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| FEBRUARY 4, 2015
Viewpoint
OUR OPINION
THE MINER
LETTE RS POLICY
No excuse for not being informed
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hen people say they don’t read the legal notices or news stories dealing with government actions important to them, we say that is their problem. Lately, we are hearing some people actually say it is the government’s job to make sure the public is informed by any means necessary. To them this could include coming to their house and telling them. This is wrong. In a democracy, people need to take responsibility and do the work to stay informed. They need to read the newspaper and check with government officials about issues that impact them. If these officials were hiding something, that would be another issue. But they are using the notification process outlined in the law. What the law doesn’t say is that the people must read the notices. Maybe that’s the problem? Legal notices are not only printed in this newspaper, but are available for free on our website, accessible by subscribers and non-subscribers. We also post them on another free legal notice site maintained by the Washington Newspaper Publisher’s Association. They are archived and available forever. Our news staff also studies these legal notices and uses them as a launching pad for more indepth stories available in print and on The Miner Online. There is no excuse for not being informed. People who don’t feel they are informed should read the newspaper and get informed. --FJW
Idaho’s wildlife professionals to advocacy groups: stop crying wolf It’s important for state agencies to understand and respect differing points of view. But when a few advocacy groups try to grab headlines by skewing Idaho Fish and Game scientific wolf monitoring data in ways that GUEST simply OPINION aren’t true, it’s VIRGIL MOORE also imDIRECTOR, IDAHO FISH AND GAME portant to set the record straight. Here are the facts: * Idaho has more than 100 documented wolf packs and over 600 wolves. Idaho’s wolf population far exceeds federal recovery levels of 10 breeding pairs and 100 wolves. * After meeting federal recovery levels in 2002, Idaho’s wolf population grew largely unchecked for the remainder of the decade, resulting in increased conflicts with other big game populations and livestock. * After four harvest seasons since the 2011 delisting, livestock depredations have declined. Wolf predation continues to have unacceptable impacts to some elk populations, but there are signs elk populations are responding positively to wolf management. * Wolves in Idaho continue to be prolific and resilient. Idaho will keep managing wolves to have a sustainable, delisted population and to reduce conflicts with people, livestock, and other big game populations. Despite these facts, a few advocacy groups chose to
take the breeding pair metric out of context to make claims that Idaho wolves are “teetering on the brink of endangered status once again.” That’s hogwash. And it’s the kind of polarizing misinformation that undermines responsible wildlife conservation and management in Idaho. Confirming a pack meets U.S. Fish and Wildlife’s narrow definition of a “breeding pair” is costly and labor-intensive. With vast reductions in federal funding to the state and Nez Perce Tribe for wolf monitoring, Fish and Game has focused our effort on demonstrating Idaho has at least 15 “breeding pairs” to comply with federal recovery requirements. Idaho closely surveyed 30 packs and confirmed that 22 of them met the breeding pair standard at the end of 2014. Because Idaho has shown it is well above federal recovery levels, we may rely on less intensive monitoring for the other 70 + packs as we complete our final 2014 population estimates. One can assume these 70+ packs include some additional breeding pairs. We will publish our annual monitoring report in March. As trained scientists, Idaho Fish and Game stands by our data and our wildlife management plans. We manage wolves to ensure we keep state management authority and address conflicts with people, livestock, and other big game populations. I hope people who truly care about wildlife conservation ignore the exaggerations and misinformation and help Fish and Game focus on the real issues affecting Idaho’s wildlife.
WE B COM M E NTS We welcome comment on select stories on our web site. You may comment anonymously. We will review comments before posting and we reserve the right to omit or edit comments. If you want to comment only to our writers and editors, let us know that you do not want your comment published.
YO U R O P I N I O N Everything we do reflects back on us To the editor: The movie “American Sniper” shows what happens when force is applied in situations beyond the control or choice of soldiers. Keep in mind that the situation dictates the response. My objection is how we create the situation that results in a specific response. Our response to 9-11 was to invade Iraq and have the need for American snipers. If a foreign army invaded America wouldn’t they need snipers on roof tops to shoot resisting Americans?
The use of deadly force is situational and when we send soldiers off to wars of choice like Iraq, we put them into impossible situations where they have to kill people. When I think of the second Iraq War, I recall that it was started in response to 9-11. The twin towers were taken down by 15 citizens of Saudi Arabia, two from the United Arab Emirates and one each from Egypt and Lebanon. No attackers or terrorists were from Iraq, so why was the American sniper shooting people in Iraq? We then honor the service of our soldier snipers with books and movies much like Roman citizens honored
READE R’S POLL
gladiators in the Coliseum. We love it when the bad guys get shot in the head from hundreds of yards, but we call it terrorism when someone does it to us. Everything we do as a country reflects back on us like a mirror. Do we really want a foreign army shooting us from rooftops and drones blowing us up as we drive our cars? The sad thing is that it likely won’t be an invading foreign army. It will be our own citizens reflecting our national policy of force as an answer to any social, economic or political situation. We can only harvest what we plant. -Pete Scobby Newport
R E A D E R ’ S P O L L R E S U LT S
Visit The Miner Online to answer our readers’ poll question through Monday afternoon. Find it on the right-hand side of the page at www.PendOreilleRiverValley.com. The results will be printed next week on this page. You need not be a subscriber to participate. If you have any ideas for future readers’ poll questions, submit them at theminer@povn.com.
King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz of Saudi Arabia died earlier this month. Saudi Arabia is considered to have a horrible human rights record, with public beheadings and lashings common and women’s rights considerably different than in the west. Do you think it is time to reassess U.S. ties with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia? Yes, if it were not for oil, this dictatorship would not be supported by the U.S. No, like them or not the Saudis have proven to be good friends of the west, providing valuable information that prevented terrorist attacks. Yes, several of the 911 hijackers were from Saudi Arabia and the way women are treated in that society is reprehensible. No, the U.S. has too many of its own human rights problems to be casting aspersions at others.
What do you think the consequences should be for what has been dubbed “Deflate Gate”? I don’t care either way. Don’t we have more important things to worry about?
20% 4%
The Patriots should have to forfeit their bid to the Super Bowl.
32% 28%
16%
The Patriots aren’t at fault here. This is just another case of people hating The Patriots and the Patriots Colts should replay because they’re the championship so good. Monetary fines and draft game. pick penalties should do it.
Total Votes: 25
Forest owners school set for Colville COLVILLE – A Forest Owners Winter School will be held at the Community Colleges of Spokane Colville Center Saturday, Feb. 21. Gates open at 8 a.m. and the event runs from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. The Forest Owners Winter School is a hands-on, interactive educational event for families who own forestland in Washington. When you live on your land or are an absentee owner, this is an opportunity to learn how to gain more benefits from your family forest, regardless of where it is located in the state. Advance registration by Feb. 16 is $20 per person
and $30 per family. The cost goes up by $10 on the day of. Registration includes all class materials and refreshments. Box lunches will be available for purchase for an additional $10 and must be pre-purchased by Feb. 16. Contact Andy Perleberg at 509-667-6540 or at andyp@wsu.edu. The school is an opportunity to get practical, how to advice on simple stewardship practices, talk with agency and natural resource professionals from Eastern and Western Washington who are available to assist you in meeting your goals, and to meet other landowners.
Equipment displays and vendors will be onsite and questions can be answered at the resource center. Workshops and classes range from one hour to three. Throughout the day, more than a dozen topics will be presented. By the end of the day, each person will have attended four to six sessions. There will also be a resource area featuring exhibitors, vendors and displays by public, private and non-profit products and services to assist landowners. Session topics include: • Chainsaw safety and maintenance (bring your chainsaw) • Common noxious weeds
and their control • Ferry-East Okanogan County “Forest Health Hazard Warnings” • Forest health • Forest soils • Introduction to silviculture • Landowner assistance programs (technical and financial assistance) • Native American uses of the land • Protecting your home and forest from fire • Tree and shrub identification • Using and selling special forest products • Working with consulting foresters and the realities of selling timber
More road restrictions in Pend Oreille County NEWPORT – The combination of warm and freezing weather continue to make road restrictions for commercial vehicles necessary in much of Pend Oreille County. Restrictions affect vehicles in Classes 2, 3 and 4, not ordinary pas-
senger cars and trucks. They affect school busses, garbage trucks, utility vehicles and other heavy haulers. In District 1 and 2, in the south and mid part of the county, Stage 3 road restrictions are in place for most roads.
Under Stage 3, there are load restrictions based on tire width, the speed limit is 30 mph, and hauling is allowed only from midnight to 9 a.m. Most of the roads in District 3, in SEE ROAD, 5A