Wisconsin: A Sadist’s Paradise

It’s not just wildlife that some in Wisconsin like to torture.

There are many people in the United States and world that have a fluffy and distorted perception when it comes to the state of Wisconsin. They think that our state is full of good-natured people that drink lots of beer, eat lots of cheese, and wear giant hunks of idiotic looking cheese shaped Styrofoam hats to support their football team. While that is the perception that state businesses and tourism agencies want to portray, the reality couldn’t be farther from the truth.

There is a dark and toxic underbelly that many in this state try to hide under the happy-go-lucky bumpkin front that most of the country sees. Wisconsin is not only the home of sadistic serial killers like Ed Gein or Jeff Dahmer. We also have the distinction of being probably the most brutal place in the country for wildlife. Here are just some of the sadistic and brutal activities that are not only condoned but encouraged by our state government.

• Wisconsin is the ONLY state in the entire country that allows dogs to be used against wolves.
• The use of dogs against wildlife is labeled as “heritage” and “tradition” by many in this state.
• Wisconsin currently allows dogs to be “trained” against wolves 24/7/365 with no rules in place.
• Thousands of vicious dogs are allowed to run rampant through Wisconsin under the guise of “training” against bears starting July 1st of each year.
• Wisconsin pays irresponsible hounders $2500 for each dog allegedly killed by wolves while being used against other wildlife.
• Wisconsin allows unlimited and unregulated killing of coyotes 24/7/365 with the use of dogs and everything short of artillery.
• Wisconsin openly encourages and promotes the use of barbaric traps to the tune of nearly one MILLION “reported” animals killed each year.
• Wisconsin “unofficially” encourages “non-target” animals to be trapped, killed, and given to the DNR to be sold for the funding of “trapper education.”
• Wisconsin allows wildlife to be trapped, shot, and hounded inside state parks.
• Wisconsin now allows hunting INSIDE cities and near schools, hospitals, and other public buildings.
• Wisconsin REQUIRES that public schools offer FOR CREDIT courses for hunting and trapping wildlife.

These are just a few examples of the wildlife killing “culture” that makes Wisconsin a sadist’s paradise. But it is not just wildlife that is tortured and brutalized in our state. Factory farms, fur farms, and puppy mills are notorious for their brutality within Wisconsin’s borders. But these examples may not even be the worst of cruelty and torture inflicted on animals in this state.

Today, the Wisconsin Center for Investigative Journalism published an article exposing what may very well be one of the most brutal and horrific torture of animals under the guise of “research” that I have ever seen. This is what some sadistic monsters from the University of Wisconsin-Madison Psychiatry Department have planned for “research.”

………referring to the first experiment at UW-Madison in more than 30 years that will intentionally deprive newborn monkeys of their mothers, a practice designed to impact a primate’s psychological well-being.

The research, submitted by UW-Madison Psychiatry Department chairman Dr. Ned Kalin, has drawn unusual scrutiny and dissent from within the university and intensified a debate about the extent to which benefits to humans justify the suffering of animals.

It gets even worse. If your stomach doesn’t turn after reading this you truly have no heart or empathy:

For a year these 20 rhesus monkeys, as well as another 20 used as a control group, will be given tests intended to provoke and measure anxious behavior. After one year they will all be euthanized and their brain tissue collected for molecular analysis.

In other words these INFANT monkeys will be TORTURED and DEPRIVED nurturing for an entire year and then killed.

The purpose of the experiment is to use state-of-the-art technology to examine the underlying neurobiology of anxiety and depression, which Kalin believes will lead to insights for treating struggling humans.

The ethics of animal research are often contentious, but non-human primate research at UW-Madison is especially polarizing.

There are around 2,000 primates housed and studied in several locations around campus. About two-thirds of these are at the Wisconsin National Primate Research Center; most of the remainder are at the Harlow Center for Biological Psychology. The buildings stand side by side.

In a Kalin study published in 2004, the amygdalae of 14 rhesus macaques were damaged with acid after their skulls were cut open. The amygdala is a region of the brain that regulates fear and anxiety. The monkeys were then exposed to snakes and unknown humans.

Than we have a colleague of Kalin, Richard Davidson, making this false equivalency that fits right in with the sadistic nature of Wisconsin itself:

“You have to do a mental calculus to determine if it’s appropriate or not, and each scientist needs to make his or her own moral decision about that,” Davidson says. “And it’s the same thing with eating meat or wearing leather. You know, the Dalai Lama eats meat.”

Does the arrogance of humanity know no bounds? These are the kind of Mengele style experiments that are being conducted at our public universities? What kind of monster thinks that ANYTHING good will come from this? You don’t need to be a research scientist to know what happens when the vast majority of mammals are deprived of the basic nurturing and care that they receive from their mothers. I make no secret that I am an animal welfare advocate and oppose any and all forms of cruelty but this goes far beyond. This goes into the realm of torture for tortures sake. For an entire year these baby monkeys will be tormented, deprived nurturing, and then killed? For what? So some narcissistic egghead can confirm that tortured and deprived social animals suffer depression? Wow. Will he then get his name in a scientific journal and “justify” a reason to continue receiving grant money for his “experiments?” All animal testing is disgusting but this goes far far far beyond that. This is pure sadistic torture and all supporters of the UW should be disgusted by this no matter what side of the political aisle you are on.

Here are the contacts for those wishing to express their disgust at this government funded torture being conducted at the UW-Madison:

Contact Ray Cross, UW System President
Phone: 608 262-2321
Fax: 608 262-3985
rcross@uwsa.edu
1720 Van Hise Hall
1220 Linden Drive
Madison, WI 53706

Kate Wodyn, Assistant to the President
kwodyn@uwsa.edu

If you are a current student, former student, or graduate of any University of Wisconsin school please sign this petition against these abhorrent acts here:

UW Not in Our Name

This is our Wisconsin. Our fellow citizens are not content torturing and killing millions of wild animals each year. Now we have to sanction the torture of INFANT monkeys for dubious “research.” Make your feelings known and tell everyone you know that Wisconsin is indeed a sadist’s paradise. Think about this the next time you purchase any apparel with the University of Wisconsin logo on it. Do you want the licensing fee money they receive from it to go back to this institution as long as they continue to torment animals?

 

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What the Wisconsin DNR Does Not Want You to Know…….24/7/365 Hounding Against Wolves

Replace the hounder on the horse with a hounder in a pickup and this is Wisconsin.

One of the biggest problems in the wildlife advocacy movement is that far more often than not we are in a reactive mode rather than a proactive one. This was certainly the case in 2012 following the Obama Administration’s delisting of gray wolves in the Great Lakes. National “wildlife advocacy” groups made the assumption that the Great Lakes states of Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Michigan wouldn’t be as brutal and aggressive as those in the Northern Rockies when it came to wolves. They could not have been more wrong. The very day that the United States Fish and Wildlife Service officially removed the gray wolf from the Endangered Species List, Rep. Scott Suder (R-ALEC) and allies introduced a very odious bill that allowed wolf hunting, trapping, and worst of all hounding of wolves.

The moment that I heard about this bill and the provision to allow dogs against wolves I knew that things were about to get bad very fast. In the following days I contacted my legislators and various national wildlife/animal welfare groups to inform them of the impending disaster that this bill would bring if passed. The reaction from these groups was almost as horrifying as the bill itself. They essentially blew off my concerns and apparently didn’t believe that Wisconsin would follow through with the brutality included in the bill. Of course that was proven wrong and now Wisconsin is the ONLY state in the country that allows dogs to be used against wolves. Now wildlife advocates at both the local and national level are left trying to react to the extreme brutality that this bill allowed.

But it gets worse. Far worse. In 2012 a coalition of humane societies and wildlife advocates filed a lawsuit in an attempt to stop the barbaric use of dogs against wolves. Initially a Dane County judge barred hounders from “training” their dogs against wolves but allowed them to use the dogs to “hunt” them. This confusing ruling was appealed to the Wisconsin District 4 Court of Appeals. Last week the appeals court ruled that hounders could use their dogs to “train” against wolves. Apparently, Wisconsin must maintain their title of the Blood Sport Capital of the United States.  Of course as with most court rulings the “law of unintended consequences” is rearing it’s ugly head.

This morning Melanie Weberg, of Wildlife Public Trust & Coexistence, spoke via telephone to Wisconsin DNR Carnivore Specialist, Dave McFarland. In response to various questions about hounders and “training” on wolves some very disturbing information was confirmed and the DNR is giving the impression that they are afraid of the general public learning this information as according to McFarland no press release will be issued by the agency. McFarland confirmed that there are currently no rules preventing hounders from waging all out war against wolves under the guise of “training. ” These elements were confirmed according to Melanie’s conversation with McFarland:

In other words, as you will see, there are no regulations.
Training can take place 24 hours/day; 365 days/year
Unlimited dogs on a wolf with unlimited hunters
Dog trialing can take place if within regulations (which there are none)
No licenses required
Out of state trainers allowed

I can see why the DNR does not want this publicized. The hounders already know this but the DNR is facing a public relations nightmare if word gets out that hounders can “train” against wolves 24/7/365 with ZERO restrictions. Thank you Scott Suder and the Wisconsin Legislature.

One of the first things that Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker did in 2011 was sign a bill that allowed bear hounders to begin “training” their dogs against wild bears starting July 1st of each year. The hounders are allowed to send up to six dogs at a time against wild bears to “train them. When those dogs tire a fresh groups of six dogs can then be unleashed against the bear. Some of these pursuits can last 10 hours or more as hounders often brag. It is also during these “bear hound “training” times that the vast majority of dogs are allegedly killed by wolves. For each dog that is killed by wolves the hounder receives a $2500 payout from the Wisconsin DNR. These payouts have gone to repeat claimants and people with serious criminal convictions. Now that hounders can “train” their dogs against wolves 24/7/365 expect many more dogs to be killed by wolves defending their territory and offspring. While Wisconsin law states that wolf hounders will not receive a reimbursement for dogs killed while “hunting and training” against wolves, all the hounder needs to claim is that they were “training” against bears or “hunting” coyotes. When the dog is killed the DNR will not know any different and a nice fat $2500 check will be issued to the hounder. When the DNR has been questioned about this possibility they say that they rely on the “honesty” of the hounder. What?

The DNR and their bear hounder puppet masters do not want you to know about this for obvious reasons. Both are under a microscope despite their deflecting propaganda that there were no “conclusive” signs of fighting between wolves and dogs this last killing season. Of course they neglect to mention that the hounder killed wolf bodies turned over to the DNR were far too decomposed and degraded to make any conclusive determinations. See report here. Wisconsin Wolf Season Report  If hounding is the “ultimate family sport” and part of Wisconsin’s “tradition” or “heritage” then why wouldn’t the DNR be proud to put out a press release advertising that wolves are now open to be hounded 24/7/365? How about the Wisconsin Bear Hunters Association? Why not put out a press release crowing about your ” family sport” and “heritage” and how you are now free to hound wolves under the guise of training 24/7/365?

Do not let them hide this information. Please share this far and wide to anyone that you know who cares about wildlife. Wisconsin wants to keep under wraps this unlimited hounding information until they put “permanent” training rules in place NEXT YEAR. The hounders know about it but they do not want YOU to know. I cannot understate or repeat too often that there are ZERO RESTRICTIONS for the use of dogs against wolves other than hounders supposedly not being able to allow their dogs to kill wildlife. Even that “restriction” appears not to be enforced.

Wisconsin is now ground zero in terms of being the most brutal place in the country for wolves and other wildlife. Dogs are now a weapon to be used against wolves and other wildlife, often with no restrictions. Is this the kind of state that we want to live in? If ethical hunters do exist, where are you? Speak out. For anyone that cares about wildlife DEMAND that your legislators ban the use of dogs against wolves. Write a letter to the editor of your local paper. Let people know that hounders can use their dogs against wolves 24/7/365. DEMAND that your legislators explain why it is acceptable for dogs to be used against wolves and other wildlife. Do not sit on this information. Please share and share widely.

This may also be discussed at the next Wolf Advisory Committee meeting on July 22nd in Wausau, WI. The meeting will be held from 9:00 AM to 3:30 PM at:

Howard Johnson Hotel
2101 North Mountain Rd.

Please contact your legislators here:

Who Are My Legislators?

 

Wisconsin Wildlife Federation and National Wildlife Federation: Two Peas in a Pod of Hypocrisy

National Wildlife Federation- We are looking at you and your hypocrisy.

One of the things most concerning to wildlife advocates is the idea that recreational hunting, hounding, and trapping are views as “heritage” and “tradition” in many parts of the country. Nowhere is this justification for wholesale killing more prevalent than in Wisconsin. Wildlife killers and exploiters have long duped the public into believing that they are the real “conservationists” and that if they didn’t kill wildlife they would die of “starvation and disease.” They also like to boast about how much money they put into “conservation” and how they fund the state fish and wildlife agencies that cater to their every whim. The myth that killing is conservation has become so deep seeded in our society that it is very difficult to change those false perceptions.

For an example of how pro-killing organizations have duped the general public into believing that they exist for the benefit of wildlife look no further than the Wisconsin Wildlife Federation. On the surface such a benign name would make you think that this organization was pro-wildlife. Nothing could be further from the truth. This is how the Wisconsin Wildlife Federation describes itself on their website:

The Federation’s education focus is on the protection of fish and wildlife and their habitat and in the teaching of skills including hunting, fishing, trapping and other outdoor recreational pursuits. Our efforts are largely focused on youth education. We operate the MacKenzie Environmental Center in Poynette, grant scholarships for future resource professionals at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point, provide wildlife educational trunks to schools for K-12 education, send kids to summer conservation camps and implement the National Wildlife Federation’s Schoolyard and Backyard Habitat programs.

We also are very active in promoting strong conservation policies before the Wisconsin Legislature and the Department of Natural Resources. The prime areas of conservation policy that we focus on are the protection of fish and wildlife habitat, the protection of public access to lands and water for outdoor recreation, assuring the right to hunt, fish and trap and the pursuit of other outdoor recreational activities and the furtherance of conservation education with an emphasis on youth education. We strongly believe that conservation policies should be scientifically, professionally and factually based, not politically based.

We are the state affiliate of the National Wildlife Federation. Together we promote the protection and conservation of our natural resources on a national level with the US. Congress and federal agencies.

Of course those “protection and conservation” ideals seem to end when it comes to wolves. From this article:

Ralph Fritsch, of the Wisconsin Wildlife Federation, said the quota was too low and will have no significant effect in moving closer to goal.

“The quota was derived by averaging the preferred harvest level of the 20 members of the committee. That is far from a scientific approach,” Fritsch said. He wanted a quota of 250 wolves.

This “goal” that Fritsch is referring to is the ancient number of “350” adopted in the 1999 Wisconsin Wolf Management Plan. Of course there is no scientific basis for this “350” number. The number was derived as a “goal” that would allow the state to start “managing” wolves once removed from Endangered Species Act protections. Wolf hating groups and individuals like the Wisconsin Wildlife Federation and their representatives have come to this strange conclusion that this “350” number is somehow the maximum number of wolves allowed in Wisconsin. Even more disturbing is that the Wisconsin DNR is doing nothing to counter those claims. At the same Natural Resources Board meeting that Fritsch made his comments the chief lobbyist of the most vocal anti-wolf groups in the state, Bob Welch, said this:

Bob Welch, of the Hunters Rights Coalition, said the DNR’s job is to manage wildlife and has to move the population closer to the goal of 350. He said he does not hate wolves. He objected to people from southern Wisconsin saying that people in northern Wisconsin have to accept living with wolves.

Mind you that the FOUNDER of the Hunters Rights Coalition, Greg Kazmierski, sits on the Natural Resources Board. Conflict of interest? Maybe? But apparently not in Scott Walker’s Wisconsin. But back to the Wisconsin Wildlife Federation. This group pretends to be all about “science” and “conservation” when in reality they are motivated by the same anti-wolf hate that consume the Welch lobbied groups. Take for example bear hounder and anti-wolf zealot, Laurie Groskopf. Groskopf sits on the boards of not only the Wisconsin Wildlife Federation, but also the Wisconsin Bear Hunters Association. Not coincidentally both of these groups sit on the hunter, trapper, and hounder dominated DNR Wolf Advisory Committee. In fact Groskopf has represented BOTH groups at various Wolf Advisory Committee meetings, Wisconsin Conservation Congress meetings, and Natural Resources Board hearings. She has also been one of the most vocal anti-wolf voices in the entire state of Wisconsin and specializes in fear mongering unlike any other.

Laurie Groskopf, a Tomahawk resident who has attended approximately 20 county board hearings where the boards have voted to peg the wolf management number at 350, supports the idea of a hunt to at least 350 wolves, and said she thinks the DNR’s 800-wolf number, a result of the state’s winter minimum population count, is far below the real number present in the state. The real, higher number would allow for more accurate hunting to remove more wolves and help citizens negatively affected by wolves in the state, according to Groskopf.

Groskopf and Antczak both shared similar stories of northern residents facing pet depredations as another reason to find the most suitable wolf management number.

A reminder that those “pet depredations” are mostly the bear dogs allegedly killed by wolves during bear hounder “training” and killing seasons. Remember this little bit from the WWF mission statement?

We strongly believe that conservation policies should be scientifically, professionally and factually based, not politically based.

You claim this yet allow Laurie Groskopf to be your spokesperson at various functions?

The Wisconsin Wildlife Federation is also an affiliate of the National Wildlife Federation. Just take a look at their website. On their home page is a picture of a beautiful wolf and these words. “Safeguard America’s Wildlife and Wild Places, Donate Today.” Then there are all kinds of beautiful pictures of America’s wildlife and screeds about “protection” and “safeguarding” our wildlife. This is the “mission” of the NWF:

National Wildlife Federation is a voice for wildlife, dedicated to protecting wildlife and habitat and inspiring the future generation of conservationists.

Wildlife’s ability to survive the challenges of the 21st century is becoming outpaced by the events that are transforming our world. Global warming, the loss of habitat, and people becoming more disconnected from nature than past generations are converging on a dangerous path for our planet. The work of NWF and our affiliates across the country provides answers to these challenges and will help ensure America’s wildlife legacy continues for future generations.

Your affiliates huh? Affiliates like the Wisconsin Wildlife Federation and Laurie Groskopf? Nice touch. Pretend that you are all about protecting wildlife yet have a kill everything group like the Wisconsin Wildlife Federation as your “affiliate.” I have also been told by a several wildlife advocates that they have contacted the National Wildlife Federation about their concerns over the sadistic activities the Wisconsin Wildlife Federation endorses and were told that the NWF has no problems with them. How disgusting. Use cute cuddly pictures of wildlife to raise money, pretend you are all about saving them, but endorse a group that goes out of their way to push for hounding, trapping, and killing huge numbers of wolves. Nice.

Please contact the National Wildlife Federation and tell them how disgusted you are that they are in bed with the Wisconsin Wildlife Federation and their anti-wolf positions. The hypocrisy of both these organizations is disgusting bit not all together surprising. Contact the NWF here:

Contact the National Wildlife Federation

 

 

My Letter to Senator Baldwin and a Message To Anti-Willdife Democrats

Last week the Wilderness Act and wildlife partially dogged a bullet when the disgusting “Bipartisan Sportsmen’s Act” was voted down in the United States Senate. This rancid bill was put forward by Senate Democrats in the hope that vulnerable “red state” Democrats would get support from the gun and killing obsessed citizens in their respective states. The bill would have essentially gutted many Wilderness Act protections by allowing sport hunting, trapping, shooting ranges, and hunter/trapper “access” to many wilderness lands not currently open to wildlife killing. The bill would have also forbade the EPA from regulating the highly destructive and poisonous lead in bullets and fishing lures. Finally, in what may have been the most disgusting element of the bill, it would have allowed the importation of polar bears killed by trophy hunters in Canada prior to ESA protections being established in 1997. All of these odious elements fly in the face of the “environmentalism” that the Democratic Party has moved away from more and more each year. Especially under the anti-wildlife Obama Administration.

So what possesses these pretend “progressives” to pander to trophy hunting, shooting, anti-willdife, and anti-environment factions? Animals 24-7 editor and writer, Merritt Clifton, presents and outstanding piece laying out why Democrats “dance with the devil” and pander to wildlife killing interests.

Why U.S. Senate Democrats dance with Elmer Fudd & his hunting buddies

Why are ranking U.S. Senate Democrats seemingly hellbent on passing the “Sportsmen’s Act,” S. 2363, despite the opposition of more than 100 usually pro-Democratic animal and environmental protection charities?

“To give a couple of southern Democrats––lead sponsor Kay Hagan of North Carolina, and Mark Pryor of Arkansas––a political talking point as they campaign in the rural areas of their states,” alleged Humane Society of the U.S. president Wayne Pacelle in a July 7, 2014 alert to HSUS supporters.

That appears to be the short answer.

The long answer is that the Democratic Party is still smarting, albeit largely unawares, over the 1952 loss of the U.S. presidency to gung-ho hunter Dwight D. Eisenhower. Posing often with hunting weapons, Eisenhower won by a landslide over reputed pro-animal candidate Adlai Stephenson, after nonhunters Franklin D. Roosevelt and Harry Truman had held the White House for 20 years.

In other words the Democratic Party are sellouts of the highest order and will sell their own “soul” to court anti-animal interests for a few votes. There is no better example of this than Wisconsin’s supposedly “Democratic” Senator, Tammy Baldwin.

Today I wrote a letter to Senator Baldwin expressing my extreme disappointment at her anti-willdife positions and her support of the disgusting bill mentioned above. Here is the letter:

Senator Baldwin,

 I am writing this letter to express my extreme and continued disappointment with your decision to vote for the so-called Bipartisan Sportsmen’s Act (S. 2363). Myself and many other wildlife advocates find it highly disturbing that you would vote for a bill that amounts to nothing more than a giant give away to trophy hunting interests (Safari Club International) and the NRA. This vote, and your support of the 2012 delisting of the gray wolf in the Great Lakes states, have lead many of us to either withhold or withdraw our support for you and the Democratic Party.

 How does the average American citizen benefit from a bill that essentially opens to sport killing some of the very few remaining refuges that wildlife in our country have? To allow these remaining Federal wilderness areas to be opened up to “sport” hunters and to the even more deplorable trappers, flies in the face of the Wilderness Act, and appears on the surface to be nothing more than another give away or pandering attempt for trophy hunters, trappers, and those that show little to no respect for our remaining wildlife. This bill also adopts the propaganda that is presented from trophy hunting lobbying groups, the NRA, and state fish and wildlife departments.

 I also find it highly disturbing that so many Democrats would be on board with the attempt to further weaken efforts to remove or regulate lead from bullets and fishing lures. This again flies in the face of the environmentalist image that Democrats try to portray. Is it worth selling out those principles in the hope of gaining a few votes from the trophy hunting, shooting, and anti-environment extremists in this country? Some estimates show that that hunters constitute only four to five percent of the population in the United States. If that is the case, please explain why the Democratic Party continuously places their desires ahead of non-hunters and environmentalists each election cycle? We apparently cannot do anything to provide healthcare for all citizens, yet we can make sure that the Federal government can provide shooting ranges and wildlife killing fields on public lands?

 In our own state of Wisconsin one form of wildlife or another is relentlessly pursued by packs of dogs 24 hours a day and 365 days a year on state and Federal lands. The most recent example of this is the use of dogs against wolves. You supported the removal of the gray wolf in the Great Lakes from the Endangered Species List. That 2012 removal has led to hundreds of wolves being shot, trapped, or relentlessly pursued by packs of vicious dogs. After the most recent State Appeals Court ruling dogs can now be used to “train” against wolves for 365 days a year with no restrictions. This is an animal that was under ESA protections less than three years ago and is now the target of legalized animal fighting. In one year the official population count has dropped by 19 percent. When other citizens and myself have contacted your office expressing concerns, and requesting possible Federal intervention, we received the exact same canned Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources talking points. Even more concerning is that these talking points are regurgitations of the very same propaganda presented by the Wisconsin Bear Hunters Association, the deceptively names hunting group, the Wisconsin Wildlife Federation, and Safari Club International. Should it be any surprise that many of us in the wildlife advocacy community in Wisconsin have become very jaded toward you and your positions on this issue?

I understand that Wisconsin has a higher percentage of people that call themselves hunters but they are still a far lower number than those of us that do not kill animals for sport or whatever justification used. Non-hunters continue to be ignored and have our views dismissed by you and many in your party. I expect this from the GOP and the other Senator from this state. I do not expect this from someone that proclaims to be a “progressive” Democrat.

 I voted for you numerous times when you were my Congressional Representative and when you ran for Senator. I was under the misguided assumption that you shared the same values about the environment and wildlife that I did. Apparently I was mistaken. Your stance against wolves and your vote for that disgusting “Bipartisan Sportsmen’s Act” have done serious damage to your credibility among wildlife advocates in Wisconsin. I hope you reconsider your stance on these issues and seriously take into account the damage those positions have caused your reputation among those you should consider to be your “base” in Wisconsin.

The outrage and disappointment that I feel toward Senator Baldwin and the majority of other fake “Democrats” that voted for this bill cannot be understated but also cannot come as a surprise. Remember that a majority of Democrats also voted for the 2011 budget bill that contained the disgusting “rider” that delisted wolves in the Northern Rockies from the Endangered Species List. That odious inclusion was done to “protect” anti-wolf and supposedly “Democratic” Senator, Jon Tester of Montana, from a tough reelection in his strongly anti-wolf state.

I am no longer surprised at how low the Obama Administration and his Democratic allies in Congress will go to sell out the environment and wildlife in favor of votes. They believe that we are a permanent part of their “base” and will still vote for them in the end. I wouldn’t be so sure of that.

Please feel free to use elements of the above letter in your own responses to your fake “Democrat” senators that voted for the bill or take anti-wildlife positions.

 

 

 

 

 

WA Senator’s Supported “Sportsmens’ Bill

I received an almost exact canned response from my supposed “progressive” Senator, Tammy Baldwin. Way to spit in the face of those you pretend to represent. My response to Baldwin will be coming soon and will be posted here.

Exposing the Big Game

Here’s the B.S. response to my input on the “sportsmen’s” bill I received from Senator Maria Cantwell…

Dear Mr. Robertson,

Thank you for contacting me about Bipartisan Sportsmen’s Act. I appreciate hearing from you on this important issue.

As you know, Sen. Kay Hagan (D-NC) introduced the Bipartisan Sportsmen’s Act (S. 2363) on May 20, 2014. If enacted, this legislation would enact a number of measures to facilitate the use of federal public lands and waters for fishing, sport hunting, and recreational shooting. This legislation would also expand the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation to aid communities and protect our natural resources.

The Bipartisan Sportsmen’s Act would also amend the Marine Mammal Protection Act to allow the Department of Interior to issue permits to import polar bear trophies from Canada, if the following conditions are met: the polar bear trophy was taken by an individual during a sport hunt in…

View original post 274 more words

Sadistic Killing of Tern Chicks Causes “Outrage” In Wisconsin, But Hounder Brutality is Ignored

Today, the Wisconsin DNR put out information to numerous media outlets about the sadistic killing of of 25 endangered common tern chicks in Winnebago County. From the Wisconsin State Journal:

The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources was asking the public for help in tracking down someone who killed 25 endangered common tern chicks, officials said Thursday.

The dead animals were either stomped to death or crushed by someone wielding a rock on an island in Lake Butte des Morts, in Winnebago County, the DNR Bureau of Law Enforcement said in a press release.

The bureau is asking for help from the public in identifying whoever is responsible for killing the chicks, said spokeswoman Joanne Haas.

DNR staff members discovered the damaged colony on Tuesday night. The checks were about 2 to 21 days old, Haas said.

The common tern prefers shorelines, bays and sand bars of large lakes and rivers, as well as sandy or rocky coastal islands, and marshes, according the DNR website.

The common tern is listed as a state endangered species. 

Intentional violation of the state endangered species law can carry a fine between $2,000 and $5,000 and nine months in jail along with revocation of hunting privileges for three years.

DNR officials asked that anyone with information related to this crime call the DNR Hotline — 1-800-TIP-WDNR or 1-800-847-9367. 

Common Tern Chick-Via Wikimedia Commons

As expected there was universal outrage directed at the cretin(s) that undertook such a disgusting and brutal attack. People across the political and social spectrum commented on the news articles asking “what kind of person could do such a thing?” They seem to forget or ignore that this is Wisconsin, the Blood Sport Capital of the United States. What if terns became a huntable species in Wisconsin? How “outraged” would people be if they were labeled a “game” animal by the Legislature or DNR and treated this way? How “outraged” would they be if the state authorized the use of dogs against them as they do many other forms of wildlife in Wisconsin? I’m guessing not much as evident by the response to the court ruling yesterday that allows hounders to “train” their dogs on wolves for 365 days a year until the DNR put “rules” in place early next year.

Wisconsin is the ONLY state in the country that allows the use of dogs against wolves. Not even the brutally sadistic anti-wolf states of Montana, Idaho, and Wyoming allow this yet Wisconsin does. In fact this is what the Wisconsin Appeals Court wrote in their decision yesterday showing how far out of the ethical and mainstream spectrum Wisconsin truly is:

The appellate court concluded that the lack of restrictions in the DNR’s rules doesn’t conflict with the wolf hunt law or animal cruelty statutes. The court said it’s unclear how many restrictions the agency would have to impose to achieve compliance.

The DNR made a rational decision on the extent of restrictions, the court added. Hunters with experience with dogs tracking wolves during coyote hunts told the agency they had never seen any violent encounters and wolves typically try to outrun the dogs.

As for (Dane County Judge) Anderson’s ruling invalidating training, the court said Wisconsin residents have a common law right to hunt. The freedom to use dogs extends from that right, not from DNR regulations. Therefore Anderson’s ruling invalidating dog training rules as they apply to wolves has no legal effect, the court found.

So according to this court ruling this “common law right to hunt” means that dogs can be used as weapons with no restrictions or any application to animal cruelty statutes? The court also based their decision on testimony from hounders participating in the then ILLEGAL activity of “tracking” wolves? The same hounders also said that wolves and dogs don’t fight? What? So why has the DNR paid out in excess of $500,000 since 1985 for hunting dogs that have been allegedly killed by wolves? Was it all a mirage? Apparently yes. What has Wisconsin devolved to and where is the “outrage” toward this?

At one time or another for 24 hours a day 365 days a year the hounders in Wisconsin can pit their dogs against one species or another. Dogs can be used against bears, coyotes, raccoons, bobcats, and even TURKEYS. Yes dogs in Wisconsin can be used against turkeys. Finally Wisconsin hounders can, since 2013, use their dogs against wolves. The same wolves that hounders claim have been killing their dogs for the past couple of decades leading to in excess of $500,000 in “depredation” payouts. This along with alleged “depredations” on “livestock” were one of the supposed reasons why Wisconsin “needed” a wolf hunt according to the Wisconsin Bear Hunters Association and their affiliated groups. Those “big bad wolves” were killing their bear/coyote/bobcat/raccoon dogs that they consider to be “family.” So what did they do? They made sure to have it legislated that they could use those very same dogs that they consider “family” against wolves. These are the same “family” members that they claim are worth in excess of $10,000 yet are often given away for free or for a couple of hundred dollars on hounder Facebook pages. These are the same “family” members that are kept on a chain outside for most of their lives in all weather conditions like this:

 

This:

Or this:

 

Yeah I do that to my “family” members. Do you? Yet all of this brutal and sadistic behavior is allowed and even encouraged by the Wisconsin Legislature and DNR but where is the outrage? Countless animals are tormented, injured, or ripped to shreds by hounders and their dogs yet there is almost no outrage. Come on Wisconsin we are better than this. Start telling everyone that you know about the legalized animal fighting that happens on a daily basis in our state. Remember the outrage over Giggles the Fawn? Michael Vick? There is even worse brutality occurring in our woods each and every day. Why should it surprise anyone that Wisconsin harbors monsters capable of stomping on two day old chicks when we have state sanctioned animal fighting in our woods? Please get outraged about it and demand a change.

Find your state legislators here, contact them, and demand a change to how wildlife is treated in our state:

Who Are My Legislators?

 

Appeals Court Rules That Hounders Are Able To “Train” Their Dogs Against Wolves…….The Fix Is In

This is “sport” and “heritage” in Wisconsin.

**UPDATED 7/10/2014 4:45 PM**

According to a wildlife advocate that spoke with Wisconsin DNR Carnivore Biologist Dave McFarland, today’s court ruling means that there are ZERO rules for “training” with dogs against wolves and that hounders can now use their dogs against them 365 days a year. You read that right. Hounders as of now can pit their dogs against wolves with ZERO restrictions year round. Don’t we live in a lovely state? 

Just when you thought that it couldn’t get any worse for wildlife in the Blood Sport Capital of the United States, Wisconsin, it does. A lawsuit filed in 2012 by a coalition of humane societies and wildlife advocates attempted to stop the barbaric use of dogs against wolves during the yearly kill season. The use of dogs was written into the disgusting 2012 Wisconsin Bear Hunter Association authored bill that authorized a wolf killing season. The bill, introduced the very day of delisting by disgraced former Wisconsin Representative Scott Suder  (R-ALEC), was rubber stamped by the Wisconsin Legislature including by many so-called “Democrats.”  The Dane County judge hearing the coalition’s lawsuit ruled that hounders could use dogs against wolves during the killing season, but could not “train” them against wolves. The coalition appealed to the State 4th District Court of Appeals and they ruled today that hounders would now be allowed to “train” their dogs on wolves. From the short article:

A Wisconsin appeals court says hunters can train their dogs to chase wolves.

State law establishing Wisconsin’s wolf hunt allows hunters to use dogs to track wolves. A group of humane societies sued in 2012 alleging the Department of Natural Resources failed to place any restrictions on dog use, setting up the bloody wolf-dog encounters.

A Dane County judge ruled hunters can run dogs on wolves during the season but can’t train them on wolves the rest of the year.

The 4th District Court of Appeals on Thursday found the training prohibition has no legal effect and hunters can train dogs on wolves.

Jodi Habush Sinykin, an attorney for the humane societies, says the decision creates more urgency to change state law to clearly ban dog use on wolves.

Sadism and extreme bloodlust win the day again in Wisconsin. The DNR will now be taking their bear hounder written “training rules” before the state Natural Resources Board at a future date. This is the same Natural Resources Board that is stacked with agriculture and hunting group lobbyists. In fact this guy:

Gregory Kazmierski, Secretary

President and Owner, Buck Rub Outfitters Ltd. Appointed May 1, 2011. Term expires May 1, 2017.

N13 W28400 Silvernail Rd.
Pewaukee WI 53072
262-547-0535

is the founder of the hunting lobbying group the “Hunters Rights Coalition” and is or was the Chairman of the Dairyland Committee for Wisconsin’s Safari Club International. So who is part of the “Hunters Rights Coalition?”

The coalition includes the Wisconsin Bear Hunters Association, the state chapters of Safari Club International, and Wi-Force (Wisconsin Firearm Owners, Ranges, Clubs & Educators.)

Who is the paid lobbyist for all of these groups including the “Hunters Rights Coalition?” None other than former state senator Bob Welch. In fact the Wisconsin Bear Hunters Association and the kill everything Wisconsin Chapter of Safari Club International are members of the hunter stacked DNR “Wolf Advisory Committee” that “recommend a yearly wolf kill quota. After the sham committee “recommends” the kill quota it goes to the very Natural Resources Board that seats none other than “Hunters Rights Coalition” founder Greg Kazmierski. In fact the “Coalition’s” own paid lobbyist, Welch, testified before Kazmierski’s board a few weeks back before they rubber stamped the current wolf kill quota of 156. From this article about the Board’s June 25th meeting:

Bob Welch says the number would ensure a wolf density both the landscape and residents can support. Welch represents the Hunters Rights Coalition.

“The goal is 350, don’t change that goal, a lot of people are saying change that goal, the goal was set for a reason,” Welch says.”I want to say, we don’t hate wolves – we manage wildlife and we think it should be based on science.”

After several hours of listening, the Natural Resources Board issued a speedy vote.

Of course they issued a “speedy vote.” They care nothing for what the public thinks only for what their own lobbyists and DNR shills think. Seem a little fishy? Or maybe a lot fishy? How is it not a conflict of interest to have the FOUNDER of a lobbying group sit on the very board and vote for proposals that their paid lobbyist testifies for? How is it not a conflict of interest that the FOUNDER of this “Coalition” gets to vote on proposals that members of the “Coalition” he FOUNDED put forward? 

This very conflict of interest will soon be put to the test when Kazmierski and the Natural Resources Board vote in the future on dog “training” rules against wolves. In other words the rules, likely written by “Coalition” and “Wolf Advisory Committee” members the WBHA and SCI, will be voted on by the the FOUNDER of the “Coalition” that they belong to. Nope, no conflict of interest here. None at all.

This comes on top of former real estate developer and high school graduate turned DNR Secretary, Cathy Stepp, admitting that pro-wolf groups were explicitly excluded from the “Wolf Advisory Committee” in favor of pro-killing and extremist hunting groups like the Wisconsin Bear Hunters Association, Wisconsin Wildlife Federation, and Safari Club International. From the article:

Department of Natural Resources Secretary Cathy Stepp revealed at a DNR Board meeting on Wednesday that the agency removed people who were staunchly opposed to wolf hunting from the state’s Wolf Advisory Committee.

While a lot of the public discussion during the meeting was about a new wolf hunting quota, some of it was also about a change over the last two years in the makeup of the DNR’s advisory committee on wolves.

Stepp confirmed what her critics have alleged: that wolf hunting opponents were by and large kicked off the committee.

“When we’re charged to manage and to implement a hunt, coming in and telling us, ‘Don’t hunt wolves,’ is not a productive way to run a committee, frankly,” said Stepp. “That’s just the candid way to lay it out. We had to have people who were willing to work with us in partnership, and be willing to help us and advise us along the way in implementing state law.”

Yes Cathy, you are charged with implementing a hunt derived from a bill that was WRITTEN by the very lobbying groups that now control your committee. Apparently they are the only ones that deserve a say in how Wisconsin wildlife is “managed.”

Between the courts favoring the slaughter of wolves, the DNR in bed with extreme hunting groups, the state legislature pandering to anti-wolf factions, and the Natural Resources Board taking testimony from their own paid lobbyists and voting on the lobbyist’s proposals, the deck is certainly stacked against wolf/wildlife advocates in this state. That is why we need you, the general public, to educate your friends, family, and acquaintances about what is really happening to wolves and other wildlife in this state. Believe it or not most people are either indifferent or have no clue about the sheer brutality and sadism that is allowed and even encouraged by our state.

Not only will hounders be able to “train” their dogs against wolves they will also continue to receive $2500 payouts for each dog allegedly killed by wolves. While the DNR claims that hounders actively engaged in “hunting or training” dogs against wolves will not get a payout all the hounder has to do is say that they were “hunting coyotes” and a nice fat $2500 check gets put in their hands if one of their dogs just happens to be killed by a wolf. It doesn’t matter if you are a repeat claimant or even a criminal. If you are a sadistic hounder that uses dogs as a weapon and one gets killed by a wolf you get a payout. Nice gravy train for reckless hounders that pretend their dogs are “family” yet use them to fight other animals.

Are you proud of Wisconsin being the ONLY state that allows dogs to be used against wolves? Are you proud of being the Blood Sport Capital of the United States? Because we are. If you care help do something about it and educate those around you. Please.