Page 28 - Flathead Beacon // 9.16.15

LIKE I WAS SAYING 30 AMERICAN RURAL 30 DRAWING BOARD 31 Viewpoints
LETTERS
A Party Without a People
It appears the Montana Repub- lican Party has been hijacked. I am deeply disturbed that Matt Rosendale and Keith Regier have the audacity to propose a “cleansing” of the Montana Republican Party of those members and elected officials deemed too “moderate” to be Republican. What these two men fail to recognize is that by ridding the Republican Party of “moderates” (i.e., the non-extremists) they are seeking to rid the party of Montanans. Anyone who has lived in this great state for longer than 15 minutes knows that Montanans are typically center-right in their politi- cal persuasion. Hence, the inordinately high number of NRA members per cap- ita, fiscal conservatives and enlisted Montanans in the armed forces.
Of course, Mr. Rosendale may not understand the idiocy of his proposal to rid the party of Montanans because he’s only lived here for 14 minutes. Let us not forget Mr. Rosendale was the los- ing candidate who refused to support the winning candidate – Rep. Ryan Zinke – in the congressional race. That Mr. Rosendale concluded a Montana born and raised, 20-year Navy Seal who devoted his professional life in service of his state and country was not worthy of Mr. Rosendale’s support as a candi- date speaks volumes of Mr. Rosendale’s connection (or lack thereof) with Mon- tana’s values and the Montana Republi- can Party’s values.
Rosendale and Regier are surrepti- tiously pervading the Montana Repub- lican Party with their ludicrous beliefs. If these two are now the self-proclaimed spokesmen for the Montana Republican Party and are allowed to spread their lunacy within our ranks denigrating and excluding true, proven Montana leaders like Congressman Ryan Zinke and Representative Frank Garner – men who serve with honor, integrity and who do it for the love of their community and home state – then we will suffer the fate of a Party without a people ... a party without Montana.
Tammi Fisher Kalispell
Thank Conservation Groups for Smoked-Filled Air
As we enjoyed our sunsets with the blood-orange sun, the obscure views of the moon, the acrid taste of burnt forest, and the choking haze of smoke-filled air,
let’s be sure to thank all of those “con- servation” groups that have vehemently opposed any and all mechanical reduc- tion of forest fuels.
Be sure to include our friends in the Swan, the wilderness groups, Mon- tana’s “true” conservationist and letter to the editor writers, and don’t forget our own Flathead County commission- ers who have chosen not to get involved by not engaging in any meaningful dia- logue with the National Forest Service personnel.
As we listen to the mantra of coal- fired electric plants polluting the air, don’t forget to ignore the fouling of our ecosystem with pollution far greater than anything manmade.
Keep in mind that this is just the beginning. The spring run-offs will further pollute the waterways and will damage the fragile nesting areas of the bull trout and the cutthroat trout. I would be curious to see any results of after-action surveys in regards to addi- tional mortality of grizzly bears and lynx as a result of the fires.
Richard Funk Kalispell
Cancel the Leases on Badger-Two Medicine
As a child, I dreamed of wild, rugged and beautiful places. I wished I was an explorer, to see a grizzly bear and walk in places devoid of human interfer- ence. By my mid-20s, I had all but given up this dream, settling instead for the calmer version of the West. The version with roads, fences and only convenient species of wildlife.
But my perspective changed in 1996, when I found the Badger-Two Med- icine. On that day, my dreams came true. Since then, the Badger-Two Medi- cine has become a part of my soul. I have seen its rugged beauty nourish and heal many wonderful people. Over time it has become my church.
I have also become friends with descendants of its original human habi- tants. The Blackfeet people believe this to be the place of their origin. It’s their Jerusalem. And while I am a modern day convert to a Badger-Two Med con- nection, they have worshiped here for centuries.
A Blackfeet friend has told me of his family, and how they escaped the govern- ment boarding schools and unwanted integration to practice revered cere- monies in this wild place. These people were forced into the square buildings
of prairie reservations by the U.S. gov- ernment and forbidden to practice their religious rites. Their only escape was to return into the wild country to practice forbidden religious ceremonies.
Our government once visited unfor- givable atrocities on these people, many involving the practice of their religion. And now our government is faced with the choice of whether to allow the greed for oil to defile this place forever. I salute Sen. Jon Tester for standing up and requesting that the department of interior cancel the petroleum leases in the Badger-Two Med. Freedom of reli- gion, protection of iconic wildlife, and the love for wild places are all critical components of what we want America to be. It’s time to practice what we preach. The Badger-Two Medicine is the place to do it.
Ryan Busse Kalispell
Correcting the Record on Conservation Groups
Once again, Dave Skinner gets it wrong in his efforts to promote logging and bash “the Greens.” In his 9/9/15 column, he claimed the forest thinning around the Meadow Creek trailhead near Spotted Bear was “opposed all the way by Greens.”
Our conservation groups did not oppose forest thinning near the Spot- ted Bear Ranger Station, guest ranches and other human developments nearby, including the Stony Mountain Commu- nication site, Meadow Creek and Gorge Creek trailheads. We’ve also supported the thinning done around Essex and the village of Swan Lake, though it has taken the Forest Service eight years and it’s still not done around Swan Lake!
Forest Service research shows that it is the few hundred feet surrounding structures where thinning can help keep them from burning. It is the log- ging in the backcountry, away from campgrounds, trailheads and commu- nities that remain contentious due to impacts worse than wildfire.
Many factors play into fire behav- ior including prolonged high tempera- tures, drought conditions, wind, and lightning. This year they all converged to create large fires.
Keith Hammer, chair Swan View Coalition Arlene Montgomery, program director Friends of the Wild Swan
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SEPTEMBER 16, 2015 // FLATHEADBEACON.COM
LETTERS
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