Bottom Line Up Front
The USFWS has impeded job growth, slowed the economy, restricted freedoms, restricted access to American lands by American people, is being used as a proxy arm of the government to black mail and beat into submission organizations like Gibson that are not supporters of the regime, and is being used, in a manner of speaking, to promote American reliance on a terrorist supporter for oil
Background
According to the USFWS (http://www.fws.gov/northeast/le/mission.html) they are an arm of the government that is intended to protect the wildlife and habitats of America. Their mission statement is
Our Mission is to protect wildlife resources. Through the effective enforcement of Federal laws, we contribute to the Service's efforts to recover endangered species, conserve migratory birds, preserve wildlife habitat, safeguard fisheries, combat invasive species, and promote international wildlife conservation.
We focus on potentially devastating threats to wildlife resources – illegal trade, unlawful commercial exploitation, habitat destruction, and environmental hazards. We investigate wildlife crimes; regulate wildlife trade; help Americans understand and comply with wildlife protection laws; and work in partnership with international, Federal, State, and Tribal counterparts to conserve wildlife resources.
This work includes:
· Breaking up international and domestic smuggling rings that target imperiled animals.
· Preventing the unlawful commercial exploitation of U.S. species.
· Protecting wildlife from environmental hazards and safeguarding habitat for endangered species.
· Enforcing Federal migratory game bird hunting regulations and working with States to protect other game species and preserve legitimate hunting opportunities.
· Inspecting wildlife shipments to ensure compliance with laws and treaties and detect illegal trade.
· Working with international counterparts to combat illegal trafficking in protected species.
· Training other Federal, State, Tribal, and foreign law enforcement officers.
· Using forensic science to analyze evidence and solve wildlife crimes.
· Conducting outreach to industry, trade groups, and others to promote wildlife conservation and secure voluntary compliance with wildlife laws.
Ashe is charged with a large task which includes protecting the nations wild resources, identifying risks and threats to wildlife, and nominating new species and areas to be protected as well as preventing unlawful exploitation of US species. His job boils down to protecting animals, which is fine and good. It also involves finding new animals to add to the ‘protected’ list. In so doing the Museum of Natural History in New York City congratulated him on a job well done. They said that, during his tenure as science advisor to the USFWS, the Refuge System experienced an unprecedented and sustained period of budget increases for operations, maintenance, construction and land acquisition. So, Ashe decreased the amount of land which US tax payers can freely use while increasing the amount of land that US tax payers have to pay for, right?
Ashe was appointed in 2010 and started working as Director of the USFWS this year. What has Ashe accomplished as an Obama appointee?
The Gibson Guitar raid is the most recent and widely known activity of USFWS. The raid was allegedly done to determine if Gibson Guitar had illegally imported wood in violation of the Lacey Act, which make it illegal to purchase illegally harvested lumber (poached trees).
The policing national forests and parks is sometimes mentioned in the news. Apparently a number of drug manufacturers are using national forests as pot plantations. Such was the case earlier this year when the Colorado National Guard, DEA, local law enforcement, and USFWS agents teamed up to remove 3,000 pot plants from Pike National Forest. The dismantling of pot farms represents only a portion of what the USFWS can find.
Not just stopping pot, but also preventing smoking in the outdoors is now also part of the USFWS official duties. The Morgan Hill Times seems to say that the outdoor smoking ban includes the ENTIRE outdoors and that the USFWS is going to stamp it out. In light of the recent forest fires, I can see not wanting to have people tossing lit cigarettes into the woods. That is more an act of stupidity which, unfortunately, is NOT against the law.
Prosecuting poachers is a positive. Just recently a poacher from North Carolina has been prosecuted for plying his trade of illegal hunting.
Removal of feral ducks from city parks is another vital service the US tax payers are getting from the USFWS. In Ocala, Florida feral ducks have become a nuisance to the locals at the park. So, when wildlife is a nuisance it gets removed, is that it? How could a duck be a nuisance? Well, if they are picking on picnickers then I can see a possible problem. Seriously, how does one defend against a duck? Many years ago a goose snapped at my toddler daughter so I slapped it. That goose became somewhat a funny lunch companion after that. Later, when I would go back to that lake for lunch that goose would come over and sit with me. Anyway, how are ducks a nuisance? Is it that ducks srap on the manicured lawns?
How about this, bring the poacher in from N.C. and lat him thin out the population. Well, the city cannot support poachers, so these ducks can then be cooked to feed the hungry.
USFWS inhibits job growth and destroys standard of living in the Blue Ridge Mountains. Fuel is hard to get in the Blue Ridge Mountains, apparently, which is why the Blue Ridge Pipeline was proposed and approved by all except the USFWS. Some 6,000 jobs are still not happening due to the delayed construction of the pipeline. This is going to be the same organization that will, not could, but WILL hold up the Keystone Pipeline even if Obama approves the project.
Protection of a desert lizard species in west Texas is a bigger concern than allowing the US to safely drill and use the oil and natural gas fields in west Texas. These oil fields are about 20% of the top 100 oil fields in America and the USFWS wants to stop oil drilling there.
As I am researching and writing this it has become plainly and painfully clear to me that the USFWS is being used as an extension of the Presidential office. Its purpose is not to protect wildlife, but to restrict American commerce as well as increase the reliance on OPEC oil. Remember, OPEC is now run by the Iranian Guards Corps, a State Department designated supporter of terrorism. Iran, in 2010, was named by the Hillary’s State Department as the remaining “principal supporter of groups implacably opposed to the Middle East Peace Process”.
So, the USFWS has impeded job growth, slowed the economy, restricted freedoms, restricted access to American lands by American people, is being used as a proxy arm of the government to black mail and beat into submission organizations like Gibson that are not supporters of the regime, and is being used, in a manner of speaking, to promote American reliance on a terrorist supporter for oil
