Plains, MT for the first
ever Tri-State Veterans Stand Down.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>On
hand to meet with them were nearly a hundred volunteers, officials from the
Veterans Administration, and leaders with groups such as Wounded Warriors
Project and Oath Keepers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To kick off
the two day event, a hot breakfast was served.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Billy Hill, of rural Trout Creek, MT
planned and promoted that event, which has been credited with being one of the
largest such Veterans Stand Downs ever held in the state<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>- and one of the best organized and smoothest running.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Hill is now hard at work
pulling things together to make the second Tri-State Veterans Stand Down event
even larger and more successful.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
event is scheduled for May 4 and 5, 2013 - and will again be held at the
Sanders County Fairground in Plains, MT.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK2eGNovKcMXLRz6ghhPB9rIhwsIDdZLmUMKkJ2aSpDXfPEg7y0JyL-adSGyQMvB2OjFN0waGcBa31Ce5uWSajkIlE3LhhWYCdqq0TPGEXLb6zDEmsrCIfPqrYmUAB__tyi3_lowr20YY/s1600/Stand+Down+2012+-+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="276" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK2eGNovKcMXLRz6ghhPB9rIhwsIDdZLmUMKkJ2aSpDXfPEg7y0JyL-adSGyQMvB2OjFN0waGcBa31Ce5uWSajkIlE3LhhWYCdqq0TPGEXLb6zDEmsrCIfPqrYmUAB__tyi3_lowr20YY/s400/Stand+Down+2012+-+2.jpg" width="400" /></a><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>At the 2012 Tri-State Veterans Stand
Down, more than $1-million in surplus military clothing and gear was
redistributed to the veterans attending the event.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The array of surplus items included boots,
sleeping bags, packs & frames, insulated under wear, wool socks and
blankets, pants, shirts, hi-tech polar fleece, gloves, camping gear, extreme
cold weather wear, and much more.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>According to Billy Hill, this year's
event will offer more than twice that amount of surplus wear and gear to qualifying
military veterans and their family members.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>To qualify, a veteran simply needs to have a V.A. or military I.D. card,
a copy of their discharge papers or a copy of their form DD-214.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Hill says, <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">"It is the need for much of
the clothing, footwear and other surplus gear that brings these vets to the
Stand Down events.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The distribution of
all that surplus gear is the incentive to pull together so many veterans in one
place at one time, giving the Veterans Administration an opportunity to share
with them the benefits and health services available to military
veterans."<o:p></o:p></i></b></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCKSL1LvILXZNzY_wGqp51Lc18SGP-cAr2oKiWdQzSM4Rdy-cXMvkKgzwRd-VSWk1pw4Fs_VDhwVXzYkaVEZJnlXalWzY2tVGxL4lcBLHRGCbeaQ8mpfR-AXD-AVX7fbVOOJQJL8oaJkY/s1600/Stand+Down+2012.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCKSL1LvILXZNzY_wGqp51Lc18SGP-cAr2oKiWdQzSM4Rdy-cXMvkKgzwRd-VSWk1pw4Fs_VDhwVXzYkaVEZJnlXalWzY2tVGxL4lcBLHRGCbeaQ8mpfR-AXD-AVX7fbVOOJQJL8oaJkY/s1600/Stand+Down+2012.jpg" /></a><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>The Thompson Falls Food Bank and the
Montana Food Bank worked together at last year's Tri-State Veterans Stand Down
to distribute several hundred food baskets. <span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">Working around sequestered federal funding, an effort
is now being made to be able to offer those baskets again this year.</span> Hot meals will be served both
days, and for those who have really been down on their luck and have been
forced to live out in the elements, hot showers and haircuts will also be
provided.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Wounded Warriors Project and
Oath Keepers will also be on hand again to provide moral support and guidance
to those veterans who have found it difficult to cope with post military
life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Likewise, those vets seeking
employment can receive some guidance and assistance at the 2013 Tri-State
Veterans Stand Down.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>As planned and hoped for, the 2012
event drew military veterans from Montana, Idaho and Washington.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Billy Hill feels the success of last year's
stand down will encourage others to attend this year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At most, Plains is just an hour and half drive
from Missoula.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Hill believes there are
4,000 to 5,000 veterans there, and many could car pool for this year's event.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>He says, <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">"If they do...they need to
allow room for all of the great gear they'll be taking home with them!"<o:p></o:p></i></b></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>If you are a military veteran, mark
your calendar now.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The 2013 Tri-State
Veterans Stand Down takes place May 4 and 5, at the Sanders County Fairgrounds,
located at 30 River Road in Plains, MT.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The event runs from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. both days. - <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Toby Bridges, Missoula, MT</b></span></span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></b></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></b></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Help Needed...<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Last year's Tri-State Veterans Stand
Down in Plains, MT was the most successful first time event of this kind ever
held in Montana.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Billy Hill pretty much
single-handedly organized the entire effort, spending several thousand of his
own dollars to insure its success.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This
year, he is looking for a number of additional sponsors and sponsoring
businesses to help defray the cost of an effort that could this year bring in
more than 1,500 military veterans.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If
you, or your business, or your company can see clear to help sponsor the 2013
Tri-State Veterans Stand Down, those veterans attending, all of those
volunteers who make this event run so smoothly, the service organizations and
agencies that will be there, and the residents of Plains and Western Montana
will thank you.</span></span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></b></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 24pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Contact Billy Hill At 406
847-2407<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 24pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></b><span style="font-size: 24pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08737107020771110518noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4851368108668594237.post-36512839709848237142013-02-26T09:34:00.000-08:002013-02-26T09:35:56.682-08:00E-Mail To Montana Governor Calling For Emergency Predator Control<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivZ_sS6PGC69EUWnAB_c5tiwGM5FnTdaH5nPD7szp84TsQvUElmfvC-s2yiZ1jb0lbpqQEsp4uDsga7sZ1U51nCkDeis7EIdRaBf_MSiAxiMp-5Cn49ZkIakKIWD-Vbn_E2W31KQTOm0s/s1600/Elk+Lost.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivZ_sS6PGC69EUWnAB_c5tiwGM5FnTdaH5nPD7szp84TsQvUElmfvC-s2yiZ1jb0lbpqQEsp4uDsga7sZ1U51nCkDeis7EIdRaBf_MSiAxiMp-5Cn49ZkIakKIWD-Vbn_E2W31KQTOm0s/s400/Elk+Lost.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
Following is an e-mail that went out this morning (2-26-13) to Montana Governor Steve Bullock, the Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks Commission, to some upper management with FWP, about 50 state senators and representatives, the state's media, dozens of sportsman/conservation organizations, and to some 200 Montana sportsmen, ranchers and rural residents. The e-mail calls for Emergency Predator Control Legislation.<br />
<br />
To read the LOBO WATCH release on this issue, go to the link in the e-mail.<br />
<br />
Toby Bridges,<br />
LOBO WATCH<br />
<br />
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________<br />
<br />
<br />
<div>
<span style="font-size: medium;">Dear Governor Bullock;</span><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;"></span> </div>
<div>
<span style="font-size: medium;"></span> </div>
<div>
<span style="font-size: medium;">The token wolf seasons which have been conducted by Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks, coupled with totally inadequate harvests of other major predators for more than a decade, have resulted in a glut of predators which are now destroying the past 75 years of wildlife conservation in this state.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;"></span> </div>
<div>
<span style="font-size: medium;"></span> </div>
<div>
<span style="font-size: medium;">Following the 2012 big game hunting season, during which hunters in roughly the Western 1/3 of this state experienced the worse hunting season of their lives, preceded by seasons that have progressively gotten worse, the sportsmen who have funded MT FWP clearly see the problem. Our state wildlife agency has concentrated way too much on managing predators, allowing our big game herds to take a real beating.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;"> </span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-size: medium;"></span> </div>
<div>
<span style="font-size: medium;">There is only one way to reverse the loss, and that is to dramatically reduce the number of wolves, mountain lions and bears in Montana. The attached LOBO WATCH release takes a more detailed look at the problem...and what it will take to allow big game and other wildlife populations to recover.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;"></span> </div>
<div>
<span style="font-size: medium;"></span> </div>
<div>
<span style="font-size: medium;">This will be the hottest issue you will have to face through your term in office. How aggressively and effectively you work to save this Montana treasure during your first term in office will surely dictate whether or not you even have a shot at a second term.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;"></span> </div>
<div>
<span style="font-size: medium;"></span> </div>
<div>
<span style="font-size: medium;">MT FWP has already proven that predator management does not work, now it's way past time for some serious predator control.</span><br />
</div>
<div>
<span style="font-size: medium;"></span> </div>
<div>
<span style="font-size: medium;">Toby Bridges</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-size: medium;">LOBO WATCH</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-size: medium;">Missoula, MT</span><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;"></span> </div>
<div>
<span style="font-size: medium;"></span> </div>
<div>
<a href="http://www.lobowatch.com/" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: medium;">www.lobowatch.com</span></a><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;"> </span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-size: medium;"></span> </div>
<div>
<span style="font-size: medium;"></span> </div>
<div>
<span style="font-size: medium;">The attached release has also been published at </span><a href="http://www.lobowatch.com/adminclient/Legislation12/go" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: medium;">http://www.lobowatch.com/<wbr></wbr>adminclient/Legislation12/go</span></a></div>
<div>
</div>
<div>
</div>
<div>
</div>
<div>
</div>
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08737107020771110518noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4851368108668594237.post-24569567139941205402013-02-19T09:23:00.000-08:002013-02-19T09:23:56.925-08:00It's Time For The MT FWP Overhaul To Begin!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKTzahJmeS_Bymq0VwqD9xHnNjihZEdBo_XoKIl33-bxrNn0L_gfuSHfChHmI8FGDx-ll14IYZsL7JVeIMBaBWm4jtGAffR8Slep7RKEYqUTH9jUDd86awnq8u0J23a4K7pYimUO6UJRw/s1600/Missouri+Breaks+Sunrise+-+2+LR.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKTzahJmeS_Bymq0VwqD9xHnNjihZEdBo_XoKIl33-bxrNn0L_gfuSHfChHmI8FGDx-ll14IYZsL7JVeIMBaBWm4jtGAffR8Slep7RKEYqUTH9jUDd86awnq8u0J23a4K7pYimUO6UJRw/s640/Missouri+Breaks+Sunrise+-+2+LR.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
Last October, a friend from back in Wisconsin contacted me for advice on a flat shooting load for his .50 caliber in-line muzzleloader. He had drawn a tag for one of the premier muzzleloader deer hunts in America. While he followed my <strong>NORTH AMERICAN MUZZLELOADER HUNTING</strong> website (at <a href="http://www.namlhunt.com/">www.namlhunt.com</a> ), he just wanted to know what I felt was the absolute best powder, charge, and saboted bullet to use. Then, he inquired whether or not I had any truly great hunts scheduled for last fall. So, I shared with him how bleak my hunting was looking, since I would be doing the vast majority of it very close to home in Western Montana, and how devastated our game herds were - due to excessive depredation.<br />
<br />
Now, my friend also happens to be the editor of several Midwest outdoor magazines, and he shared that MT Fish, Wildlife and Parks had advertised in those publications that non-resident tags were still available...and that wolves had not significantly impacted big game herds. The ad proclaimed that great hunting awaited those coming to Montana. I hunted the entire season with the thought of how dishonestly the State of Montana was trying to sell those excessively priced non-resident big game licenses. <br />
<br />
By the time I finished what had been the worst hunting season of my life, the manner in which MT FWP has lied and deceived hunters, both resident and non-resident, had pushed my anger to the boiling point. Early this past Thanksgiving morning, I drove out to an area where I <strong><em>used to</em></strong> regularly see elk and deer...and saw nothing...not even fresh tracks. When I got back home, I knocked out the following e-mail and circulated it to more than 400 members of the shooting & hunting industry, and members of the outdoor media.<br />
<br />
We now have a new Governor...now we need a new Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks. It's time for the complete overhaul of that department to begin. No more chewing gum patch jobs...no more recycling of former has beens. We need new blood that is willing to get off their asses and out of their offices...roll up their sleeves...and to start taking care of the wolf and other predator problems in this state. - <strong>Toby Bridges, LOBO WATCH</strong><br />
<br />
<br />
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________<br />
<br />
<strong><span style="font-size: large;">Thanksgiving Day 2012</span></strong><br />
<br />
<strong><em>Dear Outdoor Industry & Media;</em></strong><br />
<strong><em> </em></strong><br />
<strong><em>How many of you hunted in Montana back in the 1980's? Among the outdoor writers and editors receiving this, how many of you attended the 1987 Outdoor Writers Association of America Conference held in Kalispell, MT?<br /> </em></strong><br />
<strong><em>If you have not been to Montana in the past 15 to 25 years, and you were to return today, you would find this to be an entirely different state - one with far less wildlife than 25 years ago. And that can be largely credited to one of the worst state wildlife agencies in America - Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks. This agency now bends over backwards to insure that a minimum number of major predators are eliminated annually...to insure that the number of wolves, grizzly bears, black bears and mountain lions continue to increase year after year - even when the agency fully admits that it is escalating numbers of these carnivores which have caused big game numbers to nose dive. Most major elk herds in the western 1/3 of the state have been decimated by as much as 80-percent.<br /> </em></strong><br />
<strong><em>Most of that loss has occurred over the past 8 years, under the watch of Governor Brian Schweitzer...and the current MT FWP Commission, which has been headed by Dr. Robert Ream. This one individual has done more to destroy wildlife resources and hunting opportunities in this state than anyone else who calls Montana home. (Ream is very much a part of the wolf problem...he was part of the team which wrote the Northern Rockies Wolf Recovery Plan...and has absolutely no business heading the FWP Commission...or being on the Commission period!)<br /> </em></strong><br />
<strong><em>Last night, I returned from a lone six-day hunting trip, hunting an area in Montana where, just ten years ago, one could see upwards of a hundred deer a day. Spending every day from daylight til dark in the field and hunting hard, the most deer I saw in one day was 14. On three of those days, each day spending a full 10 hours still hunting and glassing some of the finest mule deer habitat in North America or sitting in a stand overlooking a river bottom hayfield (which normally drew 50 to 60 whitetails every evening)...I saw just 2 or 3 deer all day.<br /> </em></strong><br />
<strong><em>A few days before leaving on this hunt, the local NBC station here in Missoula aired a story on how the 11,000 hunters in MT FWP Region 1 (around Kalispell), during the first 4 weeks of the 5-week general gun deer and elk season, had "enjoyed" a 4.9% "success rate". Now, that has to be the absolute worst "hunting success" rate in the entire United States. As a member of the shooting and hunting industry...why would you waste your time and money to come to Montana? Many other states offer far greater hunting opportunities.<br /> </em></strong><br />
<strong><em>Being as this is Thanksgiving Day, a day devoted to cooking and for being thankful for all we have, I pulled up a very appropriate LOBO WATCH release from a couple of years back which takes a harsh look at a not so tasty dish - one which the sportsmen of Montana (and Idaho) have had forced down their throats. <br /> </em></strong><br />
<strong><em>When is our industry going to pull its head out of the sand, or out of wherever, and stop funding new agenda driven fish and game departments like Montana Fish, Wolves and Parks or the Idaho Department of Fish and No Game?<br /> </em></strong><br />
<strong><em>With the success rate so low here in western Montana, the number of hunters going afield is now plummeting quickly.</em></strong><br />
<strong><em> </em></strong><br />
<strong><em>Hope your Thanksgiving Day is filled with a lot more thanks than mine, and hope to visit with many of you at the SHOT Show in January.</em></strong><br />
<strong><em> </em></strong><br />
<strong><em>Toby Bridges<br />LOBO WATCH </em></strong><br />
<strong><em> </em></strong><br />
<strong><em> </em></strong><br />
<strong><em>PS - The same stupidity that destroyed the hunting in Montana and Idaho is now spreading into the states of Washington and Oregon.</em></strong><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">To Read The Release Mentioned In This Letter To The Hunting Industry & Outdoor Media Go To -</span><br />
<a href="http://www.lobowatch.com/adminclient/WolfStewStinks/go"><span style="font-size: large;">http://www.lobowatch.com/adminclient/WolfStewStinks/go</span></a> <br />
<br />
<br />
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08737107020771110518noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4851368108668594237.post-35547636672322672062013-02-17T08:58:00.000-08:002013-02-17T09:34:30.103-08:00Are The Northern Rockies In A Predator Pit?<br />
On the <strong>LOBO WATCH Facebook</strong> page, there have recently been numerous comments made on <strong><em>"how wolves do not kill for fun"</em></strong>...or that <strong><em>"wolves kill only the sick and weak"</em></strong>...and even <strong><em>"wolves only kill what they need for food"</em></strong>. Nothing could be further from the truth.<br />
<br />
We will be using the Montana Mountain Chronicle to share the truth - that wolves will kill just about anything that they come across, and especially anything that runs...and as often as not, they eat nothing.<br />
<br />
The following was written and circulated back in June 2010. Since, those who live in the Northern Rockies have come to realize that the damage wolves have dealt other wildlife resources and to livestock and pets is much greater than we knew then. The real damage has come from the manner in which wolves do indeed kill far more than needed for sustenance - especially the near total loss of the young of the year.<br />
<br />
We will be publishing several other similar reports/articles on this blog through the remainder of this month. - <strong>Toby Bridges, LOBO WATCH</strong><br />
<br />
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIPQVqUrEOjTIgx8LAJDxOfcCmc5jzysWPH8jisAmAv3yW1AzQDlPH0hmjBgWMpKzUS0GCc5gsY7tAqalvQhwblYts-Mq8n4-vSnoNgb85a0Qa8ZOcM0aowiA5nwQqBkMxzR-bNA_lqSU/s1600/yellowstone-wolves+-+YNP.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="235" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIPQVqUrEOjTIgx8LAJDxOfcCmc5jzysWPH8jisAmAv3yW1AzQDlPH0hmjBgWMpKzUS0GCc5gsY7tAqalvQhwblYts-Mq8n4-vSnoNgb85a0Qa8ZOcM0aowiA5nwQqBkMxzR-bNA_lqSU/s400/yellowstone-wolves+-+YNP.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<span style="font-size: 11.5pt;">Just what is a <b><i>"Predator
Pit"</i></b>?</span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 1em 0px;">
<span style="font-size: 11.5pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Wolf researchers have come to use the term when referring
to an area where predators have pulled prey populations down so low that
recovery of those populations is impossible, unless there is a drastic
reduction in the number of predators. The situation results from how predators
affect prey numbers in two different ways. One is the manner in which
predators, especially wolves, kill far more adult prey animals than needed to
survive, commonly referred to as <b><i>"surplus killing"</i></b>. The
second is the destruction of the prey age class, due to the loss of newborn
young of the year.</span></div>
<div class="Default" style="margin: 1em 0px;">
<span style="font-size: 11.5pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>The loss of that recruitment can be either due to
outright killing of fawns and calves in the spring (with excessive surplus
killing), or due to the stress predators (especially wolves) place on pregnant
females in winter, causing them to abort their fetuses. In the classic <b><i>predator
pit </i></b>situation, a rising number of predators results in a constant
decline in prey numbers, with the average age of surviving prey animals
becoming older and older with each passing year - to the point that
reproductive growth becomes impossible and the prey base begins to die off from
old age.</span></div>
<div class="Default" style="margin: 1em 0px;">
<span style="font-size: 11.5pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>This accurately describes the situation in much of the
Northern Rocky Mountains of Montana, Idaho and Wyoming today.</span></div>
<div class="Default" style="margin: 1em 0px;">
<span style="font-size: 11.5pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Through the 1970s and 1980s, populations of elk, moose
and other big game had recovered well from the record lows of the early 1900s,
and by the mid 1990s many areas of the Northern Rockies boasted record wildlife
populations. And through all of that recovery from the market hunting era of
the late 1800s, there were still viable populations of mountain lions, black
bear, and in some areas even a few grizzlies. The only missing predator was the
wolf. America's sportsmen had poured billions of dollars into modern
conservation projects, many of which took decades to accomplish, and they had
been rewarded with an abundance of game. So much so, that during the 1980s and
1990s many joked that <b><i>"The Good Ol' Days Are Now!"</i></b>.</span></div>
<div class="Default" style="margin: 1em 0px;">
<span style="font-size: 11.5pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Now, they know there was more to that feeling than anyone
at that time could have realized.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6HsO1Akt9BAMD1hkWjZVb4EGpuL99moul0rRQOJByO4uuoxl9ZAEULo54e5E99vdKvBvbi-F4p36oKIsQ1ZqG8tXa9yvZGJb6U1qCiENW6ids8pDnAao84FESOelqZ7pMM1O1Hc5zdf0/s1600/Wolves+Knocking+on+Heaven's+Door.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="219" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6HsO1Akt9BAMD1hkWjZVb4EGpuL99moul0rRQOJByO4uuoxl9ZAEULo54e5E99vdKvBvbi-F4p36oKIsQ1ZqG8tXa9yvZGJb6U1qCiENW6ids8pDnAao84FESOelqZ7pMM1O1Hc5zdf0/s320/Wolves+Knocking+on+Heaven's+Door.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="Default" style="margin: 1em 0px;">
<span style="font-size: 11.5pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Against the wishes of the vast majority of sportsmen in
this country, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service began releasing wolves back
into the Northern Rockies in 1995. And as wolf numbers quickly grew, thanks to
federal protection under the Endangered Species Act, the dynamics of the
predator to prey ratio likewise quickly changed. When the first 31 wolves were
dumped back into Yellowstone National Park (1995-1996), close to 20,000 elk made
up the northern Yellowstone elk herd. Today, there are more than 400 wolves
within the Greater Yellowstone Area - and the northern Yellowstone elk herd,
which is one of several herds in the region, has plummeted to fewer than 6,000
remaining animals. And those that have managed to survive the constant pursuit
of wolf packs, some of which are now known to number 20 or more adults, have
become a very geriatric herd. In 1995-96, the average age of that elk herd was
around 4 years of age, today the remaining animals are an average of 8 to 9
years of age. Calf recruitment in the spring is presently near zero.</span></div>
<div class="Default" style="margin: 1em 0px;">
<span style="font-size: 11.5pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Yellowstone's elk herds are dying. And so are the elk
herds in many other areas of western Montana, northwestern Wyoming, and the
northern half of Idaho. The area is definitely well into a predator pit
situation. And the elk aren't the only big game that's now quickly
disappearing. Moose, which were once plentiful in the Northern Rockies, have
become nearly non-existent. In fact, within Yellowstone National Park, they
could probably qualify as an <b><i>"Endangered Species"</i></b>.
Likewise, throughout the entire region, mule deer, bighorn sheep and mountain
goat populations are also in serious decline - and the problem is wolf
depredation.</span></div>
<div class="Default" style="margin: 1em 0px;">
<span style="font-size: 11.5pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Sportsmen and others who are concerned about the future
of wildlife in this once wildlife rich region of the country are now beginning
to organize to take on those who seem to have one goal in mind - and that is to
put an end to sport hunting. Who are the enemies?</span></div>
<div class="Default" style="margin: 1em 0px;">
<span style="font-size: 11.5pt;"> Topping the list is the U.S.
Fish and Wildlife Service. We now know that when Congress denied funding for
capturing Canadian wolves and transplanting them into Wyoming, Montana and
Idaho, USFWS literally stole the money needed for the project from the excise
taxes sportsmen paid on firearms, ammunition, archery equipment and fishing
gear, through what is known as the Pittman-Robertson Act. These funds are to be
used exclusively for wildlife habitat and fisheries improvement. USFWS helped
itself to somewhere between $60- and $70-million dollars to finance several
unauthorized uses - including the funding needed to dump wolves back into the
Northern Rockies ecosystem. </span></div>
<div class="Default" style="margin: 1em 0px;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirmyXopu9d4slg10kMiWxPa_WX3x3CdWUe0TvvfMraXPysN2Hii6RFyGP8JIJHWMJDjE1LniDL4r1D2QECbQDtugEAXY1KZaKeTKvS1krsFvX_AGepTSRBgoC77KHUSlyRpWUxOg3HOio/s1600/Sierra+Club+Sucks.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="167" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirmyXopu9d4slg10kMiWxPa_WX3x3CdWUe0TvvfMraXPysN2Hii6RFyGP8JIJHWMJDjE1LniDL4r1D2QECbQDtugEAXY1KZaKeTKvS1krsFvX_AGepTSRBgoC77KHUSlyRpWUxOg3HOio/s320/Sierra+Club+Sucks.jpg" width="320" /></a><span style="font-size: 11.5pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Right there with USFWS is a long list of anti-hunting <b><i>"environmental"
</i></b>organizations, including the Defenders of Wildlife, the Sierra Club,
the Humane Society of the United States, and a few dozen others. These groups
have learned to use wolf impact on big game populations as a tool to put an end
to hunting. Without a surplus of big game, there's no need for hunters. It's
that simple. And one former upper echelon USFWS division chief, who blew the
whistle on the theft of millions from Pitman-Robertson funds, also says that
USFWS has entered into <b><i>under-the-table </i></b>agreements with the
environmentalists - those who want more wolves, and fewer hunters.</span></div>
<div class="Default" style="margin: 1em 0px;">
<span style="font-size: 11.5pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>And as absurd as it may sound, several of the state
wildlife agencies which sportsmen have funded and supported since those
agencies were founded have also bought into all the lies, deceit and theft that
has now been associated with the Wolf Recovery Project of the Northern Rockies.
And as these same sportsmen learn more about all that's wrong with introducing
non-native, non-endangered Canadian wolves into Montana, Idaho and Wyoming,
upper management within a couple of these agencies continues the cover up of
the damage wolves have already dealt big game populations, livestock impact due
to wolf depredation, the loss of hunting opportunities, how USFWS manipulated
wolf science to justify the introduction of an invasive wolf subspecies, the
true number of wolves in their respective states, and what it is going to take
to gain control of this problem. </span></div>
<div class="Default" style="margin: 1em 0px;">
<span style="font-size: 11.5pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Perhaps the worst of the state wildlife agency lot has
been Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks.</span></div>
<div class="Default" style="margin: 1em 0px;">
<span style="font-size: 11.5pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Sportsmen in this state have become extremely agitated at
MT FWP's inability to get a handle on the impact wolves are dealing elk, moose
and other big game - and that was very evident at one of the agency's regional
meetings to discuss wolves and wolf <b><i>"management" </i></b>on
June 2, 2010. That meeting took place in Missoula, for the state's Region 2
management unit.</span></div>
<div class="Default" style="margin: 1em 0px;">
<span style="font-size: 11.5pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>A presentation by Regional Supervisor Mack Long, Regional
Wildlife Manager Mike Thompson, and Regional Wolf Coordinator Liz Bradley, to
detail the impact wolves were having on big game populations and various
proposed wolf season harvest quotas, only tended to further agitate the 150 or
so attending the meeting. Their anger was very evident, and some of the
accusation very pointed. It was clear that they had had enough of wolves, and
enough of losing the wildlife populations they had funded to build. And they
wanted something done, and done quickly to turn things around.</span></div>
<div class="Default" style="margin: 1em 0px;">
<span style="font-size: 11.5pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>But, there was no encouragement from those making the
presentation. They presented three different levels of harvest. If the
statewide quota was set at 153, they claimed it would reduce the number of
wolves in the state by only 9-percent. Should FWP go with a harvest quota of
186 wolves, that would reduce the state wolf population by 13-percent. If the
quota was set at 216, Thompson claimed that the overall state wolf population
would be reduced by 20-percent.</span></div>
<div class="Default" style="margin: 1em 0px;">
<span style="font-size: 11.5pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>But, 9-, 13- or 20-percent of what? The sportsmen of
Montana are fully aware of the fact that MT FWP does not have a clue about the
true number of wolves within the state. During an Environmental Quality
Committee meeting at the State Capitol Building in Helena in early March, the
agency admitted they had not done an official wolf count since 2008. The
Chairman of that committee questioned the accuracy of their counts when he
shared that two years ago, when he asked how many wolf packs were in the area
of his home in northwest Montana, FWP told him just one. Then, this past winter
they admitted they knew of at least six, maybe eight packs there.</span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7zO_lzSBxXy5wLRECAaftaRIMnenC_xsmpj6v4dBmo8iqy7eLmjos3VMOR7IphRUjGMQKWelKs7Alg2rSGNN3jfbwrf7h_jZDJovFdI-GuerRF1DweYZa-uj_I_0Qtzd7yVzGChMPxTA/s1600/Wolves+Pulling+down+Mature+Bull+elk.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7zO_lzSBxXy5wLRECAaftaRIMnenC_xsmpj6v4dBmo8iqy7eLmjos3VMOR7IphRUjGMQKWelKs7Alg2rSGNN3jfbwrf7h_jZDJovFdI-GuerRF1DweYZa-uj_I_0Qtzd7yVzGChMPxTA/s1600/Wolves+Pulling+down+Mature+Bull+elk.jpg" /></a></div>
<div class="Default" style="margin: 1em 0px;">
<span style="font-size: 11.5pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Extremely few of the sportsmen in that room for the
meeting bought FWP's claim of having just 500-550 wolves in the state. Most
feel there are at least twice that many, as evidenced by the loss of big game
numbers all along the western side of Montana.</span></div>
<div class="Default" style="margin: 1em 0px;">
<span style="font-size: 11.5pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 11.5pt;">Attending the meeting was Bob
Ream, Chairman of the MT FWP Commission, who had willingly worked with the
introduction of the non-native Canadian wolves throughout the Northern Rockies
at the start of the project. </span></div>
<div class="Default" style="margin: 1em 0px;">
<span style="font-size: 11.5pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>He angered the crowd even more when he stated, <b><i>"More
than 60-percent of the wolves now in Montana came here from Canada on their
own."</i></b></span></div>
<div class="Default" style="margin: 1em 0px;">
<span style="font-size: 11.5pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>If that's true, why did USFWS feel so compelled to
embezzle more than $60-million dollars from the funds provided by sportsmen for
improving wildlife and fisheries habitat - in order to introduce wolves? Many
of those at the meeting felt that it was just more of the agency's cover up of
a mad-scientist experiment gone bad.</span></div>
<div class="Default" style="margin: 1em 0px;">
<span style="font-size: 11.5pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>So, what would it take to bring Montana's (along with
Idaho's and Wyoming's) elk, moose and other big game populations out of the <b><i>predator
pit </i></b>situation they've been thrown into by misguided federal and state
wildlife agencies? One thing is for certain, it'll take a heck of a bigger
reduction of wolf numbers than 20-percent!</span></div>
<div class="Default" style="margin: 1em 0px;">
<span style="font-size: 11.5pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Before writing his acclaimed book, <b><i>"Wolves in
Russia - Anxiety Through the Ages"</i></b>, author Will Graves spent
several decades researching and studying wolves and their impact in that
country. He shares that to reverse the negative impact wolves have on wildlife
populations, livestock production, plus the emotional, health and safety threat
to human inhabitants of a wolf populated region, the Russian government found
it necessary to reduce wolf populations by as much as 80-percent. And they did
so by using semi- and full-auto gunfire from helicopters. During Grave's
research, wolf control in that country carried a price tag of about $45-million
annually.</span></div>
<div class="Default" style="margin: 1em 0px;">
<span style="font-size: 11.5pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Will Graves claims, <b><i>"Wolves cannot be
managed...they have to be controlled!"</i></b></span></div>
<div class="Default" style="margin: 1em 0px;">
<b><i><span style="font-size: 11.5pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span></span></i></b><span style="font-size: 11.5pt;">In his May
2008 declaration for the wolf delisting hearing and pending <b><i>"wolf
management hunts"</i></b>, Dr. L. David Mech stated, <b><i>"It has
not been demonstrated that 'a substantial reduction' in wolf abundance will
occur, and my opinion is that it will not because merely to hold a wolf population
stationary requires an annual take of 28-50% per year."</i></b></span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHXhZZcXPC1EKlrGfharYS5Wc8IVUfMBzAeNKqSZcCijYjtOQC1kKVmcclPEPK5KVq48PVCLBB0mLjWPiClnrMFm7SnXambrfGbzuGacnPMEjCnReFgcAeCGcIxB2PKu6yUS8GJja7Pzg/s1600/Wolves-On-A-Bull-.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHXhZZcXPC1EKlrGfharYS5Wc8IVUfMBzAeNKqSZcCijYjtOQC1kKVmcclPEPK5KVq48PVCLBB0mLjWPiClnrMFm7SnXambrfGbzuGacnPMEjCnReFgcAeCGcIxB2PKu6yUS8GJja7Pzg/s320/Wolves-On-A-Bull-.jpg" width="302" /></a></div>
<div class="Default" style="margin: 1em 0px;">
<span style="font-size: 11.5pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Mech went on to declare that wildlife agencies outside of
the Northern Rockies recovery area try to kill 70% of the wolf population
annually in order to achieve a reduction in wolf numbers. He was referring to
what it takes to keep wolf levels low enough to prevent a <b><i>predator pit </i></b>situation
in Alaska and areas of Canada. According to this wolf biologist and researcher,
who is considered by many to be the top wolf expert in the world, sport hunting
as currently being implemented by the wildlife agencies in Montana and Idaho
normally do nothing to reduce wolf populations.</span></div>
<div class="Default" style="margin: 1em 0px;">
<span style="font-size: 11.5pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Even if MT FWP goes into the 2010 wolf season with a
quota of 216 wolves, and that quota is met, it simply means that by next spring
there will be still more wolves on the landscape of Montana than there are as
this is written - and that western Montana's <b><i>predator pit </i></b>situation
will only worsen. More elk, more moose, more deer, more bighorn sheep, more
mountain goats will be lost to the wolves, and those animals that do manage to
survive the continuous onslaught of those apex predators will inch one more
year closer to being lost to old age. The big game populations that have
provided food for western families, an opportunity for sportsmen to harvest the
surplus bounty and enjoy time afield with family and friends, and which have
simply provided viewing enjoyment for countless wildlife watchers are
dangerously close to being lost forever.</span></div>
<div class="Default" style="margin: 1em 0px;">
<span style="font-size: 11.5pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Sportsmen fully realize what they are losing, and they
feel those who they have entrusted to wisely manage these wildlife resources
are now asleep at the wheel - or just don't care anymore. Wolf impact on the
Northern Rockies is a bomb that's about ready to explode, and the fuse keeps
getting shorter and shorter. - <b>Toby Bridges, LOBO WATCH </b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08737107020771110518noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4851368108668594237.post-28372793121105159412013-02-16T08:52:00.000-08:002013-02-16T09:01:43.230-08:00Winter 2012-13 - Oh, How Montana Has Changed...<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRNwV4Q6lioFshv3RNoG1WOPWYPL61pmXNItKVp0Rqj4c5_WC0ejpUf6tHfDBz7VmVhaq2Sa3eCJ9ORDQVyFpK_sOd256Eyf5PUWI3FhS1KQ1ypLkHMAk6NH_wgsPYF0SKDmtP4SbZEQ8/s1600/Winter+Walk+1+-+1-29-13.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRNwV4Q6lioFshv3RNoG1WOPWYPL61pmXNItKVp0Rqj4c5_WC0ejpUf6tHfDBz7VmVhaq2Sa3eCJ9ORDQVyFpK_sOd256Eyf5PUWI3FhS1KQ1ypLkHMAk6NH_wgsPYF0SKDmtP4SbZEQ8/s640/Winter+Walk+1+-+1-29-13.JPG" width="640" /></a><br />
<br />
Every day, shortly after noon, I shut down the computer...load my three dogs into the Suburban...and get out for a couple of hours. Some days we head over to a mountain recreation area on the Southwest edge of Missoula to hike a closed Forest Service road...or head down along the West side of the Clark Fork River to where an old bridge used to cross...or maybe to the private shooting range I use to get in a little hiking and some target shooting. No matter where we go, we very seldom drive more than 12-14 miles from home.<br />
<br />
This spot is one of our favorites in winter. What's really great about the area is that it is all public land...and it is just 5 1/2 miles from home. Depending on the weather, and the work load waiting for me at home, we can get in a 30-minute stroll...an hour walk...or an hour and a half hike. A number of trails allows the dogs to cover a lot of territory, and they easily get in 2 to 3 times the distance I cover, and when we get back home they expect a dog biscuit...then a nice long nap.<br />
<br />
For me, a brisk walk on a cool 30-degree afternoon gets the juices flowing again, and no matter what I had been working on before the daily outing, I come back more than ready to jump right back into the project. Often, that walk gives me an opportunity to ponder whatever I'm writing or constructing on the internet, and I dive right back in with some fresh new thoughts.<br />
<br />
Home is actually about half-way between where Bob is enjoying a bit of a January wade and the high ground seen in the background. As wild as the country may appear here...a city of 70,000 people lies just a couple of miles out of sight behind those trees.<br />
<br />
One of my 2013 resolutions has been to make much greater use of this blog. Since posting on here last year, I've taken my photography digital - and will be sharing a lot of Montana scenic shots, such as that of the early evening walk shown here, which reminds me of Robert Frost's <strong><em>"Stopping By Woods on a Snowy Evening".</em></strong><br />
<br />
Montana has changed a great deal in just the 5 1/2 years that I've been here, and not all for the better. There has been and remains those who were attracted to Montana for what it has been, a wild and beautiful place - and since moving here they have worked hard to make it more like wherever they came from. The clash between those who love the country and the lifestyle just the way it has been, and those now pushing for change will escalate. Some hard battles lie ahead, and these will become topics on this blog.<br />
<br />
Our goal is to make two or three new posts here monthly...so drop back from time to time to see what's happening in Montana - no matter if you still consider it the <strong><em>"Treasure State"</em></strong>...or <strong><em>"Big Sky Country". -</em> Toby Bridges, Montana Mountain Chronicle</strong><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08737107020771110518noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4851368108668594237.post-80907375747360981082012-03-28T10:16:00.000-07:002012-03-28T10:16:21.619-07:00Tri-State Veterans Stand Down In Plains, MT Expected To Draw A Large Crowd<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTwuGJpzHV6L-QN-GOp5aPf1J7Uj00z_iqE2ZRQiLJZ3Frq5kCLZDenwJvrN5YNPwomb5V06Kn7iCvxhE-nZE7QIJ5T2AwbbuMDVeo5MX05OEotGuKSI0Ke1JrsURbCqhe42Da1hXPPuU/s1600/Paradise+Valley002+-+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="270" width="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTwuGJpzHV6L-QN-GOp5aPf1J7Uj00z_iqE2ZRQiLJZ3Frq5kCLZDenwJvrN5YNPwomb5V06Kn7iCvxhE-nZE7QIJ5T2AwbbuMDVeo5MX05OEotGuKSI0Ke1JrsURbCqhe42Da1hXPPuU/s400/Paradise+Valley002+-+2.jpg" /></a></div><br />
<br />
<br />
<b>Photo Above - Plains, MT In The Spring</b><br />
<br />
<br />
<b>The State of Montana is now home to more than 1,000,000 people. Did you know that approximately 108,000 of those people are military veterans? That's right, per capita Montana has more veterans than any other state in the Lower 48. Only Alaska has a population with a higher percentage of veterans.<br />
<br />
Many of Montana's veterans live within easy driving distance of Plains, MT, which is a good thing. On May 5 and 6, 2012, an event to be known as the Tri-State Veterans Stand Down is being organized by Sanders County resident Billy Hill, of Trout Creek. Already on hand to be redistributed to military veterans is more than $1.2-million of surplus items.<br />
<br />
The material goods to be given freely to any qualified veteran include hi-tech modular sleeping systems, extreme cold weather sleeping bags, aluminum pack frames with rucksacks, wool Navy pea-coats, wool socks, wool blankets, insulated underwear, boots, and other surplus military gear. When Veteran Stand Downs were first widely organized, they were geared to serve the homeless veteran who found <i>"camping out"</i> a new way of life. With so many people now strapped by a struggling economy, barely being able to stretch one paycheck to the next, or having no job at all, today's Stand Down events are now open to all military veterans. Those who call western Montana, northern Idaho and eastern Washington home are largely outdoor people by choice, and much of the surplus clothing and gear to be handed out at the Tri-State Veterans Stand Down will make weathering the elements a bit more comfortable.<br />
<br />
For those who are in need, haircuts and showers will be provided, so will hot breakfasts and lunches both days.<br />
<br />
On hand will be Veterans Administration officers and staff to aid with V.A. claims and benefits. Also there will be veterans service organizations - and both physical and mental health providers to address individual veteran's needs. Those seeking employment will be able to receive employment counseling, while other community organizations will be there to help in any way they can.<br />
<br />
The Tri-State Veterans Stand Down takes place at the Sanders County Fairgrounds, 30 River Road, Plains, MT on May 5th and 6th, from 0800 Hrs. (8 a.m.) to 1600 Hrs. (4 p.m.) each day. Event organizer Billy Hill says all veterans are welcomed, whether they come for the surplus clothing and gear, the food, to learn more about V.A. services and benefits, for health services, to seek employment, or for the camaraderie and being with many other military veterans. Just be sure to bring your form DD-214, discharge, V.A. or military I.D.<br />
<br />
This event is being sponsored by the Tri-State Veterans Stand Down, Noxon Community Center Fellowship, Thompson Falls Food Bank, and the Montana Food Bank Network. - Toby Bridges, Missoula, MT<br />
<br />
<br />
Media Contact - Billy Hill at 406 847-2407<br />
<br />
<br />
(Note: Sanders County, MT is one of the western Montana counties that have been hardest hit by wolf depredation. Toby Bridges, founder of LOBO WATCH, will be at the Tri-States Veterans Stand Down to help in any way possible. If an out of control wolf population robbed you of putting your family's winter meat supply in the freezer, or has negatively impacted your ability to raise livestock or earn a living, please look me up and share a thought or two. I also expect several candidates for Montana governor, and other elected officials, to show up. Please do not hold back in letting these people know what we've lost...and what it will take to put an end to the wolf idiocy. ) <br />
<br />
<br />
</b>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08737107020771110518noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4851368108668594237.post-14785134996346136772012-01-30T15:02:00.000-08:002012-01-30T15:07:39.129-08:00Stopping By Woods on a Snowy Evening<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSH8fHlh8mIAVedUUzDY1iFQSCIN4GVfovrcXWzHQ1tgOq5mI8h7mlhkXLZ7JFccd8TDelc1LMBKUardHfpnsxVzrLQx2H79yjctfn-eeaGYKB9WYsGXVnSNGGJlcKbxm-rW31ql5P-bQ/s1600/Winter%2527s+Eve001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="263" width="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSH8fHlh8mIAVedUUzDY1iFQSCIN4GVfovrcXWzHQ1tgOq5mI8h7mlhkXLZ7JFccd8TDelc1LMBKUardHfpnsxVzrLQx2H79yjctfn-eeaGYKB9WYsGXVnSNGGJlcKbxm-rW31ql5P-bQ/s400/Winter%2527s+Eve001.jpg" /></a></div><br />
<b><i>Whose woods these are I think I know.<br />
His house is in the village though;<br />
He will not see me stopping here<br />
To watch his woods fill up with snow.<br />
<br />
My little horse must think it queer<br />
To stop without a farmhouse near<br />
Between the woods and frozen lake<br />
The darkest evening of the year.<br />
<br />
He gives his harness bells a shake<br />
To ask if there is some mistake.<br />
The only other sound's the sweep<br />
Of easy wind and downy flake.<br />
<br />
The woods are lovely, dark and deep.<br />
But I have promises to keep,<br />
And miles to go before I sleep,<br />
And miles to go before I sleep. </i></b><br />
<br />
<b>Robert Frost<br />
1923<br />
</b><br />
<br />
<br />
This was very likely the first poem I ever memorized...and that's because I have a special connection to it.<br />
<br />
At the age of 13, I ran a trapline in west-central Illinois, which I checked three days during the week and both days of the weekend. On Saturday morning, my father would drive me out to the creek bridge on Possum Hill Road and drop me off, about 3 miles from home. I'd then worked upstream, running trap sets already made, and always tried to get in at least 5 or 6 new sets. About three-quarters of a mile from the bridge, a smaller creek and valley turned back toward town. The first half mile of that creek, I commonly had four or five good, and often productive, sets for mink and raccoon. By the time I made it home in late afternoon, I'd cover close to four miles.<br />
<br />
One Saturday, the temperature was just barely above freezing and the heavy cloud cover could not decide whether to rain or snow. As I headed back to town after runnng my last mink set, the precipitation turned to a cold, cold hard rain. I was close to an old abandoned coal mine, and took shelter in what had once been the owner's home. Even though most of the windows had been knocked out, the roof was still good enough that it only leaked in a couple of spots. <br />
<br />
As I took shelter from the rain, I spied a stack of old books against a wall. To wait out the down pour, I thumbed through the books...then spotted a loose single page laying on the floor. On one side was this poem by Robert Frost. As I read it, it dawned on me that the rain had turned back to snow. I folded up the page and slipped it inside a shirt pocket, zipped up my jacket, slipped into the shoulder straps of my trap pack basket and walked home through the woods on a snowy winter afternoon and and early evening.<br />
<br />
When I snapped the above photo along the Clark Fork River, about a mile from where I now live in Missoula, MT, a few days after this past Christmas, for some reason Frost's <b><i>"Stopping By Woods on a Snowy Evening" </i></b>came back to me. Before I finished my walk with our dogs Bob and Tully, I had almost remembered all the words. - Toby BridgesAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08737107020771110518noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4851368108668594237.post-70322230285453032882012-01-24T10:59:00.000-08:002012-01-24T11:47:17.647-08:00Something Old Is Something New...<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2wNE-MW4af_35r-TCW4ppCsNR-TyqOWHDrBUGDLU90LTTCU4KMaD89zFk2_cqaV3OopoNZggtoBIg3V3XY-jdjOKoFStN4wPtSYI9Ay2MmramknxaR5GZ0FYqtSLROL3ddDS5yvX8FBs/s1600/Gold+Rush+Jack+Hoffman+and+Toby.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="306" width="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2wNE-MW4af_35r-TCW4ppCsNR-TyqOWHDrBUGDLU90LTTCU4KMaD89zFk2_cqaV3OopoNZggtoBIg3V3XY-jdjOKoFStN4wPtSYI9Ay2MmramknxaR5GZ0FYqtSLROL3ddDS5yvX8FBs/s400/Gold+Rush+Jack+Hoffman+and+Toby.jpg" /></a></div><br />
Between hiking with the dogs...hunting in the fall and spring...camping most of the summer...fishing when I can...trying to capture Montana's beauty through the lens of a camera...hosting 2 websites, 3 Facebook pages, and 9 blogs...writing a few magazine articles through the year...and still taking care of the real work I have to churn out to keep the lights on and food in the refrigerator...I honestly do not have any time for anything else in my life. But, it's going to happen anyway. I know that before 2012 winds down, I will be the proud owner of a vintage sniper rifle...pretty much like the one seen in the photo above.<br />
<br />
I'm sure there are plenty of you who readily recognize the rifle, a military Springfield Model 1903 in .30-06 caliber. Likewise, I'm sure many of you will recognize the individual holding the rifle, Jack Hoffman of the very popular GOLD RUSH television series which airs on the Discovery Channel.<br />
<br />
I ran into Jack Hoffman at the 2012 Shooting, Hunting and Outdoor Trade Show, held at the Sands Convention Center in Las Vegas, January 17 thru 20. We chatted for about ten minutes, about guns and wolves. During that conversation, two other cast members of the show walked up - Jim Thurber and Dave Turin. I had just gone up to the upper level of the show (a 630,000 sq. ft. monster) and was on my way back to the Leatherwood Hi-Lux Optics booth, carrying one of the new-made 8x USMC Sniper model scopes I had taken up to show my good friend Glenn Hatt, product manager of Winchester Repeating Arms. The scope had caught Jack's attention, prompting our discussion...which led to talking about wolves. Seems Jack is an elk hunter in his home state of Oregon, and with wolves now moving in from neighboring Idaho, like many sportsmen in that state, he does not want the elk herds destroyed as they have been in Idaho and Montana.<br />
<br />
I had to get the scope back to the Leatherwood Hi-Lux booth, which was just down the aisle from where I had enjoyed visiting with the three cast members of GOLD RUSH - and to realize they are just common folks like most of us. Jack wanted to know where the booth was located, and I just pointed it out to him. And about ten minutes later the crew came for a second visit. Jack and I had the photo above taken, with him holding an '03 Springfield sniper rifle with one of the new Hi-Lux USMC Sniper scopes mounted on it - just like the rifles used by the Marine Corps during WWII, Korea and the first half of Vietnam.<br />
<br />
When Jack picked up the rifle, his comment was, <b><i>"Now, here's a real rifle!"</i></b> He added that he'd sure like to own a rig like that.<br />
<br />
<b><i>"Well, have you found enough gold to pay for one?"</i></b> I asked. But before he answered, I blurted out, <b><i>"Don't tell me...don't tell me...I have several more episodes to watch this season!"</i><br />
</b><br />
I had played a role in getting Hi-Lux Optics to recreate the scope used by the Marine Corps from 1941 until the late 1960s, and was extremely pleased with the quality of craftsmanship and the optics found in the reproduction. The originals of this scope were produced by the old Unertl company. USMC marked scopes in excellent condition have sold for $3,500 or more in recent years. But Leatherwood Hi-Lux Optics has made owning an authentically styled and built scope of this type far more affordable, retailing the Wm. Malcolm version of the USMC Sniper scope for $549.<br />
<br />
I love shooting. I love shooting 1903 Springfield rifles. And I love great rifle optics. My fear is that in the foreseeable future, I will also own a scoped rifle very, very similar (if not identical) to the one Jack Hoffman is holding in the photo above. And I just don't know where I'll find the time to get out and fully enjoy sniping at 500 to 600 yard targets - but I'm sure I will. It's a good problem to have. - Toby Bridges <br />
<br />
For more on the Wm. Malcolm 8x USMC Sniper scope, go to - <a href="http://www.hi-luxoptics.com">www.hi-luxoptics.com</a>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08737107020771110518noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4851368108668594237.post-25492020007201780992011-12-08T09:01:00.000-08:002011-12-08T09:21:18.698-08:002012 Is Going To Be A Very Interesting Year In Montana!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieiSLpMAC5nR2EEZm8UmSdM26E6Bt5VYTLdB5fFzo0HgMcHR8VJbCK5Woc4BMiI2kj0Uz3p2z2EA061uQ07S6Tq_s72QJ3puDuYKeIfOclvYQdMoAqv6jd4o9sssBBE6KKy8ca94klsQw/s1600/Fanning001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="400" width="203" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieiSLpMAC5nR2EEZm8UmSdM26E6Bt5VYTLdB5fFzo0HgMcHR8VJbCK5Woc4BMiI2kj0Uz3p2z2EA061uQ07S6Tq_s72QJ3puDuYKeIfOclvYQdMoAqv6jd4o9sssBBE6KKy8ca94klsQw/s400/Fanning001.jpg" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3eP75Bw0vFgBHULmAPrSQr_7aIElwZLm7dBrVidzbBvGQZqhNnzRDPOGm-NXmzC-bFXFZEapruteQ6SC3at_RfkJ0hoRLacGPDCy8ATyOJezBimcX6_UUoc2DcSB_6cF8k3w2XFW2y0Y/s1600/Fanning002.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="400" width="202" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3eP75Bw0vFgBHULmAPrSQr_7aIElwZLm7dBrVidzbBvGQZqhNnzRDPOGm-NXmzC-bFXFZEapruteQ6SC3at_RfkJ0hoRLacGPDCy8ATyOJezBimcX6_UUoc2DcSB_6cF8k3w2XFW2y0Y/s400/Fanning002.jpg" /></a></div><br />
Montanans have grown pretty darn sick and tired of the way things are these days. The economy sucks...providing for a family is now nearly impossible...the federal government now runs this state...too many elected officials have sold out the Montana way of life...wolves and other predators are now quickly destroying the past 75 to 100 years of sound wildlife conservation...state agencies no longer serve the citizens of the state...and good paying jobs are nonexistent. Heck, it's even hard to find a poor paying job these days!<br />
<br />
But, we keep on hearing the same old election promises...the same as during prior election years. You know, all about bringing in more industry and better paying jobs. (We've gone the other way...closing down employers and sending the jobs out of state.) Then there are the same ol' promises of better education...and all we've gotten is more involvement by the federal government...and bigger spending by school districts. Let's face it, despite all the promises of those in office now...and during the election years before...they have done little to really provide a better life for Montana residents. If anything, those who work, live and play in Montana have continually lost ground for the past 10 to 15 years.<br />
<br />
Well, there's a new contender for the office of Governor, and he's bringing to the table a new platform, the likes of which the residents of this state have not seen before, or at least not in most of their lifetimes. That candidate is Robert Fanning, of Pray, MT. Here are some of his key campaign issues...<br />
<br />
<b>*Stop the federal land grab in this state...<i></i></b><br />
<br />
<b>*Return federally occupied lands to Montana to tap natural resources...<i></i></b><br />
<br />
<b>*Stop the feds from turning Montana into a police state...<br />
<i></i></b><br />
<b>*Take total control of the wolf and other predator problems...<i></i></b><br />
<br />
<b>*Enforce the MT and U.S. Constitutions...<i></i></b><br />
<br />
<b>*Enforce the 10th Amendment to secure sovereign state rights...<i></i></b><br />
<br />
<b>*Stop Obamacare in Montana...<br />
<i></i></b><br />
<b>*Return education to local/state control...<i></i></b><br />
<br />
<b>*Slam the door on Agenda 21...<i></i></b><br />
<br />
And these are just some of the campaign issues Bob Fanning feels are, right now, of most importance to those who call Montana home. The two accompanying photos above share other issues, other problems that he feels needs to be resolved in order for this state to rebound, and to get back on its feet. Soon, many Montana residents will find these hanging on their door knobs.<br />
<br />
<b>Toby Bridges<br />
LOBO WATCH</b><br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.lobowatch.com">www.lobowatch.com</a>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08737107020771110518noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4851368108668594237.post-61754847797467146782011-09-14T08:54:00.000-07:002011-09-14T08:54:50.901-07:00Favored Places Never Forgotten...<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzOtu0uhZlS6UUL6occ-u7JcMZKUdrQ5vCkH9M7lnLAHdHEwSK-8o7g8L-1ORR8x5Z2-KLLY2IMEF38edR-7r391TtNWwRBMgWwd92hqjAlgy2U3DDzJZrTeEUfp4-d6wpc0PDL8nNDbs/s1600/Whats+for+Bkfst003.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="290" width="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzOtu0uhZlS6UUL6occ-u7JcMZKUdrQ5vCkH9M7lnLAHdHEwSK-8o7g8L-1ORR8x5Z2-KLLY2IMEF38edR-7r391TtNWwRBMgWwd92hqjAlgy2U3DDzJZrTeEUfp4-d6wpc0PDL8nNDbs/s400/Whats+for+Bkfst003.jpg" /></a></div><br />
While searching through my photo files for a particular image to use as an illustration for an article on my <b>LOBO WATCH</b> website, I came across the photo above - and it brought a smile to my face.<br />
<br />
I shot the photo in early November 2009. Christy and I had camped for several days along Monture Creek, just north of the small town of Ovando, MT. It was the second weekend of the general rifle deer and elk season, and our goal was to put a big doe or two in the freezer. After a couple of days in camp, we had at least a dozen, or more, different Canada jays adopt us...especially right after we had finished a meal. And they definitely weren't bashful.<br />
<br />
One morning, as I sat with my feet close to the fire, enjoying a hot cup of coffee while sitting in the 30-degree mountain air...one of the jays litterally landed on the top of my cap, and stayed there for several minutes. Too bad Christy didn't get that photo. She had to head back to Missoula for the day and evening, to return the next morning. <br />
<br />
She had taken our three dogs back with her, which meant there wasn't any dog food out for these birds to rob, so any time I fixed something to eat...I immediately had company. I came in from my morning hunt at around 10 a.m., and enjoyed a combo breakfast-lunch (I don't use the word brunch) of sausage and scrambled eggs. I had plenty left over, and set the skillet away from the fire to cool. Ten minutes later, the birds realized it was for them. One or two at a time, they would fly down and grab a beak full of the eggs. It was an entertaining show. I had a front row seat, less than five feet away. In fact, when I snapped this photo, I was only about three feet from this pair of jays.<br />
<br />
I was still snapping photos when Christy came pulling into camp. With the dogs back running around, the birds stayed close, but did not land in camp the rest of that day. As we had hoped, Christy filled her tag with a really big doe, taking the deer only about 100 yards from camp. I heard her shoot, and returned to get it field dressed and spread to drain. As the deer cooled in a light snow, we broke camp, then loaded everything up and headed for home.<br />
<br />
As we pulled out of the camp site, I saw several birds drop down to the ground to pick up a few pieces of dog food where I had fed the dogs earlier. It had been a nice four-day break from the hustle and bustle of Missoula, a very busy city of about 70,000 people. While still small by most standards, it is the second largest city in the state. Fortunately, when it's time to get out of town for a few days, we can be into the mountains in just 15 or 20 minutes. The Monture Creek area where I took the above photo in the Fall of 2009 is barely an hour's drive from home. For several years, it was one of our most frequented camping areas, and this photo brought back some great memories.<br />
<br />
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________<br />
<br />
<b>WOLVES...<br />
</b><br />
Through 2008 and 2009, we most likely spent somewhere in the neighborhood of 15 weekends camping along Monture Creek. I work at home - and Christy works three days a week (Tuesday through Thursday) with Missoula County Animal Control. That allows us to camp Thursday evening through Monday morning when we want to camp that long, especially during the big game hunting seasons.<br />
<br />
Our dogs love the area, and the long walks I take them on back along Forest Service roads, old logging roads, or a snowmobile trail that cuts through the area. On most evening walks in '08 and '09, it was common to see 20 to 30 deer, a moose now and then, and once they moved down from the higher elevation a handful of elk on occasion. Not any more. <br />
<br />
Along with the good memories surrounding the above photo of those two Canada jays is also the realization of why we have not camped there at all in more than a year. There is no game to see any longer. The wolves began moving into that area in 2008, and by fall 2009 they were well established, with 5 or 6 recognized packs. Likewise, the impact they were making on other wildlife populations was immeditely realized. <br />
<br />
Several weeks after hunting with Christy there in early November 2009, I headed back over to see if I could take a buck during the rut. I camped alone for several days, and even with a light 4 to 5 inch snow on the ground, and still hunting along the same trails where I would see 20 to 30 deer on any previous afternoon hunt...I failed to cut a single fresh deer track. In fact, the only tracks I saw during two full days of still hunting were a dozen or so wolf tracks, and one set of mountain lion tracks. Then, following a fresh 4 to 5 inch snowfall one day near the end of the 2010 deer season, I left home before daylight, drove over to the area and spent the entire day walking those trails and slowly driving along back country gravel roads...looking for deer tracks. And by day's end, covering a full 6 or 7 miles of trails and closed Forest Service roads on foot, plus driving at least 25 miles of snow covered roads (without any other vehicle traffic), I saw a grand total of 7 sets of deer tracks...five of which were being followed by wolf tracks, and one by the tracks of a mountain lion.<br />
<br />
Just a few weekends before writing this, I took my two trail companions, my dogs Bob and Tully, for a long 15+ mile walk up a mountain trail and into the Bob Marshall Wilderness area, then back out. I was scouting for a possible early season rifle hunt for elk, deer, bear, mountain lion, and wolf. In all of that hiking and scouting, I saw one set of deer tracks. And that was it. <br />
<br />
To read a report on the loss of wildlife in the Bob Marshall Wilderness, go to the following link...<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.lobowatch.org/adminclient/WolfImpact6/go">http://www.lobowatch.org/adminclient/WolfImpact6/go</a><br />
<br />
It is good that I do have some great memories of this area as well..."The Bob" is dead...and I may never go there again. - Toby BridgesAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08737107020771110518noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4851368108668594237.post-79389161925538983122011-08-29T10:42:00.000-07:002011-08-29T10:47:43.210-07:00Taken Any Illegal Photos Lately?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWxhlsoXxwGPS_2BdCIcgrr1eZZRzKYl39raXVmnSNDOBUtWGhYqEsurgGnU7UmtjxttMXbSul9jAbhh_LMWpD4SwcUgGml5S1SmGbBnTMm-RMGE4NQsj4W_aH3HI8w8_6Hqjk2L1aaQE/s1600/Christy+Walks+The+Plank+to+Camp+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="321" width="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWxhlsoXxwGPS_2BdCIcgrr1eZZRzKYl39raXVmnSNDOBUtWGhYqEsurgGnU7UmtjxttMXbSul9jAbhh_LMWpD4SwcUgGml5S1SmGbBnTMm-RMGE4NQsj4W_aH3HI8w8_6Hqjk2L1aaQE/s400/Christy+Walks+The+Plank+to+Camp+2.jpg" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBuAj9_7IkyW47fFcAAi3L-VMCrji2_cXWHq0UZawMDmX1BYdD8NdE968BTfV-N_m7BnhAmwhHl91dCixcEgRssbDiZG9DybhmegmNUdaE8dBsN9lyxX6F-zyJkz24ar81CNULlcfyo54/s1600/Mules+In+The+Meadow+001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="262" width="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBuAj9_7IkyW47fFcAAi3L-VMCrji2_cXWHq0UZawMDmX1BYdD8NdE968BTfV-N_m7BnhAmwhHl91dCixcEgRssbDiZG9DybhmegmNUdaE8dBsN9lyxX6F-zyJkz24ar81CNULlcfyo54/s400/Mules+In+The+Meadow+001.jpg" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEim-cqR1_5Sdv8hZLBqmFMJixFA8mpV1uHP3JputSn2tXgncK50Hmes917PKDXBq6wJP2RXvy_iNuXOFEhGcUy6cDQb4NmbpAL3-TYg_Im540PJJxA9m3xUiFE57FxRTqP0rRBReiI51kI/s1600/Photo+7+-+Child+Endangerment.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="258" width="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEim-cqR1_5Sdv8hZLBqmFMJixFA8mpV1uHP3JputSn2tXgncK50Hmes917PKDXBq6wJP2RXvy_iNuXOFEhGcUy6cDQb4NmbpAL3-TYg_Im540PJJxA9m3xUiFE57FxRTqP0rRBReiI51kI/s400/Photo+7+-+Child+Endangerment.jpg" /></a></div><br />
<b>The Above Photos Are Just A Few Of Thousands I Have Shot Here In Montana Over The Past 3 Or 4 Years - ON FEDERALLY OWNED PUBLIC LANDS. Are you aware that if I use these photos to illustrate the outdoor articles I write, I am technically in violation of the law...since I did not have the required Forest Service "Photography Permit" - which runs $150 per day! Just having these photos "published" here is likely a violation of that USFS regulation. And if any of you shoot a photo on federal lands, which is good enough to be publish, and is...you too could be in violation of the law.<br />
<br />
Following is an e-mailed letter sent to the USFS "Filming and Photography" offices this morning. <br />
</b><br />
<br />
<b><i>"Dear U.S. Forest Service;<br />
<br />
I have heard of stupid federal regulations, but having to have a "filming" or "photography" permit on federal lands really takes the cake.<br />
<br />
My guess is that this requirement has just made law breakers out of some 3,000 or 4,000 outdoor writers, photographers and editors - who have spent many days of hunting, fishing, camping and hiking in National Forests, or Heaven Forbid...in designated "Wilderness Areas". Since I was a young boy, 12 or 13, I have spent a great deal of my time reading the outdoor magazines, i.e. OUTDOOR LIFE, FIELD & STREAM, SPORTS AFIELD, etc. - and now I have to wonder if I have wrongly admired "law breakers" by envying the photos of them with a big bull elk they took up in the Bob Marshall Wilderness Area...or with a huge brown trout caught along the "Miracle Mile" in Wyoming...or a dandy pronghorn taken on federally owned public lands anywhere here in the West. I have taken many such photos over the years - many of which have been published in major outdoor magazines - such as AMERICAN HUNTER, Petersen's HUNTING, and FUR-FISH-GAME. <br />
<br />
Let me ask, what constitutes "commercial"? <br />
<br />
Let's say, one of the millions of federal land users takes a photograph that turns out to be "outstanding"... enters it into a photo competition, gains recognition for the photo, and eventually a publisher buys the rights to that photo to illustrate an article...or for the cover of a magazine or book...or just does a limited edition print for home/office decoration...is the photographer suddenly in violation of federal requirements? <br />
<br />
Technically, if a photograph is published, in any way or form...it is being used "commercially" - whether the photographer was paid for it or not. <br />
<br />
Well, that would make a few million others in this country law breakers as well. Facebook is a commercial venture, and rest assured there are many, many illegal images published on the millions of pages making up that social network - taken on federal lands...without a photography permit.<br />
<br />
Attached are several photos which would likely be considered commercial as well - since they have been widely used. I have them published right now on my LOBO WATCH website, and on one or more of the several blogs I also host. Sure, they are either U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service... National Park Service...or U.S. Forest Service photos. Were "Photography" permits issued for shooting these...or do these federal agencies feel they are above the law...and don't need no stinking permit???<br />
<br />
I'm also attaching a photo I took on National Forest (Wilderness) land...without a permit...which has also been published. Did I break the law? <br />
<br />
I would certainly love to hear back from you in regards to this extremely vague and widely unkown issue. There is a large and quickly growing contingent of photographers and videographers who are ready to take this on."</i></b><br />
<br />
Toby Bridges<br />
LOBO WATCH<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.lobowatch.com">www.lobowatch.com </a><br />
<br />
<br />
<b>I shared this letter with a number of old friends in the outdoor media business, and heard back from one which was leaving this week to film a show for his Sportsman Channel program...and he assured me he would be hunting on state lands - claiming that the $1,000 a day permit to shoot the show on federal lands was just too cost prohibitive. He also stated that the extremely high USFS permit costs for large scale movie production is definitely the primary reason why so much of today's movie filming is done in Canada...and not in the U.S. More jobs pushed out of this country...due to stupid federal regulations! <br />
</b><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08737107020771110518noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4851368108668594237.post-29696791015017379642011-08-14T11:04:00.000-07:002011-08-14T16:12:49.801-07:00Contemplating The Day...And The Art Of Realizing The Truth...<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoxSQUTcKH3ADBEqOkHFAINOhTI5rR_Pg2eHw54RWm101vP9Cl2cAiIdjQ-0sCSzNNatDfdhHWK5K9pgR_bCMtALEY0RK9a1Xbx-6LxP6P4ifioR1mxYg_e_2aR3p2D3OOXQTetQh6s5o/s1600/Morning+Contemplation001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="258" width="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoxSQUTcKH3ADBEqOkHFAINOhTI5rR_Pg2eHw54RWm101vP9Cl2cAiIdjQ-0sCSzNNatDfdhHWK5K9pgR_bCMtALEY0RK9a1Xbx-6LxP6P4ifioR1mxYg_e_2aR3p2D3OOXQTetQh6s5o/s400/Morning+Contemplation001.jpg" /></a></div><br />
<b>An Hour Alone In The Morning, With A Fresh Pot Of Campfire Coffee And A Warming Wood Fire Is A Great Way To Start The Day...And To Sort Out The Truth From All The Falsehoods That Fill Our Lives And To Contemplate The Lies Which Are Now Destroying The Outdoorsman's Way Of Life</b><br />
<br />
I seriously doubt if the great outdoor journalists of the past could even begin to fathom the attack that has been launched against the sporting life. Magazine and book authors such as <b>Zane Grey</b>, <b>Ernest Hemingway</b>, <b>Jack O'Connor</b>, <b>Corey Ford </b>and <b>Ed Zern </b>would very likely find it extremely hard to swallow how the shooting and hunting industry, without much of a fight at all, has allowed the anti-hunting movement to move in and take over wildlife management in this country...and to destroy hunting opportunities.<br />
<br />
Organizations like the <b>Defenders of Wildlife</b>...the <b>Sierra Club</b>...the <b>Center for Biological Diversity</b>...the <b>Alliance for the Wild Rockies</b>...and more than a dozen others have done it pretty much without investing a single dollar in wildlife conservation programs or projects. Instead, they've invested their financial efforts in keeping wildlife issues tied up in federal court - not for the sake of saving wildlife, but to put an end to hunting, and to cash in on the hundreds of millions dished out annually by our extremely abused federal justice system's <b>"Equal Access to Justice Act"</b>, which reimburses these organizations for extremely padded legal expenses.<br />
<br />
When challenged to become more involved in the fight against all of this, shooting and hunting industry corporation c.e.o.'s and upper management presidents and vice presidents, and division managers, all too often respond that they are strong financial supporters of the <b>National Rifle Association</b>, <b>Safari Club International</b>, <b>Ducks Unlimited</b>, the <b>Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation</b>, the <b>Mule Deer Foundation</b>, or some other or another national pro-hunting conservation organization. And they are quick to point out that <b><i>"their money"</i></b> is also going to fight the anti-hunting movement.<br />
<br />
Personally, I find that a bit of a cop-out.<br />
<br />
Why aren't iconic retailers like <b>Bass Pro Shops </b>and <b>Cabela's</b>...or major arms producers like <b>Ruger</b> and <b>Browning</b>...or ammunition suppliers such as <b>Federal</b> and <b>Winchester</b>...or camouflage clothiers <b>Mossy Oak </b>or <b>Realtree</b>...or optic makers <b>Leupold</b> and <b>Bushnell</b>...or game call producers like <b>Primos</b> or <b>Knight & Hale</b>...compound bow manufacturers like <b>Mathews</b> and <b>PSE</b>...or any company that derives its sales, or a large part of its sales, from shooting and hunting products doing more, much more, to openly fight issues that are now destroying hunting?<br />
<br />
Why are they not collectively throwing up a barrier that the anti-hunting forces cannot scale, cannot breach? Just who is it they are afraid they will piss off if they take a company stand that says<b><i>..."Bass Pro Shops (or whoever) Stands Behind Wolf Control 100-Percent!"</i></b> Or, <b><i>"Put An End To The Wildlands Project Before It Puts An End To The Outdoor Way Of Life!"</i></b> Or maybe, <b><i>"Here Are Those Who Want To Take Hunting Away From You...The Sierra Club, Humane Society Of The United States, The Center For Biological Diversity, Defenders Of Wildlife, Earth Guardians...."</i></b><br />
<br />
Perhaps the lackluster efforts of the shooting and hunting industry to go nose-to-nose with the anti-hunting forces in this country stems from the fact that those who head major outdoor product corporations, or who are in upper management, are too far removed from areas that are already severely impacted. And that these same people simply have not seen the damage, and have not spent enough time alone to truly contemplate who our enemies are...and how to wage war against them. In short, they have not sat alone in front of an early morning campfire, staring into the bright red bed of coals as the fire keeps the coffee warm, while they sip on hot and strong campfire brew.<br />
<br />
<b>LOBO WATCH CHALLENGE...The Campfire Coffee Summit<br />
</b><br />
<b><i>Dear Shooting & Hunting Industry;<br />
<br />
Over the years, I have gotten to know personally many of you who do head up "our" industry. I've become dismayed at how most of the companies in this industry will spend hundreds of thousands of dollars to promote new products, new ideas - in a very visual way, but tend to make great effort to avoid being aligned with anything that may be considered controversial. What has disappointed me, and the vast majority of the sportsmen I am now associated with, is how most every company in this industry has failed to openly take on the forces that want to put an end to our way of life. Or, if your company has provided financial support to national and state organizations to fight anti-hunting efforts, how it has been kept a secret, as if you are ashamed to be associated with taking care of the wolf problem, stopping the big land grab known as Agenda 21, or challenging the claims constantly being made by anti-hunting groups.<br />
<br />
What you need, is to see the damage first hand. To ride or hike into some the most beautiful elk country that can be found anywhere in the Northern Rockies...and to see how void it is of life. Maybe to fish a high mountain lake where one could once see 3...4...5 moose on just about any evening...and see nothing...not even a moose track. To ease through country where it was once common to see a hundred or more deer a day...and catch a glimpse of maybe 5 or 6 whitetails flashing through the timber, if you are lucky. To spend time with ranchers who have already thrown in the towel...or are about to...thanks to livestock losses to wolves...and grazing permit losses to the efforts of Wildlands Network radicals. To meet outfitters and lodge owners who are seeing their livelihood and their life's work going down the drain. To see firsthand how many sporting goods stores have been so negatively impacted by the loss of hunting opportunities here in the Northern Rockies...and how many other businesses have been similarly impacted.<br />
<br />
You, as an industry leader, need to come to western Montana - and spend a few days in wolf country.<br />
<br />
What I would like to see is 25 to 30 shooting & hunting industry leaders to fly into Missoula, MT for a three-night stay. Arrive mid day, have a late afternoon reception so those who do not know one another can meet. Have dinner together...then spend the evening with 300 or so sportsmen, ranchers, outfitters, guides, loggers, veterinarians, local politicians, business owners, conservation group members, rural residents, and others who have been negatively impacted by the anti-hunting efforts. <br />
<br />
A microphone will allow these people to share their feelings, their experiences, their concerns, and their losses with you...the shooting and hunting industry they rely on to provide the products they use...an industry they would like to see more active in fighting the problems we now face. While wolves will surely dominate the comments made, there are other issues, such as the Wildlands Network/Agenda 21 project, public land closures, high grizzly densities, and others that are sure to be addressed -and which in one way or another affects the shooting and hunting industry.<br />
<br />
The next morning, two of you will be paired, and teamed up with a Montana or Idaho hunter, outfitter, guide, rancher, cowboy or land owner to spend the day in various different areas in the Bitterroot Mountains, the Sapphire Mountains, the Garnet Mountains, the Cabinet Mountains, in the Bob Marshall Wilderness, the Scapegoat Wilderness, or maybe even the Rattlesnake Wilderness that borders the city limits of Missoula - where each of you will spend the night tent camping alone. <br />
<br />
Your camp will already be there, in wolf and bear country, with everything you need - a camp gun (or bring your own), tent, cot, sleeping bag, firewood, grub for dinner and breakfast the next morning...and most importantly, a granite coffee pot and coffee, so you can sit and stare into that fire and contemplate everything you heard the evening before from those impacted by wolves, grizzly bears, unreasonable state and federal restrictions, and the loss of hunting opportunities.<br />
<br />
The following evening would be a parting dinner, to share what you would be taking home with you from the experience to see what's happening here now, and which will spread across the rest of the country if we cannot contain the damage here. Are you ready for a douse of the truth...to see and hear what you have been insulated from...to witness the damage our enemies have already inflicted on the past 75 to 100 years of wildlife and habitat conservation?<br />
<br />
I wish I had been able to pull such an endeavor together a year or so ago. The fall hunting seasons are now upon us, and I know that shooting and hunting industry people will soon scatter like a covey of quail in pursuit of their favorite game. So, I will start planning all of this for mid June 2012, a beautiful time in the Northern Rockies, with cool nights that make for great sleeping in a tent - and the warmth of a campfire and a hot cup of coffee is ever so welcomed as day breaks in the morning.<br />
<br />
Toby Bridges<br />
LOBO WATCH <br />
</i> <br />
</b>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08737107020771110518noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4851368108668594237.post-69725520031735981502011-07-25T09:00:00.000-07:002011-07-25T09:29:27.850-07:00JULY 26TH - PROTEST JUDGE MOLLOY...USFWS...MT & ID STATE WILDLFIE AGENCIES!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiI9CbiMqEXJHcNk_Yp7yq9DxWa5nszqkY_hxd3HtKKp71OXg7LDh3rNvlq_Gc1gS9-8TSx-nH3ghD5wz1b3CrViYJBLE2pNUYJ4Ln7OVjx1aKn7Ht3aV3DsbW8Ce0VhuWbwyOqPOxnVYk/s1600/MSLA+Fed+Courthouse+Rally+5-10.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="300" width="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiI9CbiMqEXJHcNk_Yp7yq9DxWa5nszqkY_hxd3HtKKp71OXg7LDh3rNvlq_Gc1gS9-8TSx-nH3ghD5wz1b3CrViYJBLE2pNUYJ4Ln7OVjx1aKn7Ht3aV3DsbW8Ce0VhuWbwyOqPOxnVYk/s400/MSLA+Fed+Courthouse+Rally+5-10.jpg" /></a></div><br />
It is kind of funny how the staunch environmental groups continually point a finger at sportsmen, ranchers and concerned rural residents who want Congress to do something to allow each and every state to have the right to control wolf numbers, and cry their lungs out... <b><i>"Wolf Management Should Be Based On Science...Not Congressional Legislation!!!"</i></b><br />
<br />
Then, without any reservation whatsoever, these same groups, these same radical pro-wolf organizations turn around and get their way through the courts.<br />
<br />
What's worse...controlling wolf numbers and wolf destruction of wildlife and livestock legislatively...or relying on one biased judge in Missoula, MT to rule in favor of those who support expanded wolf numbers and greater destruction of the past 75 years of wildlife conservation?<br />
<br />
<b>Let's take a look at some of the so-called "science" the pro-wolf folks believe in so feverishly... </b><br />
<br />
In a nutshell: The indigenous Gray or Timber Wolf <b>(<i>Canis lupus irremotus</i></b>) was listed as endangered in 1973. Then, in 1978, the entire species of Grey Wolf (including <b><i>Canis lupus irremotus</i></b>) were all lumped into a single classification as <b><i>Canis lupus</i></b> and listed as endangered in 1978. This meant that even though certain subspecies of gray wolves never existed in the lower 48...they were listed as endangered there. <br />
<br />
In 1982, the ESA of 1973 was amended to allow the introduction of experimental populations under the protection of the <b>Endangered Species Act </b>and because all subspecies of gray wolf were listed as endangered, it meant that any subspecies could be translocated and protected under the ESA, even if that subspecies never existed in the relocation area. <br />
<br />
In 1994/95,the Canadian MacKenzie Valley Gray Wolf (<b><i>Canis lupus occidentallis</i></b>),the largest and most aggressive subspecies of the Grey Wolf, was brought in and released in Yellowstone and Idaho. What was left of the indigenous and truly endangered <b><i>Canis lupus irremotus</i></b> has most likely been replaced by the transplanted <i><b>Canis lupus occidentallis</b></i>. <br />
<br />
This larger, more aggressive, subspecies has multiplied exponentially under protection of the ESA and is currently decimating ungulate populations as well as domestic livestock herds in the Northwest.<br />
<br />
Now, that's really some <b>SOUND SCIENCE</b>...isn't it? I guess that would mean that all caribou are <b>ALSO</b> the same...that all pronghorn are the same...that all whitetail deer are the same. So, if suddenly all the Quebec-Labrador caribou of eastern Canada died off, the problem could be fixed by simply transplanting a few thousand Barren Ground caribou from Alaska...Or, the endangered Sonoran pronghorn could be rescued by simply trucking a few thousand Wyoming pronghorn down to Mexico...and dwindling Florida Keys whitetail populations could be easily supplemented by the release of a few thousand of their bigger relatives from Iowa and Illinois. Right? If a wolf is a wolf...then why wouldn't a caribou be a caribou...or a pronghorn be a pronghorn...or a white-tailed deer be a white-tailed deer? <br />
<br />
<b>Science is Science...Right?</b><br />
<br />
Who are the wildlife <b><i>"scientists"</i></b> behind such idiotic thinking?<br />
<br />
It's easy to find the answers to that one. First, just find yourself a copy of the Northern Rocky Mountain Wolf Recovery Plan. One of the off-base <b><i>"wolf experts"</i></b> that helped author that assemblage of theories and lies was none other than Dr. Bob Ream, who heads wildlife studies at the University of Montana. Next, run yourself down a copy of the 1994 Environmental Impact Statement filed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service...and read some of the phony projections and predictions made by the experts who spun that yarn...including none other than Mr. Ed Bangs, who has headed the Northern Rockies Wolf Recovery Project since it was kicked off. Plus we have a number of <b><i>"wildlife biologists"</i></b> and <b><i>"wildlife managers"</i></b> working within Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks and with the Idaho Department of Fish and Game who are proving to be just as dim witted when it comes to <b><i>"scientifically"</i></b> recognizing what wolves truly are...the damage they deal...the diseases they carry and spread...and which these <b><i>"professionals"</i></b> try to count using their fingers and toes. Then, to make matters worse, when it comes to managing or controlling wolf numbers, one extremely science deficient U.S. District judge in Missoula, MT tends to make all the calls...all the decisions of what's allowed...what's not. <br />
<br />
And his rulings are based on nothing more than legal technicalities, all of which have resulted in the tremendous loss of big game resources, hunting opportunities, and a very damaged livestock industry.<br />
<br />
<b>SO PLEASE...SHOW UP AT THE U.S. DISTRICT COURT BULDING, AT 201 EAST BROADWAY IN MISSOULA, TOMORROW MORNING BY 9 A.M. - AND BE CARRYING A PROTEST SIGN THAT LEAVES NO DOUBT HOW YOU FEEL ABOUT THE DISASTER ALL OF THESE "SCIENTISTS"...AND ONE JUDGE...HAVE FORCED UPON US!<br />
</b><br />
Toby Bridges<br />
LOBO WATCH<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.lobowatch.com">www.lobowatch.com</a>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08737107020771110518noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4851368108668594237.post-59902689759479211532011-06-29T06:40:00.000-07:002011-06-29T10:27:31.480-07:00Grant County, Oregon: The Solution To Tyranny<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgi2Ft8YD8OmqscTWUyMSilhJsuKFYc9rPgr2IYN8loioLgPnQFxAuDHFrLv3DFCqE2zFQfaW3wZssFGRt5bZtWNtdajVf70xJQKZ4S7xy5lRdp1x7dxQRbf31fc52xxMfMLT40i6uvcbM/s1600/Back+country+camp+-+Bob+Marshall+WA+001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="266" width="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgi2Ft8YD8OmqscTWUyMSilhJsuKFYc9rPgr2IYN8loioLgPnQFxAuDHFrLv3DFCqE2zFQfaW3wZssFGRt5bZtWNtdajVf70xJQKZ4S7xy5lRdp1x7dxQRbf31fc52xxMfMLT40i6uvcbM/s400/Back+country+camp+-+Bob+Marshall+WA+001.jpg" /></a></div><br />
<b>Has The U.S. Forest Service Locked You Out Of Favored Sections Of Public Land...Has That Agency Enacted Overly Stringent Rules & Regulations That Make It Impossible To Enjoy Publicly Owned Forests...Have USFS "Law Enforcement" Taken On A Gestapo Attitude & Disposition? The Following Is About One County In Oregon That's Said "Enough Is Enough!" <br />
</b><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<b>By Former Sheriff Richard Mack</b><br />
<br />
On June 14, 2011, “We The People” of Grant County, Oregon, gathered together in the Union High School Gymnasium to support their Sheriff. The reason they did so, was to listen to me give my presentation on the power of sheriffs and the duty they have to uphold and defend the Constitution. But more important than coming to hear me, these good people came to express their appreciation for their sheriff. You see, their Sheriff, Glenn Palmer, actually believes it's his job to keep his Oath of Office! He actually believes that protecting the people from the enforcement of stupid laws and out of control government officials is his responsibility. So much so that he has put himself on the line, subjected himself to the scrutiny and ridicule of the mainstream establishment, as he courageously stands against the U S Forest Service! Yes, Grant County, OR, a small county of not even 7,000 people and 5,000 square miles, has set the example for the entire country as to how we restore freedom in America! A Sheriff doing his job, keeping his oath, and with the support of the people, standing together for liberty.<br />
<br />
This did not happen overnight. The people have long endured abusive regulations by the Forest Service. The sheriff has been been working to have the USFS curtail their whimsical enforcement for years. Lately, it has fallen on deaf ears. So he was forced to take stronger action. Finally, he wrote the Forest Service a letter. Here is the letter in its entirety:<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<b><i>Teresa Raaf, Supervisor<br />
Malheur National Forest<br />
Patterson Bridge Road<br />
John Day, Oregon 97845<br />
<br />
<br />
Ms. Raaf, March 31, 2011<br />
<br />
Regarding the pending cooperative policing agreement between the US Forest Service and the Grant County Sheriff, I am advising you in writing that I will not be signing the agreement. I do not believe that it is in the best interest of the people I serve or the Grant County Sheriff’s Office to continue with the agreement.<br />
<br />
There are several issues that I will bring to your attention that at this point I will not go into detail about.<br />
<br />
The issues include, but are not limited to, how US Forest Service LEO’s treated citizens of this county in October and November of 2010, Travel Management Plan, illegal road closures, grazing, logging, wood permits, prescribed burns, unemployment and other socio-economic issues this community faces today. There is a general mistrust of the federal government by the people of this County, State and Nation.<br />
<br />
You are aware that I had sent at least two requests to the US Forest Service asking for information that pertains to where the US Forest Service gets its Constitutional authority to have law enforcement officers within Grant County.<br />
<br />
One response that I have received in writing is that their authority is given through the Cooperative Policing Agreement that this agency has signed in the past. Upon asking for clarification and a second request, the response was that I needed to check with my District Attorney. Neither response in my opinion is adequate.<br />
<br />
Under Article 1 Section 8 of the United States Constitution, the federal government is limited in its powers and authority. Your jurisdiction as I see it is limited in nature to the Federal Building in John Day.<br />
<br />
Within the confines of Grant County, Oregon, the duties and responsibility of law enforcement will rest with the County Sheriff and his designees. <br />
<br />
Sincerely,<br />
<br />
Glenn E. Palmer<br />
Sheriff for Grant County<br />
</i><br />
</b><br />
So, here we have a small-town sheriff standing against the Federal Government on behalf of his citizens. You know, the people the sheriff actually promised in solemn oath to protect and defend? Well, this Sheriff meant it. He takes his oath seriously and intends to keep his word. He has been ridiculed and sharply assailed for his stance. The local newspaper has been part of this criticism and some other local officials who would never have the courage to do such a thing, certainly have the courage to complain about Palmer. One such coward actually criticized the sheriff, not because he was wrong, but because his stance could cost the county federal funds! In other words, don't stand for what's right, do not try to keep your oath, become a political prostitute and grab the federal money! Is this not the political correctness of the day? Don't do whatever it takes to keep your oath of office, do whatever it takes to bring in the money! Thank goodness there are those with the honor and integrity to stay out of the corrupt mainstream.<br />
<br />
There is one other fantastic part of this entire situation. The people have taken it upon themselves to stand with their sheriff. The newspaper, The Blue Mountain Eagle, has on its June 1, 2011 issue, a full-page ad with approximately 600 names on it from citizens of Grant County. The ad has as its headline: SUPPORT OUR SHERIFF. Then the subtitle reads: The following citizens stand behind our County Sheriff Glenn Palmer, his oath of office and the constitutions. This is an example to all Americans, to all leaders of this great country, a small county in eastern Oregon just demonstrated how we preserve our Constitutional Republic; we have sheriffs, who keep their oaths, who stand for liberty, and then you have the people, yes, how the entire Constitution starts, We The People, stand with their Sheriff!<br />
<br />
I am honored to have seen all this in person, to have shaken the hand of this good Sheriff and his good wife, and to meet the people of this great county. I spoke to this crowd and in the middle of my presentation I announced proudly that it was an amazing experience to be in a place in America where the County Sheriff actually has the courage to just do his job! The crowd of about 500 went wild with applause, standing and cheering for several moments.<br />
<br />
This is the answer, this is the solution. Grant County and Sheriff Palmer have shown us the way! As sheriffs and other local leaders stand for freedom, we take America back county by county and state by state! And of course, don't forget the key ingredient, “We The People.”Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08737107020771110518noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4851368108668594237.post-84369383565318928572011-06-08T07:58:00.000-07:002011-06-08T08:56:22.123-07:00The WILDLANDS PROJECT - Forcing You Off The Land & Into The City...<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7J_TEzhVsnF9MdLZGpt-4xN_Hcja_iDFMBUlERgI_c2w3GXcHlpn94FDejJwEVHC-ODUHNMXN2ZFSZiP4g6pTVUVuNOZGc4HO5GlGHH-twOgOktWk2ltqSrhXI5n7Erbr6ONITh5U2zw/s1600/Ted+Turner+-+Rene+Askins+-+Wildlands+Project.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="269" width="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7J_TEzhVsnF9MdLZGpt-4xN_Hcja_iDFMBUlERgI_c2w3GXcHlpn94FDejJwEVHC-ODUHNMXN2ZFSZiP4g6pTVUVuNOZGc4HO5GlGHH-twOgOktWk2ltqSrhXI5n7Erbr6ONITh5U2zw/s400/Ted+Turner+-+Rene+Askins+-+Wildlands+Project.jpg" /></a></div><br />
<br />
IN THIS PHOTO, BILLIONAIRE LOUD-MOUTH TED TURNER AND ONE OF HIS ENVIRONMENTAL PUPPETS, RENE' ASKINS, PLOT TURNER'S WILDLANDS EFFORTS...TO FORCE AMERICANS OFF THE LAND AND INTO THE CITY.<br />
<br />
FOR MORE ON THE WILDLANDS PROJECT...GO TO THE FOLLOWING TWO POSTS.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08737107020771110518noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4851368108668594237.post-18859883679966762442011-06-08T07:54:00.000-07:002011-06-08T08:07:43.406-07:00The WILDLANDS PROJECT Continued...<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYLMvdHRIcSQGzCeljg0ymJ6TxKUxe7LGhS6Rlo8Exm7Nqa9YwsrvhnSAWSZ0q-s4PHxKBcN7EkGFZmqxkYRagRUrtk662e9-anuI1FdlRWj5Wn7im6Obc6CXMU-CMTvk1zZdTc7X2Sao/s1600/Tester-Baucus+Sign.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="365" width="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYLMvdHRIcSQGzCeljg0ymJ6TxKUxe7LGhS6Rlo8Exm7Nqa9YwsrvhnSAWSZ0q-s4PHxKBcN7EkGFZmqxkYRagRUrtk662e9-anuI1FdlRWj5Wn7im6Obc6CXMU-CMTvk1zZdTc7X2Sao/s400/Tester-Baucus+Sign.jpg" /></a></div><br />
THIS SIGN PRETTY MUCH TELLS HOW MONTANANS FEEL ABOUT THEIR TWO STATE SENATORS...THINGS ARE HEATING UP NOW, AND THE FIRST SEAT (TESTER'S) WILL BE CONTESTED NEXT YEAR (2012) BY NOW CONGRESSMAN DENNY REHBERG. THINGS WILL GET INTERESTING.<br />
<br />
READ MORE ABOUT THE VERY CONTROVERSIAL WILDLANDS PROJECT BELOW...AND VOTE WISELY IN 2012!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08737107020771110518noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4851368108668594237.post-60654576663760480452011-06-08T07:46:00.000-07:002011-06-08T08:40:48.827-07:00Here's A Quick Look At The BIG PLAN...The WILDLANDS PROJECT!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqJOnKQVOSmbUFRauVvbmY0X4JYJ9c3JeEei85efQHYr4jCOMTHPJtuq1llAvX7YWH8pMEYRDDJ6IhVC9XIhJkFimJSCSuEL1et3wH3_WO5krZ1jezw-U1Cp754QFAdQpxbtVvo6XnCBI/s1600/Wildlands_Project.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="303" width="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqJOnKQVOSmbUFRauVvbmY0X4JYJ9c3JeEei85efQHYr4jCOMTHPJtuq1llAvX7YWH8pMEYRDDJ6IhVC9XIhJkFimJSCSuEL1et3wH3_WO5krZ1jezw-U1Cp754QFAdQpxbtVvo6XnCBI/s400/Wildlands_Project.jpg" /></a></div><br />
<b>WHERE WILL THEY FORCE YOU OR YOUR FAMILY TO GO WHEN THEY SAY IT IS TIME TO LEAVE?<br />
</b><br />
If the United Nations and radical environmental groups, such as the Center for Biological Diversity, have their way, this is what America will look like before the end of the next 50 years. And the plan is not very human friendly. This is a look at what the country has in store once it has been segmented and carved up to achieve the greatest land grab of modern times - the Wildlands Project.<br />
<br />
Note all the RED shaded areas on this map. Those will become wilderness or wild areas, and all of those RED veins connecting everything like a huge spider web will be wild corridors doing exactly that...connecting all of those wild areas where major predators will enjoy the opportunity to mingle, party down, have great big ol' sexual orgies...and maintain genetic connectivity. In all, more than 50-percent of this country will be transformed into such wild areas, with all progress of the past several centuries (roads, power lines, bridges, and cities) destroyed and removed. Where will the people all go? Well, the ultimate goal of the radical environmental organizations and a few demented individuals, such as billionaire loud mouth Ted Turner, is for the human population to dwindle...and dwindle quickly...say by about 75- or 80-percent over the course of the next century. The remaining population will be herded into cities known as "safe zones"...well away from the sacred wild lands.<br />
<br />
As idiotic as this may all sound, it is the goal of the United Nation's Agenda 21 to actually achieve all of this...and to reduce the human role in life on this ol' Earth.<br />
<br />
Educate yourself immediately...and begin to fight back. The "Elect Anyone Except Jon Tester and Max Baucus" sign above can be found along a state highway near Great Falls, MT - and shows that some of the citizens of this state are beginning to identify the root of this problem - elected officials who are in sync with the Wildlands Project agenda. While both Senators Tester and Baucus are constantly on television boasting about bringing good paying jobs to this state, these two officials have done far more to shut down the economy in Montana - mainly through the loss of many forest and mining (natural resources) job opportunities. Tester's wilderness legislation is just another step toward achieving moving people off the land and into the city.<br />
<br />
Two great places to gain more knowledge of this fiasco can be found at the following links.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.access-advocates.org/issues.htm
">http://www.access-advocates.org/issues.htm<br />
</a><br />
<a href="http://www.propertyrightsresearch.org/articles2/wildlands_project_and_un_convent.htm
">http://www.propertyrightsresearch.org/articles2/wildlands_project_and_un_convent.htm<br />
</a><br />
You'll quickly realize that all of the legal wrangling to keep wolves and grizzly bears under the protection of the Endangered Species Act has been just an early Wildlands Project building block to eliminate why people want to live close to the land. Likewise, the manner in which the federal government continues to allow groups like Defenders of Wildlife, the Sierra Club, the Center for Biological Diversity, and several dozen other so-called "environmental" organizations to scam the Equal Access to Justice Act out of hundreds of millions of dollars annually is using your tax dollars to fund a project which will kick many people off of their lands. There is so much money involved (appx. $5-BILLION over the past decade) that many residents now suspect that many overly environmental friendly politicians and perhaps even a few federal judges are also enjoying some of the ill-gotten spoils.<br />
<br />
To keep up on all of this, visit the following two websites regularly...<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.lobowatch.com">www.lobowatch.com<br />
</a><br />
<a href="http://www.destroyersofwildlife.com">www.destroyersofwildlife.com</a><br />
<br />
Toby Bridges<br />
Missoula, MTAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08737107020771110518noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4851368108668594237.post-20118826920780165112011-05-28T09:34:00.000-07:002011-05-29T09:18:24.494-07:00WOLF STEW STINKS!!!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRkPa5ItjjZxKODEivtqsy2SeCQYr3ISJ9qKmjCXvz5tgkeac1tAqCpVOo0ikExaJcoyG_kBToZ4Lqo8neENDobk5zCaZu9BzivU3Fv3V3QQQzKpoClPPKzZHdpoLpe4s8QxEvsrXaHoE/s1600/Wolf+Criminals+At+Work.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="266" width="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRkPa5ItjjZxKODEivtqsy2SeCQYr3ISJ9qKmjCXvz5tgkeac1tAqCpVOo0ikExaJcoyG_kBToZ4Lqo8neENDobk5zCaZu9BzivU3Fv3V3QQQzKpoClPPKzZHdpoLpe4s8QxEvsrXaHoE/s400/Wolf+Criminals+At+Work.jpg" /></a></div><br />
<b>ABOVE...WOLF BOOTLEGGERS AT WORK, BREWING UP ANOTHER BATCH OF ILLEGAL WOLF STEW<br />
</b><br />
<b>Following Is A LOBO WATCH Editorial Release That Was Written Last October...And Published Here By Popular Demand</b><br />
<br />
<b>By Toby Bridges, LOBO WATCH</b><br />
<br />
If it looks like garbage...smells like garbage...and leaves a nasty taste in your mouth like garbage - then it must be garbage. And that pretty much describes the <b><i>"Wolf Stew"</i></b> also known as the <b>Northern Rockies Wolf Recovery Project</b>. From the day this project first had heat hit the bottom of the cauldron, it was destined to be little more than a foul smelling witches brew, thanks mostly to simply having way too many chefs.<br />
<br />
Without a sufficient base, or stock, a wild array of wolf experts, wildlife biologists, conservationists, smug academic geniuses, environmental organizations, one very abused justice system, unqualified wildlife managers, legal wranglers, a broken <b>Endangered Species Act</b>, naive residents, over ambitious politicians, a crooked federal agency, a far removed public, an egotistical judge, and a way too out of touch hunting industry have thrown in a ton of this, hundreds of pounds of that, an overly generous dash of ego, a pinch of manipulated science, way too much greed, and not nearly enough common sense or forethought. The resulting stew has become so rank that it is now getting tougher to shove this gruel down the throats of those who now have to live with the stench. Here is a look at some of the chefs who have turned this <b><i>"Wolf Stew"</i></b> into a bona fide disaster.<br />
<br />
Posthumously, good ol' <b>Walt Disney </b>can be credited with the base, or stock, for this poorly mixed concoction. <br />
<br />
Through the 1950s and 1960s, <b>Disney</b> produced a large number of fictitious wildlife films, making wildlife more humanlike to a naive public starving for more shows about wild animals. Wolves, mountain lions and bears were always some of his favored subjects, and he and his crew bent over more than backwards to make them look like the All American Family - with a daddy, a mommy, and a kid or two. What this film maker presented was far from the real life of his wildlife subjects. When it came to major predators, like wolves, <b>Disney</b> failed to show what they do most - hunt. <b>And that all wolves consume is meat.</b> To bring home the bacon for the kids, mommy and daddy wolf had to kill, and kill a lot, of other wildlife. <b>Walt Disney's </b>lack of honesty when portraying these apex predators left America with a very false image of the wolf, which his films presented as a kind, caring, loving, warm and sociable animal. In short, his portrayal of the wolf provided a very bland, tasteless base or stock for the <b><i>"Wolf Stew"</i></b> project that lay ahead.<br />
<br />
Then, through the 1970s and 1980s along came a number of social changes in America, and many of <b>Walt Disney's </b>brain washed young followers became young adults - some moving into the world of academics...some becoming more involved with ecology, to save the World from themselves. And during this period, the <b>Endangered Species Act </b>was established to protect endangered and threatened wildlife species. Which, in itself, is not a bad thing. However, the manner in which it became manipulated has been extremely bad, especially in the way some academic geniuses have used it to force wolves back into ecosystems that have benefited greatly from their absence.<br />
<br />
Enter - the <b>Northern Rockies Wolf Recovery Project</b> of the 1990s. The goal, to bring wolves back into the <b>Greater Yellowstone Area</b>, and all along the Rocky Mountains of Idaho and Montana. And to bring this project (a.k.a. <b><i>"stew"</i></b>) to a boil, a panel of <b><i>"wolf experts"</i></b> was assembled to write the recipe for the mix. In a manner of speaking, these were the <b><i>"sous-chefs"</i></b> of the wolf kitchen in which they conceived the <b><i>"plan" </i></b>(a.k.a. <b><i>"recipe"</i></b>) for <b><i>"Wolf Stew"</i></b>. This was the team of under chefs , headed by lead sous-chef <b>Dr. Robert Ream</b>, also the head of wildlife studies at the <b>University of Montana</b>, that determined the mix, the timing, the amounts, the substitutions, and everything else to be thrown into the wolf pot.<br />
<br />
So, who has been the <b><i>chef de cuisine</i></b>, or executive chef, of this wildlife version of <b><i>"Hell's Kitchen"</i></b> ? <br />
<br />
That would probably be <b>U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service</b> biologist <b>Ed Bangs</b>, who has been head of the <b>Northern Rockies Wolf Recovery Project</b> since its inception. And he has been the head pot stirrer all along, doing some major substitution of ingredients along the way.<br />
<br />
Two of the ingredients that really sour this <b><i>"Wolf Stew"</i></b> have been the lack of official funding and the manner in which the key ingredient, wolves, were brought into the U.S. When Congress failed to authorize funding for the <b>Northern Rockies Wolf Recovery Project</b>, it kind of looked like USFWS would have to shut down the stove. That is, until the agency discovered another source for the millions of dollars needed to keep their kitchen open - they simply robbed the pantry of another kitchen, known as the <b>Pitman-Robertson</b> funds. The money accumulated in this till came from the excise taxes collected annually on firearms, ammunition, fishing tackle, archery gear, and other hunting and fishing products. (In 2009 alone, those funds amounted to more than $700-million.) This money has been earmarked to be used exclusively for wildlife habitat and fisheries improvements. <br />
<br />
Through the early to late 1990s, <b>USFWS</b> illegally helped itself to as much as <b>$60-million dollars</b> from <b>Pitman-Robertson</b> monies to fund a number of unauthorized projects - one of them the <b>Northern Rockies Wolf Recovery Project</b>. And, if that isn't enough to leave a bad taste in mouths of Americans, especially the sportsmen who provided the money, how they spent that money taints the <b><i>"Wolf Stew"</i></b> even more.<br />
<br />
Executive chef <b>Ed Bangs</b> seems to have ignored the claims of residents in Montana, Idaho and Wyoming - <b>that pockets of native wolves (Canis lupus erremotus) still existed</b> - and turned to north-central Alberta, Canada to bring in a more robust and more aggressive substitute wolf <b>(Canis lupus occidentallis)</b>. <b>Bangs</b> and the <b>Department of the Interior</b> ignored that this would be a violation of the <b>Endangered Species Act</b>. Likewise, <b>USFWS</b> failed to file their own mandatory <b>Form 3-177</b>, which would have documented the origin of the wolves, and the true number of those ingredients thrown into the pot. Without that mandatory documentation, there's no real way to put a true cost on this questionable brew, or how <b>USFWS</b> spent the stolen money.<br />
<br />
Adding to the cost of this simmering slop bucket, more than a dozen environmental organizations, such as the <b>Defenders of Wildlife</b>, the <b>Sierra Club</b>, and the <b>Center for Biological Diversity</b>, have managed to keep wolf management tied up in federal court - and hunters from reducing wolf numbers back closer to the recovery goals established for the <b><i>"Wolf Stew"</i></b> plan. That goal was reached seven or eight years ago. Still, these groups fight any attempt to control wolf numbers. Not so much for any real conservation purposes, but so they can push for a meatier mix, with tens of thousands of wolves from coast to coast.<br />
<br />
<b>Well, that and for the money.</b><br />
<br />
These organizations have used the wolf as a <b><i>"cash cow"</i></b>, milking wolf litigation for tens of millions of taxpayer dollars, through a derailed act known as the <b>Equal Access to Justice Act</b>. This very abused federal program allows these <b><i>"not for profit"</i></b> organizations to file for reimbursement of their legal costs to keep environmental issues, including wolves, bogged down in court. They've also learned how to generously claim some extremely exaggerated legal expenses. During a six-year period spanning the mid 2000's, dozens of such organizations and groups filed <b>more than 1,500 such lawsuits</b>, mostly against the U.S. government - for which <b>they were rewarded $4.7-billion</b> in reimbursement and restitution. And as hard as <b><i>"Wolf Stew"</i></b> may be to continue swallowing, it has become an extremely expensive dish.<br />
<br />
One individual who tends to love the smell and taste of this noxious blend of lies and deceit is <b>U.S. District Court judge Donald Molloy</b>, of Missoula, MT. And the environmental groups keep his palate salivating with the ongoing environmental and wolf cases that flow through his courtroom like a well orchestrated never ending evening dinner service. He seems to relish the fact that, despite that the cost of this <b><i>"Wolf Stew"</i></b> has been largely funded with money that <b>USFWS</b> literally embezzled...or that the <b>USFWS Environmental Impact Statement</b> and the <b>Northern Rockies</b> <b><i>"Wolf Stew"</i></b> recipe that were concocted by very pro-wolf researchers are both rife with misleading and false claims...or that Canadian wolves were illegally brought across the border...and that wolves are now destroying decades of wildlife conservation efforts...this wolf scowl faced federal judge repeatedly decides in favor of those who are plucking U.S. taxpayers of every dollar they can haul back to their lair.<br />
<br />
The manner in which <b>Molloy</b> ignores all of the illegal ingredients which have made <b><i>"Wolf Stew"</i></b> toxic now has many wondering if he receives a generous tip for the manner in which he chooses to serve <b><i>"his"</i></b> justice. Many sportsmen in the Northern Rockies now refer to him as <b><i>"King Molloy"</i></b>, mostly because of the rich taste he has acquired for power.<br />
<br />
These same sportsmen have now also lost their taste for how state wildlife agencies in Montana and Idaho have too willingly allowed <b>USFWS</b> and the environmental groups to freely toss whatever they want into the stew pot. The heaping amount of lies dished out by <b>MT Fish, Wildlife and Parks </b>and the <b>ID Department of Fish and Game</b>, in their attempts to hide the true number of wolves in these two states, plus to down play the degree of devastation wolves are dealing big game herds, has made it hard for sportsmen in these two states to swallow anything these agencies now serve. Many hunters now feel these agencies no longer serve them, and they are now beginning to throw their rotten garbage back at them.<br />
<br />
The longer the heat is applied to this pot of stinking <b><i>"Wolf Stew"</i></b>, and the more wolf issues continue to decay, the more dangerous the situation becomes. As wolves traverse great distances every day and night, they season the landscape with millions of <b><i>Echinococcus granulosus</i></b> tapeworm eggs, increasing the chances of human residents and recreationalists of contracting cystic hydatid disease - or any of more than 30 other diseases wolves carry and spread. During any given 24-hour period, a wolf can cover between 30 and 50 miles of their territory. And any pet that gets in their way stands to end up on the menu...and as big game populations continue to dwindle, humans could as well.<br />
<br />
Perhaps it is time to dump the <b><i>"Wolf Stew"</i></b> cauldron, and go back to the wildlife conservation recipe that was working all too well - before so many inexperienced wolf chefs jumped in to write their own chapters in introducing a <b>non-native </b>and <b>non-endangered </b>predator into the Northern Rockies. No matter how much well intending greenie wildlife biologists try to write a tasteful recipe for the wolves to fit in with other wildlife populations and a ranching community, wolves only see elk, deer, moose, other wildlife, and livestock as a food source. And it is the wolf's insatiable hunger and lust for killing that continues to spoil any chance of us ever reaching an acceptable balance between wolves and all other living things. <br />
<br />
<b>Toby Bridges<br />
MONTANA MOUNTAIN<br />
CHRONICLE<br />
</b> <br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.lobowatch.com">www.lobowatch.com</a><br />
<br />
About The Photo - This USFWS/NPS photo shows Yellowstone National Park biologists Doug Smith (squatting at left) and two others as they prepare to release non-native Canadian wolves into the Yellowstone ecosystem...in the name of a "natural balance". Since the first of those non-indigenous wolves were released in 1995, the area has lost 80-percent of its elk population and more than 90-percent of the moose.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08737107020771110518noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4851368108668594237.post-78953810832557398532011-05-03T08:33:00.000-07:002011-05-29T09:25:10.357-07:00You Might Want to Think Twice About Visiting Montana This Summer!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6521yYLDhyphenhyphenaiF5JBOoeqMxHR31kQEou3rQhdOz3QJh3Uu6gvUushugsvAXwEEBWKENUZH3IVM07ojRNYvmXKlIjxBRjMTcl3d7MlPAq1BKocqP6QayS7YIisSa9tVf6nX-sf-P7sGN7I/s1600/March+Photo+11.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="258" width="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6521yYLDhyphenhyphenaiF5JBOoeqMxHR31kQEou3rQhdOz3QJh3Uu6gvUushugsvAXwEEBWKENUZH3IVM07ojRNYvmXKlIjxBRjMTcl3d7MlPAq1BKocqP6QayS7YIisSa9tVf6nX-sf-P7sGN7I/s400/March+Photo+11.jpg" /></a></div><br />
<br />
Before making the move to Montana almost four years ago, it was the beauty of the mountains, wide valleys, fast running clear streams, wooded ridges and back country lakes that had drawn me here again and again, year after year. Right at the top of all the natural draws which kept me returning was an abundance of wildlife. On any given day in the western half of this huge state, I could possibly see elk, mule deer, buffalo, whitetails, mountain goats, pronghorns, black bear, bighorn sheep, and Shiras moose - with the occasional chance of spotting a mountain lion, grizzly, wolf, or possibly even a wolverine.<br />
<br />
Being an avid hunter, it was the diversity of hunting opportunities that finally helped me to decide that Montana is where I wanted to live the rest of my life. Well, that and one very sweet Montana gal with which I had fallen in love. She loves the outdoors every bit as much as I do. And we get out as often as we can, camping just about every weekend during good weather...and often even when it's not so good.<br />
<br />
With this said, the title of this piece might make you wonder, <b><i>"What has changed?"</i><br />
</b><br />
Unfortunately, a whole lot. And that change began back during the 1970s and 1980s, with the introduction of the non-native Canadian gray wolf into the Northern Rockies. Now, you are probably saying to yourself, <b><i>"But the Northern Rockies Wolf Recovery Project did not begin until the release of the first wolves in 1995."<br />
</i><br />
</b>But, did it really? There are growing suspicions, and evidence, that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, without any authorization whatsoever, released small <b><i>"experimental"</i></b> populations of Canadian trapped wolves into remote areas of Montana, Idaho and into Yellowstone National Parks itself in northwest Wyoming. And there is also a growing feeling that those efforts were aided by wildlife studies academics with the University of Montana. Of course, such unauthorized release of wolves is illegal, and that's exactly why USFWS and U of M environmentalists covertly made those transplants in their zeal to re-establish wolves in the Northern Rockies.<br />
<br />
The subsequent transplant of wolves, under the auspices of an <b><i>"authorizied"</i></b> and <b><i>"approved scientific based"</i></b> wolf recovery project was merely a facade to hide the earlier unauthorized transplants and slowly growing wolf populations. Overzealous UM wildlife academics hailed the earlier pockets of illegally transplanted wolves as <b><i>"discovered"</i></b> remnants of native wolves, or as wolves which had walked down to Montana from Canada on their own.<br />
<br />
According to who is making the claim, there are now somewhere between 1,700 to nearly 5,000 wolves inhabiting the Northern Rockies. The lower number being claimed by those who lied outright about when and where this project got its start or where wolves were released...those who never did document the true number of Canadian wolves dumped into Montana, Idaho and the northwestern corner of Wyoming...or how they literally stole between $45- and $60-million from sportsmen provided excise dollars to, in part, illegally fund the Wolf Recovery Project in the Northern Rockies. The higher population figure of 4,000 to 5,000 wolves is now being claimed by the sportsmen who have seen many elk herds destroyed by as much as 80-percent by uncontrolled (and unknown) wolf numbers, and by livestock producers who have seen a four- or five-fold increase in wolf depredation of cattle and sheep over the past four or five years.<br />
<br />
<b>But, that's not what is being written about here. Remember, this is about why anyone looking to visit Montana, or Idaho for that matter, just might want to consider going somewhere else.<br />
</b><br />
If seeing abundant wildlife is what draws you to the Northern Rockies, be warned that the sightings have gotten mighty thin - even in what was once America's wildlife wonderland...Yellowstone National Park. Before the release of those non-native, and certainly non-endangered, Canadian wolves, into the Greater Yellowston Area, the northern Yellowstone elk herd numbered right at 19,000 elk. Due to ever growing wolf numbers, extremely inadequate (more like non-existent) wolf control, and escalating depredation of that herd by wolves, the 2011 count for this herd has dropped precipitously to just 4,400 elk. And the number will drop even more dramatically this coming year, thanks to another elk calf crop that will be right at <b><i>"0"</i></b>, and elk that are growing dangerously old without the recruitment of young-of-the-year. In 1995, the average age of this herd was 4 to 5 years. Today, the average age is 9 to 10 years, and these elk are reaching an age where reproduction becomes impossible.<br />
<br />
The same is happening with elk, moose, deer and other big game populations up and down the northern Rocky Mountain chain.<br />
<br />
As wildlife populations plummet, wolves are turning more and more to domestic stock - cattle, sheep, llamas, horses, and especially pet and working ranch dogs. When game becomes scarce in an area, wolves will feed on just about whatever they can run down and kill. And they don't even worry about the killing part. As often as not, they will pull down an animal and eat on it while it is alive - then leave it to die a lingering death. (These are not the wolves Walt Disney sold you, are they?)<br />
<br />
If camping is in your plans, should you still decide to come and enjoy the beautiful scenery and fishing, be advised that you might want to bring along some armament. The best would be a good 12-gauge pump-action or semi-autoloading shot gun loaded with <b><i>"00"</i></b> buckshot loads - and keep it loaded and handy at all times when in camp, and especially if taking a walk with the family and pet dog or dogs. As much as it may mentally scar young children to see dad or mom shoot one or more of those <b><i>sweet</i></b>, <b><i>loving</i></b> and <b><i>cuddly</i></b> wolves that are hell-bent on eating the family dog, or heaven forbid, to attack a small child that may have fallen, and crying in distress, you have to think about the consequences of not taking a shot or several shots.<br />
<br />
Still, even that is not the biggest danger. Wolves are known carriers and spreaders of more than 30 infectious diseases, including rabies, mange, and trichinosis. Perhaps the most dangerous to all other living things is hydatid disease. This is caused by the <b><i>Echinococcosis granulosus </i></b>tapeworm that has been carried by more than 60-percent of all wolves examined in the Northern Rockies - through the eggs of this parasite which are spread widely by the scat (feces) wolves leave behind everywhere they travel. It is not uncommon for each wolf to cover 30 to 40 miles every 24-hour period, spreading hundreds of millions, if not billions, of those eggs EVERY DAY.<br />
<br />
The <b><i>Echinococcosis granulosus </i></b>tapeworm eggs are microscopic, and cannot be seen by the naked eye. Being that small, they can become airborne with just a gentle breeze - and widely spread by the stiff mountain breezes that are common for western Montana and northern Idaho. Likewise, the eggs can easily be transported by all the free flowing streams of this region. When breathed in or ingested by big game or livestock when grazing, or drinking, the eggs collect in the lungs, liver, blood stream and even the brain, where they can cause puss filled cysts. And once deposited into the ecosystem, these eggs are resilient enough to withstand a variety of climatic changes for a period of several months. <br />
<br />
These eggs can also be passed on to humans who would drink right out of a mountain stream, or possibly breath them in when the eggs are airborne. However, the most common transfer of <b><i>Echinococcosis granulosus</i></b> eggs to humans likely occurs when people love on their pets, which likely collected the eggs in their hair or fur while frolicking in the wilds also frequented by wolves. Dogs especially will roll in the feces (scat) deposited by other canines, and wolves are canines the same as dogs. We all enjoy loving on our pet dogs, but that may have to be curtailed when you live in or camp and hike where there are wolves. If you allow your dog to lick you on the face, you greatly increase the chances of breathng in or ingesting the eggs of this tapeworm - which could lead to contracting cystic hydatid disease, and forming the cysts in your lungs...on your liver...and possibly on the brain. The latter can be fatal unless the cysts are surgically removed. <br />
<br />
It should be noted that your dog can also become infected by the <b><i>Echinococcosis granulosus</i></b> tapeworm, especially if it is allowed to eat on the internal organ offal left behind when a hunter <b><i>"field dresses"</i></b> an elk, deer or moose that may have been riddled with hydatid cysts - or the remains of such left from a wolf kill. So, if you are contemplating spending some time in the <b><i>"Great Outdoors"</i></b> of Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, or anywhere else there is a thriving wolf population, make sure that little <b><i>"Fluffy"</i></b> has all of its inoculations up to date, as if shipping the dog off to war - because in a way you are taking them into a war zone!<br />
<br />
But then, you're also headed into the same battle. <br />
<br />
Montana and the other <b><i>"wolf states"</i></b> of this country appreciate and rely on out of state tourism, and enjoy sharing their outdoors. Unfortunately, thanks to an infestation of wolves which radical green driven groups, like the Center for Biological Diversity and the Defenders of Wildlife, have fought to allow the populations of which to grow to troublesome numbers, there are now physical and health dangers to take into consideration - for both your family and your pets. Likewise, wolves are quickly pulling down big game numbers, and seeing wildlife has become more and more challenging. <br />
<br />
If your goal is to see a wolf, then your chances have increased greatly. But, you have to work at that. Wolves are very secretive animals, running mostly at night...while you're snuggled in your sleeping bag, with your pet curled up against you, inside your tent. Just be sure to keep that buckshot loaded 12-gauge and a good bright flashlight within easy reach...just in case wolves rush in. Or...should a grizzly decide to pay you a visit. Did you know that within Montana's prime grizzly habitat and range, the density of the big bears is greater than across all of Alaska? Or that, with more than 1,000 of the big bears in that range, the number of human maulings and deaths have increased every year? <br />
<br />
Again, this is primarily due to the fact that the so-called environmental groups have fought management of the bears, which no longer have any fear of humans. But, that's an entirely different story. - <br />
<br />
<b><i>Toby Bridges</i></b><br />
<b>MONTANA MOUNTAIN<br />
CHRONICLE</b><br />
<br />
About The Photo Above: Our neighbor, Lisa, loves to fish...and so does her pre-school aged daughter Laynie. I snapped this photo of the two fishing for Arctic Grayling on a high Montana mountain lake during the Memorial Day weekend in 2009. The area is one of the harder hit areas now being devastated by an uncontrolled wolf population...and when fishing here I now insure that I either have my .44 Magnum strapped on...or my "00" buckshot loaded 12-gauge real close at hand.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08737107020771110518noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4851368108668594237.post-24622703161430236282011-04-17T14:51:00.000-07:002013-02-16T07:45:09.542-08:00The Old Tree Stand<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMTEVRp1y1fKjYxEA2ZTldzA7FMuRoOiSOsqZci8iVRDTy2YX_sEi516NIFTT0oCTXesyxxaOSbVBo_LlPgtxAYCani3BP-sAFOo2wylvFduOXEH9hlcJlNAoPzFYa1U-47xKWxRr8zo4/s1600/The+Old+Treestand001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMTEVRp1y1fKjYxEA2ZTldzA7FMuRoOiSOsqZci8iVRDTy2YX_sEi516NIFTT0oCTXesyxxaOSbVBo_LlPgtxAYCani3BP-sAFOo2wylvFduOXEH9hlcJlNAoPzFYa1U-47xKWxRr8zo4/s640/The+Old+Treestand001.jpg" width="444" /></a>During a December trip back to the Midwest in 2009, to visit family and friends, I slipped away from everyone early one morning for a walk down through the oak covered woods I had known as a boy. My destination was a series of cultivated crop fields which ran alongside a sizeable Illinois creek. I was curious to see if there were any remnants of an old wooden treestand I had built 46 years earlier. <br />
<br />
It had been my first real deer hunting stand, built when I was 14 years old. I had located it along a wooded ditch line that separated two of those fields, offering a corridor of cover for whitetails to follow back and forth from the hardwood covered ridges to heavy creek-bottom brush. And that year, I took my first bow-killed deer and my first antlered muzzleloader buck out of that stand. During the 20 years that followed, I had taken another dozen or so deer from the 2'x4' wooden platform that sat about 10-feet off the ground. It was great to see the two heavy oak two-by-sixes still spanning the gap between a pair of black oak trees.<br />
<br />
I sat on a nearby log and fondly remembered the young button buck I had arrowed with a bow my favorite Uncle had given me for my birthday...and the eight-ponter (4x4) buck I had downed with the .45 caliber muzzleloader I had worked so hard and saved for...plus two real monster whitetail bucks taken when I was in my late 20s. It had been 25 years since I had last layed eyes upon the stand, and I left the area filled with great memories, knowing that I would probably never again return to the spot.<br />
<br />
The stand in the photo at right is not that stand, but another stand I came across while whitetail hunting 60 miles from where I now live in Missoula, Montana. That hunt was during the first week of November 2009. I was hunting a several hundred acre tract of private creek-bottom land that was surrounded on all sides by National Forest. I had gotten permission to hunt the property when I stopped to help an elderly man in his 80s wrestling with tight fitting lug nuts on his pickup as he tried to change a flat tire. Between us, we got them off and the spare on. He asked if I was hunting, and I said yes. He then offered to let me hunt his place, which consisted of about a hundred acres of timber and about an equal amount of hayfields and pasture. I had not seen much deer sign where I had been hunting a few miles away, so I took him up on the offer - figuring that the deer may be coming to the hayfields. The previous year, I had hunted the public land adjacent to this tract of private property, right along a great little trout stream. <br />
<br />
Most any morning, I would see 15 to 20 deer. Anyway, I saw that many deer every morning early the first week of the season. And the great thing was, I never saw another hunter in the woods. The general firearm season here in Montana is 5 weeks long. So, I held off hunting again until the end of the second week, then headed back. I figured the rut would be kicking in, and the deer would be on the move even more. Plus, by then there was a light 4 to 5 inches of snow on the ground.<br />
<br />
I was hunting alone for a few days, and once I had camp pitched, with my short and fast handling .54 caliber Green Mountain "Brush Rifle" slung over my shoulder, I figured I'd spend the entire afternoon still hunting back along the far end of one hayfield, actually hunting a thick stand of aspens on the public side of the line...then work over to a treestand I already had in place...and spend the last hour or so of daylight watching that end of the field. It was during that slow saunter through the deer woods that I came across this old stand.<br />
<br />
The snow on the ground was fresh. In fact, I had driven through falling snow the entire trip over. Here and there, I could see deer tracks that had been made early that morning or the previous day, then filled in with snow. I also noticed other tracks, which I had never seen in the area before - wolf tracks...some fresh.<br />
<br />
In the past, I had never hunted this area without jumping a half-dozen or more deer during any walk into the area. Following an old snowmobile trail from where I camped, back into an area that bordered a swampy brush thicket, I never cut one fresh deer track in more than a mile of walking...but wolf tracks were everywhere. Most times, when I eased through the aspen patch during earlier scouting trips or hunts, I'd see a moose or two. Not this afternoon. I didn't even see a moose track. <br />
<br />
By the time I reached my portable tree stand, I still had not seen a single fresh deer track. I finished out the day 15 feet off the ground, at the edge of a 50 acre hay field, where deer generally fed almost every evening. Not this evening. Nothing moved. In the very dim last light of day, I climbed down and as I started my walk back to camp, taking a short-cut across the open field, wolves began to howl on a high knob about a half-mile behind where I'd spent the afternoon hunting. And they continued to howl on through early evening as I cooked dinner over the campfire. <br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZcGXoC6kUrnlVEUtjDyLK9j_a-_Vk9DwcLSwfL3KzhdW61S1g2CYejyCWcXTljOBgVGNn1gFvdRp9FfmjSx-cXIkm0fpaykWAFPcGvLPUwd9-iZLmodP1fQp8QVBc4eWB4BX5gxOy2UM/s1600/Winter+Camp001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="217" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZcGXoC6kUrnlVEUtjDyLK9j_a-_Vk9DwcLSwfL3KzhdW61S1g2CYejyCWcXTljOBgVGNn1gFvdRp9FfmjSx-cXIkm0fpaykWAFPcGvLPUwd9-iZLmodP1fQp8QVBc4eWB4BX5gxOy2UM/s320/Winter+Camp001.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
I had a small heater in my well ventilated tent, plus a propane lantern. After dinner, I read a little, then shut down the heater, crawled into a hefty sleeping bag, and threw a heavy comforter on top. It was going to be a cold night, with temperatures getting down to about 8-degrees, but I knew I'd stay warm with the thick foam mattress under me and all the insulation on top. Come early morning, I could have the heater going in a few minutes and warm the tent before sliding out of the sleeping bag. <br />
<br />
Knowing there were wolves in the area, I had slipped my old Browning A5 shotgun out of the truck, and had it stoked up with "00" buckshot loads. And about two in the morning, I was glad that I had. Wolves had surrounded the camp, and howled for more than an hour. Some sounded less than 75 yards from the tent, and my guess was that the pack consisted of 7 or 8 wolves. It was very comforting having that semi-auto 12 gauge laying next to me through the night. When they finally stopped howling, I fell right back asleep. Then, about a half hour before daybreak, when I got the heater and lantern going, several started barking at the illuminated tent...and I knew they were no more than 50 yards away. I got dressed, then waited for daylight before unzipping the tent and stepping out - 12 gauge in hand.<br />
<br />
The woods were very open, and I could see 100 to 150 yards in just about any direction. No wolves were in sight, but when I walked around camp, still carrying the shotgun, it became very evident that wolves had come very close during the night. Some tracks were less than 20 yards from the tent. <br />
<br />
I slipped on my required blaze orange vest, shouldered the custom .54 in line muzzleloader, built on a Knight DISC Extreme action, and headed for the knob where I had heard the wolves howling the evening before. (There was a valid 2009 wolf tag in my pocket.) I followed a closed Forest Service road that went to the knob, and while heading down a long open grade, a big black wolf shot across the roadway. I got over to a pine quickly and took a leaning rest. Three more wolves stepped out onto the road cut, and I yelled. They all stopped and looked back in my direction. I guessed the distance at about 175 yards...held for the top of the back of the biggest wolf, then eased back on the trigger...and the heavy 400-grain Harvester Muzzleloading "Hard Cast" bullet flew right under that wolf...and in a flash they were gone. I discovered that due to the huge size of those wolves, I had misjudged the distance by at least 50 yards, and there was just too much drop for such a heavy bullet. <br />
<br />
I'd covered about two miles that morning, and still had not cut a fresh deer, elk or moose track. I did find the remains of a wolf-killed adult doe and her fawn, and not much was left. The kills looked to be about a week old. What the wolves had not already killed in this area, they had apparently pushed somewhere else. The game normally found in the area was completely gone. In three days of hunting, I failed to see one single live deer.<br />
<br />
I went back for a couple of days this past season (November 2010), after a fresh 5-inch snow fall, just to see if I could find any fresh deer or elk tracks. The snow had quit falling the evening before I got there, so I knew any tracks I found would be just hours old. That first day, I walked at least 5 or 6 miles, and drove another 15 or so on mountain backroads. And did the same thing on the following day. In all, covering some 35 to 40 miles on foot or driving very slowly, in two days I saw a grand total of 7 sets of deer tracks...and each time those tracks were being followed by two or three sets of wolf tracks. I saw absolutely no elk tracks...no moose tracks.<br />
<br />
On the way out, I stopped by the elderly landowners place to see if he'd been seeing anything in his hayfields. He sadly reported that he had not seen a deer in weeks...nor an elk in months. He then shared that 10 to 12 years ago, he had between 30 and 40 elk that wintered every year on his place, but since the wolves had moved into his area 6 or 7 years ago, none have wintered there again. He also said that just ten years ago, his hayfields often had 40 to 50 deer in them just about every evening. However, he could now count on two hands the most he had seen in the fields at any one time during this past season.<br />
<br />
I then asked him about the wooden treestand in the photo above. He said that he had built the stand about 25 years ago, and hunted out of it for about 10 or 12 years. He then showed me a half-dozen very nice whitetail racks and two exceptional 6x6 elk racks he had taken from that stand. He shared, <b><i>"Back in those days, you could have killed a buck just about any evening. There were days when I would see five or six good bucks within easy range...but back then I would hunt for a particular really good buck...and if I didn't see him, I just wouldn't fill my tag. I feel we'll never see those days again."<br />
</i><br />
</b>Wolves have changed the Montana landscape. As this is written, Congress has authorized management hunts in Montana and Idaho for 2011. But with the low (187) quota that MT Fish, Wildlife and Parks is recommending, there will not be any <b>"control"</b> of wolf numbers. At best, that quota is no more than 11- to 12-percent of the current wolf population (pre 2011 pup birthing)...and by the time that season (fall) opens, there will be at least 1,600 to 1,650 wolves in Montana...and another spring's calf crop will be once again destroyed by wolves. Even if the quota is met...by this time next year, with the 2012 wolf pup crop, there will still be 100 to 150 more wolves than at the end of the 2011 hunt...and still fewer elk, moose and deer.<br />
<br />
More on this issue can be found on the LOBO WATCH website, at <a href="http://www.lobowatch.com/">www.lobowatch.com </a>.<br />
<br />
Toby Bridges<br />
LOBO WATCHAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08737107020771110518noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4851368108668594237.post-13574319481595377822009-10-13T07:17:00.000-07:002009-10-13T09:53:28.225-07:00Who's Afraid Of The Big Bad Wolf?<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijAHK5ryKp5cboyjavA58tXhgCJowhhXNhVQzzK6ivhG2A34V_5WovcKP4-zTx8GWceBuJwHamQ60xBTo_q9MwfyZigGrAQI-uYD9v_nfVISacluY6rsVjLCz96UpWDaK4dQSLX5pd_1Q/s1600-h/Bob+-+Tully+In+Selway-Bitterroot.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 368px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijAHK5ryKp5cboyjavA58tXhgCJowhhXNhVQzzK6ivhG2A34V_5WovcKP4-zTx8GWceBuJwHamQ60xBTo_q9MwfyZigGrAQI-uYD9v_nfVISacluY6rsVjLCz96UpWDaK4dQSLX5pd_1Q/s400/Bob+-+Tully+In+Selway-Bitterroot.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5392103240208864050" /></a><br />This past Sunday, October 11th, our three dogs got a little tired of being cooped up in the house by three days of cold, windy weather. Getting anything done in my home-based office was out of the question. Those dogs wanted to go do something, even if it was just to take a ride along the base of the mountains and look at deer. Anyway, they just about drove me crazy, and didn't let up until I slipped on an insulated jacket, stuck on my usual camouflaged cap, and grabbed my truck keys.<br /><br />It was getting toward late afternoon and early evening. The sun had finally popped through some thinning clouds, and it had "warmed up" all the way into the low 30s. I knew a spot where I could get about a hundred or so feet above the Clark Fork River, and take a nice photo back to the southeast. The softwoods along the river still had not turned yellow, something I had been waiting for, but with some fresh snow down to the base of the mountains in the background, I still thought it would make for a nice shot or two. So, I grabbed my camera - and Copa, Bob and Tully were soon watching deer out the truck windows as I drove through the river-bottom farm lands, crossed over to the west side and headed north along the river - slowly climbing until I was at the point where the river headed back toward the east side of the wide valley. It was a great advantage point, and after a few minutes, I had taken a half-dozen photos with my old Canon 35mm AE-1.<br /><br />The winds had died, and to be quite honest, I was glad the dogs made me do this. I was enjoying being out as well. So, the four of us hopped back into the truck, and I drove another 5 or 6 miles on down the often rough gravel road that skirted the west bank of the river. After pulling into where a Forest Service road was blocked by a locked steel gate, the dogs and I got out for a little walk. The dirt roadway meandered up a fairly long, flat valley. The area was as much covered by grass as trees, and was a nice place to go for a several mile walk. <br /><br />Copa, an Aussie-Shelty mix, is our "old girl", at 11 years old. She stuck with me, while the two boys, our lab Bob and lab-chow-pit bull mix Tully, raced ahead. Those two 3 year olds have a lot of energy, and love the adventure of running in a new area. They checked out everything for a quarter-mile ahead, coming back regularly to check on Copa and I.<br /><br />We were about a mile into the walk, when I looked up to see Bob and Tully bearing down on us with all the speed they could muster, and when they shot right by and kept on running toward the truck, I sensed something was not right. Like an idiot, I had not thrown my old Ruger .44 Magnum in the truck for this short afternoon-evening excursion. When walking trails well off the beaten path, that ol' hogleg, carried in a shoulder holster, is a constant companion. Why? Wolves mostly. It has gotten that I can hardly take a walk in the mountains or in the foothills without seeing wolf sign - mostly scat filled with bone shards and elk hair. These aggressive predators are everywhere you go in western Montana these days. And they are a true threat to almost every other living thing. Dogs rank right up there among their favorite prey.<br /><br />Now, Bob and Tully don't run from much. At least five times during the past two summers, those dogs have chased black bears away from camp - without reservation. And a few times they have sent bears running off the trails we've hiked. But on several occasions, when I knew wolves were in the near vicinity, the two would get very nervous. <br /><br />Realizing that wolves or perhaps a mountain lion were likely the only things that would put such fear into them, I turned and watched for movement down the Forest Service road. Then I called Copa close, and made my way back to the truck - stopping now and then to watch my back trail. Nothing. When I reached the truck, there sat Bob and Tully, very ready to load up and get the heck out of there. And once in the truck, the two kept looking back up the roadway. We sat and watched for about 15 minutes. Still nothing. But the two dogs never calmed down, until I started the truck, backed out and headed for home.<br /><br />I would give almost anything to know what they had seen...what had sent them packing down the road and back to the truck. My feelings are that we had gotten closer to things going bad for the dogs than I care to truly realize. I also know that I'll never leave that truck again without having the big .44 strapped on.<br /><br />When hiking, do you take your dogs with you...and do you carry a firearm?<br /><br />Toby Bridges<br />MONTANA MOUNTAIN<br />CHRONICLE<br /><br /><br />About the photo: Bob (in the rear) and Tully enjoy a morning hike up into the Selway-Bitterroot Wilderness Area. When walking such back-country trails, MONTANA MOUNTAIN CHRONICLE host Toby Bridges always carries a .44 Magnum revolver, just in case of a run in with wolves or perhaps a grizzly.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08737107020771110518noreply@blogger.com0