HELP US END U.S.D.A. FOREST SERVICE DE-FACTO WILDERNESS POLICY IN MONTANA ( and across the country )

BlueRibbon Coalition ^ | January 4, 2007 | Brian Hawthorne

[george76]

Millions of acres of prime recreational opportunities in Montana are threatened with closure. Your action could mean the difference between a "closed" sign and a "trail open" sign. Please take a moment to read the information below and act on the action items.

the U.S. Forest Service is planning a de-facto Wilderness management regime on all "Recommended Wilderness Areas" (RWA).

Under normal circumstances, the "Recommended" Wilderness classification is just that: a recommendation. The decision of "whether Wilderness" is supposed to be left to Congress and the American People.

Sadly, the Northern Region of the U.S. Forest Service seems to think they, not Congress, have the authority to manage these lands -- as Wilderness! New Forest Plans state that RWAs will now become closed to all motorized use, including winter snowmobile use.

Why you should care:

The US Forest Service Region 1 (Northern Region) manages 25 million acres of public national forest and grasslands in Montana, North Dakota, northeast Washington, northern Idaho, and northwest South Dakota.

New Forest Plans, under the guidance of the Northern Region Forester, dictate that large areas will be classified as RWAs. Thousands of acres of prime recreational lands will be included as RWAs in these new Plans. The new plans direct that RWAs will now become closed to winter snowmobile use and all other forms of motorized recreation.

Only Congress has the authority to create designated Wilderness, but these RWAs are being treated as de-facto wilderness under the Region 1 Forester's direction as soon as they are created. This unlawful policy must be stopped immediately.

[george76]

If this federal employee can manage 'as if' Congress acted, then other federal employees near you will be able to manage 'as if' Congress acted in your county, too.

.

[george76]

the U.S. Forest Service is planning another de-facto Wilderness management regime ...

[GOP Poet]

bookmark

[george76]

[george76]

the "Recommended" Wilderness classification is headed our way...

[raftguide]

Wilderness designation used to provide protection for the wilderness. As John Muir said, "Wilderness is a place where man visits, but doesn't remain." But now, Rangers remain to check for mandatory wilderness permits, inspect for fires that aren't permitted anymore, make sure one carries the requisite bear cannisters, and we now must pay for the privilege of using our own land. "Wilderness," due to the government remaining in it is now being destroyed. I know, I've been using California's wilderness areas for 45 years and I am furious at what the government is doing to them in the name of protection!

[Knitting A Conundrum]

Congress required the FS to manage all areas that were studied as wilderness areas as if they were wilderness areas, lest they lose their wilderness qualities. I believe this was a Clinton era piece of legislation.

FWIW

[Myrddin]

Recommended? The Fish and Wildlife buttheads in Idaho take it to a completely different level. There was an access road to private property that followed a "forest" road. The queen bitch "ranger" had a tank trap excavated into the road to prevent the homeowner from taking the road to his private property. These bureaucrats think they are deity personified. Speak up or you'll encounter more of the same where you want to access "public" land.

[Myrddin]

I believe this was a Clinton era piece of legislation.

Leftist guttersnipe. His legacy will be screwing us for a very long time.

[oldenuff2no]

This is what happens when people tear up the country on ATV's and dirt bikes. The trails will not be closed but no mechanized vehicles will be allowed. No deer carriers, no bicycles.
I'm a packer, horses and mule type packer. I've learned to hate ATV's. I don't care where you go to hunt they always show up just after you get set up. The deer hate them and are spooked out of the country.
I have found them miles into designated wilderness areas where they aren't even allowed. I just make sure they are gone, pull the coil wire and head to the top of the nearest mountain to call the USFS with a GPS readings. Having one of them inside a wilderness area is a big fine. I've been having this discussion for years and I've consistently told ATV riders, "if you don't stay out of the back country they will make laws to keep you out." Now they want to scream because their bad habits of tearing up the country have been restricted. I don't know what part of Ca you are from but up north, (yolla bolly, trinity alps, carabou, and thousand lakes,) I'm in and out of the wilderness areas as I please when I please and I've never been restricted from having a campfire. In a National Forrest they will stop a lot of things that they don't in designated wilderness areas. If you want to ride an ATV fine, but I don't want to listen to it!!!!

[ARepublicanForAllReasons]

It's for the glaciers.

[justrepublican]

First they came for the Jews..................................................................

[Jack Hammer]

Oh, come, come. Surely no one expects any more that our Masters in Government accept the quaint and antiquated notion that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness. That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed. Puh-leez! Their Imperial Highnesses can't be expected to function under those limitations.

[sergeantdave]

Prepare to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars getting this illegal rule rescinded in the courts.

We had an eco-fascist ranger on Isle Royale National park try to ban boaters from the park. The Marxist creep refused to maintain the public piers, as required when the park was established.

The federal natural resources departments have been completely infiltrated by communists and fascists who are illegally implementing the UN's Biodiversity Treaty (Agenda 21), which the senate rejected in 1994.

These filthy Marxists don't care what the congressional rules are or the legal mandates establishing these parks and will simply do what they want.

Need I say that they should be fired? If I had my way they would be in prison for sedition.

To get back to the island story, the boaters had to hire a lawyer, drag the congressman who wrote the legislation out of retirement to testify and raise a ton of money - $600,000.

The only good thing from this fiasco is that the goosestepping communist park superintendent is dead. His replacement is acting properly.

[george76]

The feds have closed hiking trails, horse trails as well as historic jeep roads that had existed since the 1800's...

There are so many city people who never get out into the woods....

Grrr

[george76]

As we get older ( me anyway ), we can not hike 30 miles per day to our favorite spots. We need help accessing our public lands.

These self appointed bureaucrats are now denying us our historical access.

[Knitting A Conundrum]

It's not going to get any better with the current crew in DC, either...

[righthand man]

bump

[george76]

It will be very expensive.

The lawyers will win their fees either way.

We have won some battles over the years.

Even if we do not totally win this, we need to fight the POS because they will just come back in the near future for more UN Biodiversity Treaty stuff...

[george76]

The US Fish and Wildlife people have been caught on private property in Wyoming dropping off Canadian wolves : F&WS agent Mike Jimenez and an assistant ...

This private land was the cattle birthing area for this rancher...

[george76]

the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service "put wolves in Yellowstone Park" and created a recovery area 300 miles around the park, then "tied all the dollars to Yellowstone and openly admitted they knew wolves would leave."

[george76]

[Myrddin]

The US Fish and Wildlife people have been caught on private property in Wyoming dropping off Canadian wolves : F&WS agent Mike Jimenez and an assistant ...

There are some real criminals working inside F&WS. They violate the rights of citizens under color of authority and never face prosecution. The people who should be prosecuting them are spineless and/or privately condone their criminal behavior. As taxpayers, we are paying these people to abuse our rights while having to recourse to stop them.

[taxed2death]

"This is what happens when people tear up the country on ATV's and dirt bikes. The trails will not be closed but no mechanized vehicles will be allowed. No deer carriers, no bicycles.
I'm a packer, horses and mule type packer. I've learned to hate ATV's. I don't care where you go to hunt they always show up just after you get set up. The deer hate them and are spooked out of the country."

___________________________________________________________

You have some strange deer out there...
My next door neighbor has 300 acres that he lets us ride our ATV's on. Right next to that is Naugatuck state forest (2200 acres)....with a public shooting range right in the middle of it.

Our biggest local problem is the number of white tail deer.

Six out of the seven days of the week I wake up and they're standing 50 feet from my back door. There's a squashed deer on the local roads about one every mile or so. They breed like rats. I see them all the time when riding my ATV. We don't have any small dogs or cats running around our neighborhood....the wolves see to that. We've got a few local black bears too. I guess our eastern wildlife is quite acclimated to ATV's.

[mt tom]

we have literally hundreds of vehicles in our area with the bumper sticker in green and white "BEWARE OF THE GREEN GESTAPO"

[george76]

the Fish and Wildlife Service shouldn't be able to walk away from the financial responsibility of introducing Canadian wolves.

Small families who lose livestock take a huge financial hit.

Ed Bangs, the wolf recovery coordinator for the FWS, knows exactly what they are doing...removing working ranchers and farmers off their private land.

[george76]

We need more of these :

"BEWARE OF THE GREEN GESTAPO"

[george76]

In defiance of the National Park Service, officials with San Juan County, Utah, have opened a dirt road in Canyonlands National Park that had been closed for 2 1/2 years.

"As far as the county is concerned, the road is open," said Paul Henderson, chief of interpretation and visitor services with the Southeast Utah group, which includes Canyonlands, Arches, Hovenweep and Natural Bridges. "As far as the Park Service is concerned, it’s closed."

The San Juan County commissioners see opening the road as another salvo in a battle to preserve multiple uses on public lands and protect rural counties against the power of the federal government.

"We don’t think that our road surfaces are subject to the wishes of some unelected environmental faction that wants to control them."

— Bill Redd

http://www.cortezjournal.com/archives/1news984.htm

[verity]

I share your sentiment.

Pee on the urban sissies.

[george76]

Deer populations are way up.

So are bears, wolves, coyotes, mountain lions...

[raftguide]

I agree that the wilderness areas you visit still allow a lot of visitor freedom. I've long visited those areas (and the Marble Mountains), but now use Desolation and others further south, due to their proximity. I also use the Lost Coast, and agree re ATV's. You can't hike that route without having dirt bikes ride like bats out of hell down the beach. However, I've never found an ATV in a wilderness other than the LC; but I do see mountain bikes now and then.

[raftguide]

"There are some real criminals working inside F&WS."

And the National Park Service. I once got cited for not having a bear cannister while hiking in a NP. I reviewed the law and found that I wasn't required to have a bear cannister while I was hiking, and had three choices while camping: hanging, NP provided bear box, or carried canister. We had used the first two. I served as my own attorney and won my case. However, the aggravation of being accosted by an arrogant NP Ranger destroyed the wilderness adventure!

[raftguide]

"BEWARE OF THE GREEN GESTAPO"

How can I get a sticker or two!

[Myrddin]

Ed Bangs, the wolf recovery coordinator for the FWS, knows exactly what they are doing...removing working ranchers and farmers off their private land.

Making the ranchers financially insolvent sets them up for the "greenies" to buy their land at fire sale prices. The land is subsequently put into "trusts" or "wild land" designation. The land becomes off limits to both the previous owner and the public. Much of that money is siphoned out of federal tax revenues to make the land purchase. Special legislation gives the "green groups" a favored financial position in the land acquisition. FWS and the greenies are thick as thieves.

[Myrddin]

Another case of pseudo-law enforcement infringing on rights under the color of authority. In this case, ignorant of the law. I hope you got some kind of compensation for your time and the damage done to the activity. Those trips are pretty darned expensive.

[raftguide]

"Another case of pseudo-law enforcement infringing on rights under the color of authority. In this case, ignorant of the law. I hope you got some kind of compensation for your time and the damage done to the activity."

Nope. Cost me about $300 (mostly travel) to win. The fine would have been $75. I refuse to be a victim however, so winning was worth the cost.

[Freedom4US]

Ever notice that Federal Wilderness Areas aren't handicapped accessible?

[george76]

I often wonder why the ADA laws are not followed ?

and where are the disabled activists ?

Those in wheel chairs would likely want to see the 'wild' areas too.

[george76]

Ted Turner is very successful in buying private ranches and farms near public lands...cheap ?

One example is outside of Las Vegas, New Mexico.

The historical access to the USFS mountains, trees for homes and firewood, food for eating ( hunting and fishing )...was across this former Spanish land grant.

Ted closed off the local access except for the Hollywood celebs who could afford the high prices for 'sanctuary.'

[timer]

First order of business : boot BS out of the governor's office, get a fighter for MONTANA in there. Then take on these outsiders and boot THEM out. Is our beloved MONTANA just another nut-less entity, or what?

[Myrddin]

Nope. Cost me about $300 (mostly travel) to win. The fine would have been $75. I refuse to be a victim however, so winning was worth the cost.

Paying the fine would have been an admission that you had done something wrong. It might have be recorded as such in a law enforcement database. Better to contest and win. A clean record is worth $300.

[Myrddin]

Ted closed off the local access except for the Hollywood celebs who could afford the high prices for 'sanctuary.'

Rich celebrities using the iron hand of government to take land for their own benefit. That reminds me of the uncompetitive steel manufacturers in Atlas Shrugged. If you can't beat the competition in the marketplace, pay a politician to put your competition out of business.

[the_devils_advocate_666]

We are fighting this fight here in West Virginia. I just want to ride my bicycle... NOPE, no go in the f'n wilderness.

[george76]

They have banned horses, hikers, and bikes...by us.

They probably have built resorts for themselves

[sergeantdave]

"and where are the disabled activists ?"

Several years back a disabled prson sued in New York state for access to the parks. He won, and the eco-fascists were really p*ssed.

I believe, though, this was a state case using New York's version of ADA; however, it's a precedent that can be built on to open up federal socialist land to the physically impaired.

[george76]

Good to hear.

He won, and the eco-fascists were really p*ssed.

We should try this some more on federal public lands. It seems that this should have some standing.

[raftguide]

"They have banned horses, hikers, and bikes...by us.

They probably have built resorts for themselves"

In 1974, the forest service burned down a cabin in the Trinity Alps that our Explorer Post had used in winter as a stop off. Didn't want man made buildings in the wilderness they cited. I was camping at a nice meadow on the west side of Mt. Whitney a couple years ago. The park service maintained a cabin there. I inquired of their ranger as to when it had been built. You guessed it: 1974. While they were burning the public's cabins, they were busy building their own!

[raftguide]

On your tagline you forgot: "Fake professor!"

[george76]

This is so nice.

The government burning down the taxpayers cabins and building new cabins for themselves...with tax payer money.

/s

[george76]

Ward is not 'teaching' any classes while this appeal goes on.

He still gets about $100,000 per year plus benefits from the taxpayers.