Posted on 06/23/2008 8:53:50 PM PDT by george76
Bob McLeod is all in favour of protecting Arctic polar bears.
But he thinks the Bush administration is being "hypocritical" by trying to do it at the expense of American big game hunters, who spend millions each year seeking polar bear trophies in Canada's North.
McLeod, the Northwest Territories' minister of human resources, on Monday opened a four-day trip in Washington to protest a Department of the Interior decision in May that prohibits the import of polar bear hides from Canada.
The import ban was automatically triggered when the U.S. listed polar bears as "threatened" under the Endangered Species Act, potentially shutting down a hunting industry that has helped sustain remote communities in the Northwest Territories and Nunavut for decades.
"For the record, nobody asked us about it," McLeod says in a speech to be delivered Tuesday.
"This decision will effectively wipe out our sport hunting industry - and with it the livelihood of many of the Inuvialuit people in the Arctic coastal communities of our territory."
Polar bear hunts generate an estimated $3 million in annual revenue in Canada's North...
"We want to see if there are ways around (the endangered species listing) so that the U.S. can continue to allow the importation of hides," said McLeod, who is also meeting with senior Fish and Wildlife officials in Washington.
"If Americans can't come, then we have to focus more on the European market."
(Excerpt) Read more at canada.com ...
Bush again caving to the radical environmentalists. I read s short article, probably here on FR which said the Polar bear population is far from threatened and is in fact rapidly increasing.
The gist of it is that Polar Bears are being listed in anticipation of (possible) future global warming threats.
However, “protection” only means that, like “protected” African wildlife, now-worthless polar bears are more likely to be shot as dangerous vermin.
Hey, if The People can’t make a few loonies conducting wealthy kablunaaq on trophy hunts for Polar Bear, why put up with the damn things?
Can we hunt them off an Alaskan tree stand (aka oil rig)? ;-)
But humans can't hunt big game, like polar bears?
Maybe the do-gooders need to see a polar bear stalking, killing, and casually munching on a human.
Is a polar bear more humane than a human?
California has had a ban on black bear hunting for years. That has caused major problems. See a similarity here?
Yes, Bush caved. And instead of getting credit for it, he has merely laid the groundwork for years of disputes and propaganda. This is absolutely NUTS. It could end up costing us trillions and putting a stop to drilling everywhere.
They enjoy it so long as it wasn't their ass being lunched on.
Find some endangered weed or bug and you are right.
Oh, you’ve probably seen some of the “bear attack” videos on YouTube. They really ain’t very nice, like they are on the Coke commercial.
I have read that polar bears are the only bear which will consistently hunt and kill humans. Other bears may do it on odd occasions but polar bears do it as a matter of typical behavior.
She was braver than me, I'd rather have a big bore rifle, and a guide with a big bore rifle backing me up.
Ripped apart by a bear is not the way to go. They have no remorse.
I haven't. But that doesn't matter. Polar bears and Grizzlys do attack and kill humans.
By the way, have you seem the movie "Grizzly Man"? Talk a Darwin Award recipient.
Polar bear populations went from 5,000 to 26,000 recently.
Have not seen any You Tube or PBS video. I believe the author is a canddate for the 2008 Full Blown BS Crazy award.
Recently, I have seen this Lion Guy in the news who does the same thing, except not out in the wild, inside a caged preserve, more of a controlled environment, but....he probably knows, that sooner or later, his carcass is going to make headlines too.....people do what they do.....whether they try to jump 15 buses on a motorcycle, ride an X-15 into outer space, or live among the lions, I guess.....
There are times you twist the dragon's tail due to necessity. And there are times you do it because you are stupid.
Just one of many ways GW has been hypocritical.
Stupid, maybe, but I’d rather see that kind of “push the limits” attitude, than the current No No No Can’t Can’t Can’t we see among our “leadership”.
I guess I can't argue with that. Unless a bear eats me.
Bart.
I have read more than once that black bears kill more people than Grizzlies. They are not as big or strong as Brown Bears but are still big enough.
Not that they are meaner than grizzlies, they come into contact with people more often.
To my knowledge this is not true. I've been in black bear country many times and have come on them on the trail. They have crappy eyesight and back off when confronted. I know this from firsthand accounts.
Unless Outdoor Life and several other outdoor mags are simply lying, it is true. I have personally seen many accounts of people being killed by Black Bears. I think I have actually seen a couple of them here on FR
Despite the fact that Black Bear are much smaller, they still are plenty large enough.
Kill them all, so we can drill without the distraction.
I didn't see the TV show, but I read the book. The thing that really saved her was the dog that she was given by the Eskimos, I think I remember. It was especially trained to warn people when bears were around, and distract them for a few moments. Without the few seconds warning, you didn't stand a chance. It was hair-raising even to read about.
I'm with you - I wouldn't do it without a huge gun. Well, to be perfectly honest, adventures like that aren't really my cup of tea, so there's no chance I'd ever do it anyway.
Back in the 50's and 60's, it was common to see black bears in Glacier Park. We used to see them all the time. I'll tell you one thing, I'd rather come up against a black bear any day over a grizzly bear. (I have several other stories about my own encounters with black bears)
But my experience with them tells me they are not as aggressive as polars or grizzlies. I Ran into a rather large one while bow hunting deer at Hunter Lake. (Northwest of Reno if you want to know.) We stared at each other for about a minute and parted ways without a problem.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.