Wolf hysteria

Dear Editor,

Ravalli County commissioners want to hear about wolf encounters. In fact, Commissioner Suzy Foss, in particular, wants to hear from any county resident who has had a wolf encounter — in the last 16 years!

As a citizen and taxpayer of Montana, I am outraged that my hard-earned tax dollars are being spent to continue the promotion of an irrational wolf-hating hysteria among citizens of our state. She said, “I want to take politics out of it,” yet, she continues to pander to the livestock industry and big game hunters in an attempt to rile up the base in anticipation of Montana’s upcoming wolf hunting season in September.

Well, I would like to set the record straight with some cold, hard facts for Ms. Foss and the other commissioners of Ravalli County. Presently, there are serious challenges in our state and our county that demand our due diligence, tax dollars and resources instead of wasting our money on “investigating wolf encounters 16 years ago.”

First, does Ms. Foss know that the numbers of sexual and violent offenders in our county continue to rise: in Darby (17), Hamilton (53), Corvallis (27), Victor (23), Stevensville (36)?

Secondly, is Ms. Foss aware that out of the total number of motor vehicle fatalities in Montana, an estimated 45% are alcohol related offenses? Does Ms. Foss care that 103 total deaths in Montana included at least one driver who had a BAC of 0.01% or above? Is Ms. Foss aware that Montana has one of the highest high school dropout rates in the country? According to the Alliance for Excellent Education, in its June 7, 2011 report, the lost lifetime earnings in Montana from dropouts this year alone total nearly $830 million. The economy of Montana would see a combination of crime-related savings and additional revenue of about $19.6 million each year if the male high school graduation rate would increase by just 5 percent!

Additionally, in 2010, 260 youth appeared in Youth Court Services 351 times for a total of 510 offenses. There are a total of 3,467 at-risk youth, or people between the ages of 12-18, in Ravalli County, up 86 youth from 2008.

How about the unemployment rate? Does Ms. Foss understand that the unemployment rate in Ravalli County was last reported at 9.30% (vs. 9.1% nationwide) according to the US Federal Reserve?

Ms. Foss and the Ravalli County Commissioners want us to believe that wolves are the primary cause of these and other deleterious issues that Montanans face everyday.

One last fact for the Commissioners: The US Department of the Interior released a report this month with data which revealed that recreational use of public lands, like wildlife watching, creates more jobs and more money than public lands ranching. Recreational use is also better at preserving natural habitat. Ms. Foss and the Commissioners clearly have an ulterior agenda with their so-called “investigation.” This agenda reinforces the assertion of many citizens that, when it comes to the wolf, responsible science-based decision-making is just not possible in the state the Montana.

Marc Cooke, Co-President West
National Wolfwatcher Coalition
Lolo