The Courier
NEWS Boys Basketball Tonight
The 1AD2 District Boys Championship game will be played tonight, February 24th, in Dietrich with the #1 Devils hosting #2 Richfield Tigers. Meanwhile, the #3 Camas Mushers will host the Carey Panthers with the winner going on to play for second place on Thursday. All games at 6:30. In 2A basketball, #2 Wendell beat #1 Valley last Wednesday 53 to 45, advancing them to the Districh Championship game this Thursday. The game will be held in either Wendell or Hazelton at 7:00 depending on the outcome of last night’s game between Valley and Declo. In Girls basketball, both Richfield and Camas went to the State Tournament. Richfield won the play-in game against Garden Valley, but lost their first two games of the tournament. Camas lost their first game against Tri-Valley, then beat Mullan to advance to the consolation game with Mackay. Mackay won 56 to 37. In other sports, the State Wrestling Championship will be held this weekend in Nampa. Due to Covid restrictions, tickets will be very limited.
Annual F&G Fur Auction Moves Online for 2021
By Brian Pearson, Conservation Public Information Specialist After a one-year hiatus, Idaho Fish and Game's annual fur auction is back – albeit with some significant changes due to COVID. This year’s auction of furs, hides, antlers, and other items has been moved entirely online, and will be run through Prime Time Auctions (www.primetimeauctions.com). The online auction kicks off on March 1, and ends on April 9. While this unfortunately means potential buyers will not get to inspect items in person this year, they will be able to see photos of them on the Prime Time Auctions website. Potential buyers will need provide a credit or debit card to register for the online auction, but have other options to pay for items they purchase. Here is more information. As always, furs, whole carcasses, antlers, skulls and other items are up for grabs at the auction. All items were either found, seized as evidence or salvaged. All carcasses are considered unfit for human consumption and are sold for use of the non-edible portions only. Antlers may be sold as small bundles by weight or as single sets attached to skull plates. A taxidermist-furbuyer license is required in advance to bid on bear parts, mountain lion parts, or any furbearer. Anyone who buys or sells raw hides is also required to possess a taxidermistfurbuyer license. Resident licenses are $40 for one year, and nonresident licenses are $187. The licenses can be purchased at any Idaho Fish and Game office. Nonresident purchasers should be aware that their state may not allow import of the hides or continued on page 7... parts of bear, mountain lion, bobcat or otter. Be sure...
News from the Heart of Idaho Camas • Lincoln • Gooding
February 24, 2021
Vol 45 Num 8
The Rise & Fall of Facebook?
In 2007, at age 23, Mark Zuckerberg became the world’s youngest self-made billionaire. As of January 2021, he is the 4th-richest person in the world, and all of this is because of Facebook. While there are many social media platforms twitter, linked-in, instagram, MeWe, Parler, etc. - Facebook is king. In fact, for many people having a facebook page is better than having their own website. Part of what has made Facebook so successful is it ability to generate posts that are specifically targeted to the user. Ads, media posts, friend suggestions, and videos magically appear based on your interests. Search for something on Google, eBay or Amazon, and it’s sure to show up on your facebook page. You can also create groups for like minded individuals, specific locations, selling items, and more. Of course, all of this “success” is not without a downside. The algorithm that creates customized posts for you also violates your privacy. Facebook has started filtering who sees your posts. You might have a 1000 or 10,000 friends / followers, but only 15% or less will see your posts unless you “Boost the Post” (for a small fee). Also, facebook is planning to “deprioritize” groups. For many, that means your group will be all but eliminated. On top of all of this is the problem of censorship. In their effort to fight back against misuse of their platform by “hate” groups and misinformation, facebook has put complex filters on their system. Sadly, this has resulted in accidental and deliberate elimination of certain ideas. If one wants to talk about pros and cons of what took place during the “riot” at the U.S. Capital, there’s a good chance it will be flagged by facebook. One group that recently lost its facebook page is Move Oregon’s Border. Why this happened is not clear, but the group recently announced that their initiative will be on the May 2021 ballot in five Oregon counties and seven other Oregon counties may vote within the next year. Their facebook group had 12,000 members. Social media is supposed to be the premiere arena of free speech, but clearly, facebook is failing in that regard. Can facebook be redeemed? Many experts are betting against them, and some companies like Apple are actively fighting against the invasion of privacy that facebook is using to “pick your pocket.”