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On Yesterday's Slaughter of 32 Bison


The Bozeman Daily Chronicle reports today


(http://209.41.184.21/partners/311/public/news292477.html) that 32 Yellowstone bison were slaughtered yesterday by the Montana Department of Livestock. What makes this bison slaughter more atrocious is that Montana has not even tested these bison for brucellosis. Citing the management plan that allows Montana to slaughter without testing when the number of bison oversteps 3000 (there are approximately 3400 bison in the Park), the Department of Livestock finally gave up all pretense of looking for brucellosis in their war against the Yellowstone buffalo.




The war against the Yellowstone buffalo is a war of values, a war between the idea of a free ranging wildlife population versus the absolute privilege of humanity to do with the land, wildlife, and resources as it sees fit. Those two ideas are not necessarily in absolute conflict, except when the "sees fit" becomes arbitrary, when human freedom becomes identified with the mere whim and desires of a particular populace. That isn't human freedom proper, and it cannot be a just way to manage things. We have become enslaved to the idea that our right to be free allows us ethically to do whatever we want without any consistency with the virtues of love and reason.




Humans are free in their rationality. We are the species who can adjust and who can find happiness in understanding and acting within our limits. That is our nature. Our nature is loving service, a service that is consistent with reason. The buffalo, however, knows no other way than to wander, to roam over areas that are fit for it in searching for food. By slaughtering the bison, we are guilty of a double atrocity against nature. We rob the buffalo of its nature to wander, but we rob ourselves of our nature to serve the interests of each other and the creatures and places of the Earth. We forfeit our freedom to the necessity of whim. We enslave ourselves to our own cage, one in which we senselessly set up boundaries between ourselves and others.




It may be argued that the world is by its nature outside of its nature so hopelessly that we can do nothing about it. To some extent, it is true that we live in an unnatural state of affairs, one in which we are forced to act in some ways outside of the perfection of nature. For example, our very act of eating is an act which forces us to kill, forces us to destroy what otherwise would be allowed to flourish. That is true, but that unfortunate truth about this world is not to say that we should not where possible do things according to reason and virtue. In this case, where Montana kills buffalo where they do not even decide to distinguish which buffalo is harmful and which is not is simply a black and white case of atrocious irrationality, atrocious heartlessness, an outright evil. That Montana kills buffalo at all doesn't have to be the case. Not a single buffalo has to be killed, and we suffer no consequence that keeps us from being who we by nature are and should be. To me, that's obvious; it may not be to all of you. However, it should be obvious that the more arbitrary act committed by Montana yesterday is an evil.




I know that the world is full of evils, and not everyone has time to take toward every evil that can be fought. Still, I ask on behalf of those who want some semblance of justice in this situation to send thoughtful letters to Governor Judy Martz of Montana at http://www.state.mt.us/gov2/css/staff/contact.asp and to Karen Cooper of the Montana Department of Livestock at kcooper@state.mt.us to let them know what you think about this.




At the very least, please forward this email to people that you know.

--- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- ---

Replying to:

Note from Jim: Dave Colavito sent this to me by email. He is hoping to have it published as a letter to the editor in several publications




April 10, 2002






Backpacker:




Re: Letter To Editor






I'm learning to dread Spring, particularly this month of April. As


I pen these words, the mass migration has begun. And it's at


this time of year that it seems the struggle for wilderness is no


more apparent than at the door steps of our first national park,


Yellowstone. My wintercount has become their death-toll - the last


wild - and I find it more difficult to say, free roaming - herd of


Bison remaining within our borders. And it should not go unnoticed


that this year's toll now rings at about 90% bulls. This further


exemplifies the hypocritical agenda being played out under the guise


of protecting livestock from disease transmission - a disease whose


transmission by any reasonable measure, could take place only from


exposure to the birthing matter of cows, never minding that any


concerns over potential of transmission of the same disease from Elk


goes largely ignored. So the genocide continues. And things look


to likely get worse.




There's trouble in Yellowstone. According to a recent Montana Dept.


of Livestock report, the Reno meeting of the Western States


Livestock Health Association and U.S. Animal Health Association


Western District included passage of a resolution directed to the


Secretaries of Agriculture, Interior and Health & Human Services,


and the Centers for Disease Control. The resolution strongly urges


implementation of procedures that will eliminate Brucella abortus


(the bacterium that causes brucellosis) from Bison and Elk of the


Yellowstone ecosystem - including Yellowstone and Grand Teton


National parks and the National Elk Refuge - in the shortest


possible time. To most casual observers, this seems sensible


enough - after all, anything ending in "osis" can't be good.


But at what price? And in whose interest? The American public


should serve notice, for if some have their way, this could mean the


annihilation of America's last truly wild herd of Bison through


either their continued slaughter or, arguably worse, their


domestication. This, in spite of the fact that there are no


documented cases of brucellosis transmission from wild Bison to


cattle in a natural setting - no insignificant finding, particularly


since cattle and Bison have been sharing the range within Grand


Teton National park for decades. Worrying about the risk of


transmitting brucellosis from wild Bison to cattle would seem to be


a lot like worrying about dying in an auto accident because your


seat belt has trapped you inside a burning vehicle - available


evidence simply does not support the argument that this scenario is


of any meaningful concern.




And as the National Academy of Science report points out,


brucellosis is not merely confined to Bison and Elk but can also


infect wild predators, scavengers and domestic dogs. So an


operationally acceptable scientific level of risk for the


Yellowstone Bison seems long overdue. Are we to "sanitize" the


entire ecosystem? This notion is particularly ironic since


brucellosis is not native to North American wildlife, but is


believed to have been transmitted from domestic livestock. And even


if 100% eradication were possible (and measurable), our double


standards for risk tolerance would still need to be addressed - we


drive cars don't we? Furthermore, a recent report from the Texas


Animal Health Commission appears to speak volumes. It seems Texas


is now at risk for decertification from "free" for cattle


tuberculosis (TB) eradication. Apparently Texas livestock brokers


routinely import cattle from Mexico, where it is known that cattle


TB is a problem.




To be sure, the specter of Montana losing it's current


brucellosis-free status is an important financial concern


for Montana's vulnerable ranching community. But it's difficult for


most of us to reconcile this concern when looking again towards the


example of Grand Teton National Park. Which is all the more reason


to lend our support on this matter to Montana's ranching community,


and insist that the U.S. Departments of Agriculture and Interior and


Montana's Governor, acknowledge their level of dysfunction to date


on this issue and resolve to address it in an acceptable


fashion. The U.S. taxpayer should stand tall in support of those,


who through no fault of their own, incur financial impact. Do we


not recognize the priority? Have we no empathy?




To plains Indians, continued slaughter of these Bison amounts to the


continued genocide as witnessed during the past 150yrs. This is akin


to the desecration of a church to Christians or synagogue to Jews -


only much worse, since the Bison are their relatives. Will we allow


their continued destruction to take place. Have we no shame?




Yellowstone's Bison are a national treasure. They need our help more


than ever.




Dave Colavito


All Yellowstone buffalo to be killed


Karen Cooper of the Montana Department of Livestock announced


yesterday that all wild buffalo roaming outside Yellowstone National Park on their traditional grazing and calving grounds will be slaughtered.




Public agencies will no longer use the facade of brucellosis testing to determine if buffalo exposed to the disease (& carrying the antibody) get the death sentence. All will be killed. Cooper said she does not know how long DOL will continue killing animals without testing them.




Yellowstone spokeswoman Marsha Karle said the National Park Service did not protest DOL's decision to get kill untested bison.




What can you do? - Here's 4 options




1) Nothing




2) Speak out


Yellowstone National Park's Public Affairs person is Marsha Karle;


307-344-2015; P.O. Box 168, Yellowstone National Park, WY 82190-0168.


Federal agencies must set a precedent and defend the biological


integrity of this national treasure!


APHIS - the agency responsible for brucellosis "management" needs to hear from you! Teresa Howes; 970-494-2567. Why aren't they


continuing to do tissue testing to prove their "disease management" excuse? > a five minute call or 34 cent stamp could save a buffalo's life!




3) Pass this on to 32 friends in honor of the 32 buffalo slaughtered yesterday.




4) Pass this on to one acquaintance in honor of the the abused


buffalo whose leg was broken in the capture facility or to one person in honor of the wild momma buffalo who had to give birth to her calf in the capture facility.




The American people must demand that wild buffalo be treated like


wildlife and not treated as domestic livestock. Buffalo need to be protected for future generations! Arbitrary depopulation of the herd based on a population estimate that could be off by several hundred animals is absurd. Use Science, not




Thank you!




"The so-called random shooting at the Montana borders is actually


eliminating or depleting entire maternal lineages, therefore this


action will cause an irreversible crippling of the gene pool.


Continued removal of genetic lineages will change the genetic makeup of the herd, thus it will not represent the animal of 1910 or earlier. It would be a travesty to have people look back and say we were "idiots" for not understanding the gene pool."




Bison have developed a natural resistance genetically as long as they have enough to eat, limited stress and are not consumed by other disease. There is no magic bullet in wildlife disease, Therefore management is important. Vaccines are one management tool and one component, but genetic structure is necessary for future management. Every animal which is removed from the breeding population can no longer contribute to the genetic variability of the herd."




Remarks made by Dr. Joe Templeton, Texas A& M University, Dept. of Veterinary Pathobiology, to the GYIBC on May 21, 1998.

--- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- ---

Replying to:


The Bozeman Daily Chronicle reports today


(http://209.41.184.21/partners/311/public/news292477.html) that 32 Yellowstone bison were slaughtered yesterday by the Montana Department of Livestock. What makes this bison slaughter more atrocious is that Montana has not even tested these bison for brucellosis. Citing the management plan that allows Montana to slaughter without testing when the number of bison oversteps 3000 (there are approximately 3400 bison in the Park), the Department of Livestock finally gave up all pretense of looking for brucellosis in their war against the Yellowstone buffalo.




The war against the Yellowstone buffalo is a war of values, a war between the idea of a free ranging wildlife population versus the absolute privilege of humanity to do with the land, wildlife, and resources as it sees fit. Those two ideas are not necessarily in absolute conflict, except when the "sees fit" becomes arbitrary, when human freedom becomes identified with the mere whim and desires of a particular populace. That isn't human freedom proper, and it cannot be a just way to manage things. We have become enslaved to the idea that our right to be free allows us ethically to do whatever we want without any consistency with the virtues of love and reason.




Humans are free in their rationality. We are the species who can adjust and who can find happiness in understanding and acting within our limits. That is our nature. Our nature is loving service, a service that is consistent with reason. The buffalo, however, knows no other way than to wander, to roam over areas that are fit for it in searching for food. By slaughtering the bison, we are guilty of a double atrocity against nature. We rob the buffalo of its nature to wander, but we rob ourselves of our nature to serve the interests of each other and the creatures and places of the Earth. We forfeit our freedom to the necessity of whim. We enslave ourselves to our own cage, one in which we senselessly set up boundaries between ourselves and others.




It may be argued that the world is by its nature outside of its nature so hopelessly that we can do nothing about it. To some extent, it is true that we live in an unnatural state of affairs, one in which we are forced to act in some ways outside of the perfection of nature. For example, our very act of eating is an act which forces us to kill, forces us to destroy what otherwise would be allowed to flourish. That is true, but that unfortunate truth about this world is not to say that we should not where possible do things according to reason and virtue. In this case, where Montana kills buffalo where they do not even decide to distinguish which buffalo is harmful and which is not is simply a black and white case of atrocious irrationality, atrocious heartlessness, an outright evil. That Montana kills buffalo at all doesn't have to be the case. Not a single buffalo has to be killed, and we suffer no consequence that keeps us from being who we by nature are and should be. To me, that's obvious; it may not be to all of you. However, it should be obvious that the more arbitrary act committed by Montana yesterday is an evil.




I know that the world is full of evils, and not everyone has time to take toward every evil that can be fought. Still, I ask on behalf of those who want some semblance of justice in this situation to send thoughtful letters to Governor Judy Martz of Montana at http://www.state.mt.us/gov2/css/staff/contact.asp and to Karen Cooper of the Montana Department of Livestock at kcooper@state.mt.us to let them know what you think about this.




At the very least, please forward this email to people that you know.

--- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- ---

Replying to:

Note from Jim: Dave Colavito sent this to me by email. He is hoping to have it published as a letter to the editor in several publications




April 10, 2002






Backpacker:




Re: Letter To Editor






I'm learning to dread Spring, particularly this month of April. As


I pen these words, the mass migration has begun. And it's at


this time of year that it seems the struggle for wilderness is no


more apparent than at the door steps of our first national park,


Yellowstone. My wintercount has become their death-toll - the last


wild - and I find it more difficult to say, free roaming - herd of


Bison remaining within our borders. And it should not go unnoticed


that this year's toll now rings at about 90% bulls. This further


exemplifies the hypocritical agenda being played out under the guise


of protecting livestock from disease transmission - a disease whose


transmission by any reasonable measure, could take place only from


exposure to the birthing matter of cows, never minding that any


concerns over potential of transmission of the same disease from Elk


goes largely ignored. So the genocide continues. And things look


to likely get worse.




There's trouble in Yellowstone. According to a recent Montana Dept.


of Livestock report, the Reno meeting of the Western States


Livestock Health Association and U.S. Animal Health Association


Western District included passage of a resolution directed to the


Secretaries of Agriculture, Interior and Health & Human Services,


and the Centers for Disease Control. The resolution strongly urges


implementation of procedures that will eliminate Brucella abortus


(the bacterium that causes brucellosis) from Bison and Elk of the


Yellowstone ecosystem - including Yellowstone and Grand Teton


National parks and the National Elk Refuge - in the shortest


possible time. To most casual observers, this seems sensible


enough - after all, anything ending in "osis" can't be good.


But at what price? And in whose interest? The American public


should serve notice, for if some have their way, this could mean the


annihilation of America's last truly wild herd of Bison through


either their continued slaughter or, arguably worse, their


domestication. This, in spite of the fact that there are no


documented cases of brucellosis transmission from wild Bison to


cattle in a natural setting - no insignificant finding, particularly


since cattle and Bison have been sharing the range within Grand


Teton National park for decades. Worrying about the risk of


transmitting brucellosis from wild Bison to cattle would seem to be


a lot like worrying about dying in an auto accident because your


seat belt has trapped you inside a burning vehicle - available


evidence simply does not support the argument that this scenario is


of any meaningful concern.




And as the National Academy of Science report points out,


brucellosis is not merely confined to Bison and Elk but can also


infect wild predators, scavengers and domestic dogs. So an


operationally acceptable scientific level of risk for the


Yellowstone Bison seems long overdue. Are we to "sanitize" the


entire ecosystem? This notion is particularly ironic since


brucellosis is not native to North American wildlife, but is


believed to have been transmitted from domestic livestock. And even


if 100% eradication were possible (and measurable), our double


standards for risk tolerance would still need to be addressed - we


drive cars don't we? Furthermore, a recent report from the Texas


Animal Health Commission appears to speak volumes. It seems Texas


is now at risk for decertification from "free" for cattle


tuberculosis (TB) eradication. Apparently Texas livestock brokers


routinely import cattle from Mexico, where it is known that cattle


TB is a problem.




To be sure, the specter of Montana losing it's current


brucellosis-free status is an important financial concern


for Montana's vulnerable ranching community. But it's difficult for


most of us to reconcile this concern when looking again towards the


example of Grand Teton National Park. Which is all the more reason


to lend our support on this matter to Montana's ranching community,


and insist that the U.S. Departments of Agriculture and Interior and


Montana's Governor, acknowledge their level of dysfunction to date


on this issue and resolve to address it in an acceptable


fashion. The U.S. taxpayer should stand tall in support of those,


who through no fault of their own, incur financial impact. Do we


not recognize the priority? Have we no empathy?




To plains Indians, continued slaughter of these Bison amounts to the


continued genocide as witnessed during the past 150yrs. This is akin


to the desecration of a church to Christians or synagogue to Jews -


only much worse, since the Bison are their relatives. Will we allow


their continued destruction to take place. Have we no shame?




Yellowstone's Bison are a national treasure. They need our help more


than ever.




Dave Colavito