millagerobert

One thing that always has bugged me when enviros talk about food chains is that for some reason they don't think man is a natural part of it. Man has been a top predator for 10's of thousands of years. I know that man has evolved to become more than just an upright ape with a pointed stick, but we are still part of natures order. To take us out of the predator loop, or to substitute other dominate predators such as the canadian gray wolf, is not the natural order of things. Being that man has evolved to such a level that he can wipe species from the face of the earth if he wishes, it is our responsability to be mindfull of our actions, but we should not meddle in the natural order of thingsbased onpolitical motives, instead we need to maintain a healthy natural balance that includes man as a predator.
The problem with the wolf issue is the underlying motives of the pro wolf groups, the end to all hunting. Most hunters had no problem with the original call for 150 wolves in the mountain states, but we knew from past experience that these groups would use this to get their foot in the door and then try and force their hidden agendas down our throats, which they have. We now have over 1500 wolves, and they still are not satisfied, they now are calling for 5000 wolves, which would knock our big game herds down to the point that hunting would have to be suspended, which is just what they want.
There however are major problems to be had when using wolves to maintain the numbers of other big game species instead of human predation. Hunting allows for managed herd reductions through tag quotas, while wolves will eat and increase in numbers untill the feed runs out, then they will starve and die out, causing herd numbers to rebound. This swing in numbers is the natural order of things, but it does not make for a healthy eco system as we know today. Proper game management by man is why we have more big game in Idaho today than when Lewis and Clark came through.
By using wolves you also run into the issues of human wolf conflict through the loss of cows, sheep, etc.. to predation, and the saftey issues for those of us who live in these areas and would like to be able to let our kids play outside. The other issue that is rarely raised, but should be of a major concern is with the loss of hunting, the already shaky economies of many small towns will be further decimated. Without the money spent by sportsmen on gear, services, license fees, etc... many local people will be without a job. Enviros say that this loss of business will be made up for by those comming to view the wolves, but thats a load of crap. Anyone who hunts knows how much moneyhunters blow while on trips, and there is no way as many people are going to come to Idaho to try and see an elusive wolf as what come here to hunt. I have yet to see anyone at a local business spending money because they are here to look at wolves, or see outfiters switching over to offer wolf photo safaris.
Most of this rambling you've heard before, but every once in awhile I have to spew it forth to no avail.