Sen Tester and His Logging Bill “Rack”-Up Major Endorsement
Faculty Union Supports Prof. Habib SadidIn a recent outpouring of support for Habib Sadid in the Idaho State University student newspaper, students had this to say: "the best professor in the College of Engineering," "an ethical, knowledgeable and courageous member of society," "a great teacher," "one of the best professors at ISU." Read the full version at www.class.uidaho.edu/ngier/Sadid.htm [more]
Bison Conservationists File Suit Against Federal AgenciesA coalition of conservation groups, Native Americans, and Montanans are suing the National Park Service for their role in slaughtering 3,300 wild American bison that inhabit Yellowstone National Park. The suit also cites the U.S. Forest Service for failing to manage the Gallatin National Forest in a way that would allow for healthy populations of bison, sage grouse, and related wildlife. [more]
Put Bluntly and Country, Tester’s Logging Bill is a Dog that Won’t HuntWell, finally ... Sen. Tester and a few strange bedfellows have floated a logging bill that everyone who works, has worked, or hopes to work, for one of four struggling lumber mills or one bankrupt cardboard box maker can wholeheartedly endorse.
Letters to the papers from such folks, including owners and employees of the mills and their "environmental partners," express boundless joy we've all agreed to this federal welfare proposal to bail them out before they perish by the Invisible Hand of the Market. [more]
Senator Tester Betrays Montana WildernessMore than 70 years ago Aldo Leopold, one of the founders of modern ecological principles had the following to say about Wilderness:
“Wilderness is a resource which can shrink, but not grow. Invasions can be arrested or modified in a manner to keep an area useable for recreation, or for science, or for wildlife, but the creation of new wilderness in the full sense of the word is impossible. It follows, then, that any wilderness program is a rearguard action, through which retreats are reduced to a minimum…
Examine each question in terms of what is ethically and aesthetically right… A thing is right when it tends to preserve the integrity, stability, and beauty of the biotic community. It is wrong when it tends otherwise.”
Unfortunately, these foundational ecological principles have either been forgotten or ignored by Senator Tester and those who support his ill-advised and destructive S. 1470, the Forest Jobs and Recreation Act of 2009. This dangerous anti-conservation measure is misguided both for the immediate damage it would do, and for the damaging precedents it would set for the future. [more]
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Forrest Church: Theologian, Historian, HumanitarianSometime in 2003 Forrest Church wrote to me praising my book Spiritual Titanism. I was flattered by the compliments, especially his confession that I had convinced him that the German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche was worth rereading. I kept up e-mail contact until his death. I was especially keen on praising him for his amazing NPR interview with Terry Gross on October 27, 2008 and the good reviews that his books were receiving. Read full version at www.class.uidaho.edu/ngier/Church.htm [more]
Recession rattles timber industry to its coreA few days ago, the Missoulian ran an article titled, "Battered and Boarded: Recession rattles timber industry to its core." It's interesting to note that all the economic reality contained in this article has been systematically ignored by Senator Jon Tester, his staff and those three or four conservation groups who actually support Tester's Mandated Logging Bill. [more]
The Constitution, the University, and Free SpeechHabib Sadid, an award-winning engineering professor at ISU for 22 years, has been banned from campus and is facing dismissal. On October 23 a faculty appeal board released a report in which, by a vote of 4-1, it found insufficient evidence for Sadid’s termination. The case raises basic issues of the extent of the academic freedom. Read full version at www.class.uidaho.edu/ngier/sadid.htm [more]
Vote for Wild Bison in Charity ContestToday is the last day to cast a vote for Buffalo Field Campaign. In $25,000 contest.
Voting only takes a minute.
http://www.ilovechristiecookies.com/contest/form.asp [more]
Not Yet the Mahatma: Gandhi in South AfricaThose who have seen the movie "Gandhi" will remember the dramatic scene where Gandhi is called a "kaffir" (the equivalent of our "N" word) and kicked off a South African train. Most people don't realize that Gandhi never included blacks or coloreds in his campaign for human rights during his 22 years in South Africa. Read the full version at www.class.uidaho.edu/ngier/GandhiSA.htm [more]
Hunters Should Demand How-To-Use Bear Spray DemosHow is a hunter facing a charging grizzly supposed to use bear spray quickly and safely? State fish & game departments should be willing to do live demonstrations. [more]
Should Hunter Who Killed Grizzly Bear Be Prosecuted?The Wyoming hunter who shot a grizzly bear near Grand Teton National Park claimed self-defense. Authorities say the bear was not an immediate threat. You decide. [more]
