Page 28 - Flathead Beacon // 4.13.16

LIKE I WAS SAYING 30 AMERICAN RURAL 30 DRAWING BOARD 31 Viewpoints
LETTERS
Time for the U.S. to Get Serious About Defeating ISIS
Terrorism-related deaths are up 800 percent in the past ve years according to a new report. That’s nearly 30,000 people who are killed per year by ter- rorists. While suicide bombers and gun- men have been killing civilians around the globe almost constantly, it was last week’s coordinated terrorist attacks by ISIS in Brussels that violently shook the world awake. I believe in the power of prayer for the victims and their fam- ilies, but I also believe in the power of U.S. leadership against this evil. It’s time for the U.S. to get serious about defeat- ing ISIS.
ISIS is not the J.V. team as President Barack Obama famously claimed in 2014. They have attacked our allies, they have driven millions of people from their homelands, and they have attacked us on our own shores in San Bernardino. Being the president is not an episode of “Danc- ing With the Stars;” the presidency is about being, above all, the Commander in Chief. Rather than dance the Argen- tine Tango with stars in South America, President Obama and his advisors must come up with a detailed plan to defeat and destroy ISIS.
I recently introduced legislation with Illinois Congressman Adam Kinzinger, who is a veteran of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Our bill, “Comprehensive Strategy to Destroy ISIL Act of 2016,” will require the president – regard- less of whom that may be – to submit a report to Congress that details a strategy to destroy ISIS and its a liates around the world. Codifying a biennial report to Congress will put pressure on the cur- rent and next president to develop and maintain a long term strategy to wipe this enemy o the face of the planet.
I have long been a critic of the cur- rent “strategy” to combat ISIS, and even more so, I’ve been a vocal opponent of the overly restrictive rules of engage- ment our troops are forced to navigate while trying to stay alive.
Right now the president believes the United States’ role is to provide a small sprinkling of Special Operations to advise and train local militaries and conduct some airstrikes (after we’ve dropped pamphlets telling militants to abandon the areas). As General Dempsey said, “there’s not a snowball’s chance” that airstrikes alone will work. It will take a force package great enough to win decisively and that means providing the right funding, tools and munitions, pro- viding troop levels adequate for a quick reaction force to come in if our guys and gals get in trouble, and it means ensuring
the right rules of engagement necessary to win and win decisively on the eld of battle.
We also need to do more to develop intelligence and target combatants before they detonate themselves or other weapons like in Paris, Brussels and Paki- stan. When creating an anti-terrorism plan, it’s important to think about more than just the person who pulls the trig- ger. A terrorist comes in all shapes and sizes: those who o er shelter, weapons and ammunition, as well as those who turn a blind eye to it, are all terrorists and bear the same level of responsibil- ity. The network is as dangerous as the suicide bomber.
President Obama’s policy in Iraq cre- ated power vacuums and is responsible for the rise and spread of ISIS and the refugee crisis. The continual terrorist attacks around the globe will not stop until the United States gets serious about defeating and destroying ISIS, and that requires a detailed strategy. The presi- dent has ignored ISIS since day one. If we don’t get serious about the threats we face, it’s only a matter of time before they attack America again.
U.S. Rep. Ryan Zinke Republican
Bikes Don’t Belong in Wilderness Areas
Mountain bikes should never be per- mitted in wilderness. Consider this potential scenario: A packstring is slowly making its way down through Gateway Gorge, coming o the bench from Sabido Cabin deep in the heart of the Bob Mar- shall Wilderness. The trail is steep, rocky and narrow and it’s a long way down to the creek bottom.
The wreck took place about half way through the gorge. Half the packstring went o the edge. Two mules went down in the bottom, oundering and opping around with broken legs; packs and gear strewn all over; pack boxes smashed to bits. The packer luckily stayed on his mount and tried to keep the rest of the string together. It started almost instantly, with no time for the packer to even know what was happening as two mountain bikers came down from the top, hell-bent for leather, and came up from behind the packstring.
Could this really happen? You bet. This could have been a U.S. Forest Ser- vice packer, an out tter, or a group of family and friends out on a week-long pack trip in the wilderness. Somebody could have been killed.
These types of mountain bikers only know one speed (fast) unlike backpack- ers who travel slowly. Backpackers and stock users share many of the same trails, and there is usually no problem
because the stock typically has time to digest what they’re seeing.
I have a string of seasoned and expe- rienced mules, but running into a moun- tain bike on a wilderness trail would be one of my worst nightmares. Most wilderness trails were designed and built for pack and saddle stock and foot travel, not for bicycles. Because of the speed mountain bikers travel and the nature of the trails, the potential for sur- prise encounters and wrecks is greatly increased. Most packers and stock users I know are not willing to put themselves or their stock at risk.
Now, the Sustainable Trails Coali- tion, a national mountain bike organi- zation, is trying to rewrite the Wilder- ness Act. They feel they have a right to ride their bikes in wilderness. They have stated that they will not support any new wilderness designation if they cannot access and use the trails.
In 1964, the year the Wilderness Act was passed by Congress, mountain bikes didn’t even exist. The framers of the Wil- derness Act created the language to pre- vent the onslaught of this very type of technology into the wildest country left in North America.
I hope the Forest Service and the pub- lic have the will to stand up against this small number of “thrill seekers.”
Frank Vitale Columbia Falls
Who Does Senator Steve Daines Represent?
Polls across the country show that the majority of voters, which include Demo- crat, Republican and Independents, feel the Senate should hold hearings and vote on President Barack Obama’s Supreme Court nominee. Regardless of the wishes of a majority of our citizens, Sen. Steve Daines continues to oppose any hear- ings or votes on a nominee this year. It seems like Daines is more interested in supporting Mitch McConnell and what his caucus wants than what the majority of his “fellow” Montanans consider is the right action. Daines appears to be sup- porting the minority that oppose hear- ings and a vote, versus the majority that feel he should do his job and give Justice Merrick Garland the courtesy of a hear- ing and a vote. Is this the behavior of a Montana statesman who is concerned about his constitutional responsibility to advise and consent or that of an ideo- logue who is determined to obstruct the government’s business and what is best for Montana and our country in support of his own agenda? Let the senator know how you feel.
Craig McClure Polson
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LETTERS
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APRIL 13, 2016 // FLATHEADBEACON.COM