Topic started on 16-8-2010 @ 11:32 AM by Springer at AboveTopSecret
Our friend George Knapp called me over the weekend to inform me that the BLM is at it again. As we covered in our ATSNews Video series, the BLM has been rounding up the Federally Protected Wild Mustangs because they claim the range can’t sustain them.
Click on Image
Part one of our video:
www.abovetopsecret.com…
Amazingly, nobody but the BLM believes the range can’t sustain the Mustangs and the U.S. Congress has asked for a real scientific study, done by a third party, to prove it. 54 Members of Congress signed a letter seeking the study and asking the BLM to STOP the roundups until the study is completed.
How did the BLM respond? The pictures and the update from George Knapp below should make it pretty clear how they responded…
Mark,
I’m sending an update to the wild horse situation and thought ATS members might be interested in what is unfolding right at this moment.
The BLM recently concluded yet another horse roundup here in Nevada. More than 30 mustangs died during the roundup. BLM temporarily suspended the operation when 7 horses keeled over dead after being run for many miles during the hottest month of the year, then were unwisely allowed to drink their fill of water. They didn’t stop the operation for long though, and by the time it was over, almost three dozen animals had been killed. There is no question that the mustangs were in good shape while out on the range, or that the range itself is in good shape. I know because I went there myself, as did several others.
Horses didn’t start dying until they were chased for miles by helicopters.
BLM did its best to keep the public from seeing any of this. It declared prior to the roundup that tens of thousands of public acres would be closed off during the roundup, presumably for public safety reasons. BLM even declared the airspace closed, a power which the bureau does not have.
Horse advocates got a federal judge to oder BLM to allow public observers on the open range, but by the time observers tried to get in, the worst of the roundup was already finished. BLM played more games by once again making sure the headquarters for the roundup was on an island of private land in the middle of the public range so that the land owner could declare any observers who came onto his property would be guilty of trespassing. Helpful sheriff’s deputies were out in force to warn away anyone who tried to find the roundup to take pictures or video.
Now, another roundup is underway, the Twin Peaks roundup along the California Nevada border. Observers are still being kept at a distance but managed to collect a few telling photos. The attached shots were sent to me by Craig Downer, the former BLM ecologist who is prominently mentioned in the video you and I produced for ATSNews.
As Craig’s photos attest, rounding up wild horses is dangerous under any circumstances. These are strong, powerful wild animals, and when they get herded for miles across rough terrain, then crammed into corrals or trailers, fights and accidents can happen. It’s why horse advocates believe roundups should not be used unless circumstances demand it.
As you can see form these photos, the mustangs are in excellent shape and the range itself looks healthy. BLM initiated the Twin Peaks roundup for the same reason it justified all the others–to meet its magical AML–appropriate management level, an artificial number pulled out of thin air, having little if anything to do with the reality on the ground. By the way, there was no reduction in the number of cattle being allowed to graze on the very same lands in Nevada and California where the horses were gathered.
Cattle get to stay, but the horses must go.
And now we have hundreds of more horses that will languish for the rest of their lives in government-sponsored pens, most of them on private land where the taxpaying public will not be allowed to see the magnificent animals. Tens of millions of dollars will be spent to feed them for years to come, with only a pittance put into mustang adoption efforts.
And on it goes.
Two weeks ago, 54 members of Congress wrote to the Dept. of the Interior to argue that the wild horse program is broken and needs to be fixed. The BLM essentially flipped them off and informed Congress that is it woefully uninformed about these matters, perhaps reacting to hysteria generated by horse advocates.
I sure hope some of these congressmen realize that they were just told to mind their own business, that BLM has no intention of changing the roundup agenda. I hope ATS members will look at these photos, and read the letter, and maybe send an email to their own members of Congress to suspend these roundups before BLM gets rid of every last horse in the West.
George Knapp
The letter from Congress George mentions above can be found here:
grijalva.house.gov… 30 Letter to Salazar on Reforming Wild Horse Roundup Policies.pdf
The images above tell us all we need to know, the range looks fine (and according to the experts who have walked it, it is fine), the horses are definitely healthy. Yet the BLM is hell bent on removing them, apparently, and according to their critics, to make our Public Lands available for their friends in the Corporate Cattle and Big Oil Industries in spite of the 1971 Law that gave the land to the Mustangs.
What other reason would they have to continue this? We are going to do everything we can to get the truth behind this exposed, and, hopefully make some folks accountable for their actions.
More as we get it.
Springer…
Related articles by Zemanta
- Twin Peaks, CA Roundup (thecloudfoundation.org)
- BLM Helicopter Stampede to put 50% of California’s Wild Horses and Burros behind Bars Forever (ppjg.wordpress.com)
- BLM’s Abbey Escalates Wild Horse Propaganda (rtfitch.wordpress.com)
- BLM’s been Bluffing Public, Press and Politicians over Roundup “No Fly” Zones (ppjg.wordpress.com)
Categories: Horse News, Horse Slaughter, Wild Horses/Mustangs
Straight from the Horse's Heart 
Thank God there’s George who consistently sees the idiocy, the danger and the real reason why our native wild horses and burros are being ripped from the range thus ending the best life availble–the life of FREEDOM. Thank you RT for posting.
LikeLike
We need to climb out of this stinking hole somehow!
LikeLike
Thank you Mark and George for this wonderful piece. And thanks too to KLAS who helped out with the making of both of these pieces.
LikeLike
Margaret, We just can’t thank George and his friends enough. Its hard to see what the horses are suffering in the round ups, and to realize that the damned BLM will NOT stop, No one listens.
But thank you George, and RT and Leigh, and everyone who REALLY cares and can fight.
My daughter who raises cattle in IOWA is hoping that somehow we can save the Mustangs. She grazes and feeds her own cattle, why should others get welfare???
LikeLike
Have no fear! I wrote George several weeks ago to thank him. Wow is all I can say. I write him one night and the next morning there is a reply thanking me from him. It wasn’t a canned response.
I love RT and George. The platonic best kind. Where you see the goodness that is each of these people. RT if you get him going will have falling out of your chair laughing. I would bet he is funny charming and a total hoot in real life.
George doesn’t hold any punches. He tells it like it is. The good the bad and the inbetween. What I like best about George is that he is easy to follow. I don’t have to think. He doesn’t explain things in a condescending way or patronizing. He is a great man.
LikeLike
True JOURNALISM is still alive, thank goodness!
LikeLike
during the protests against the vietnam war, marches for civil rights and womans equality we were called many names including “radicals”..to my way of thinking anyone who sees the status quo and says its not right-is called a terrorist…a direct result of the patriot act and homeland security..not to protect us from outside forces but to manage the citizens of the United States-I had expected this new administration to change those 2 things..and yet they have not…too busy..maybe..but more than likely they are using them as tools in the same way the previous administration did..I see a “Kent State” on the horizon, with unarmed citizens..not out there protesting the roundups on site(and they should be) but just to observe..what lunacy is putting security and police armed with weapons-who obviously think they are bit players in a Terminator movie..in the midst of observers..people who are armed only with notepads and cameras..Just what kind of enforcement training do these BLM employees get that they should be packing weapons?
LikeLike
SCARY think BART police. Oscar never would have been killed if Mesherle hadn’t been armed. And if armed–why didn’t someone in authority have the sense between their two ears to tell the officers–wear your tazer on your non dominate leg and your weapon on the dominant one.
I knew a cop several years ago who was tazered trained. I asked him what the tazer was because at the time I didn’t know. He happily explained why he wore it on his non dominant leg. And it made sense.
Sadly this reminds me of the protestors who went to Washington and the one who was told by some employee that taking pic was a good way to get a shot (mostly paraphased). We don’t know who those BLM cops are? Are they real live cops or are they “rent a cop” ones. Do they know how to de-escalate a bad situation or are they going to go for broke so they can start shooting unarmed civilians?????
LikeLike
Call:
Gov. Schwarzenegger
916-445-2841
(doesn’t matter if it is a Federal agency, it is in his state)
Sen. Boxer: 202-224-3553
415-403-0100
Sen Feinstein:
202-224-3841
LikeLike
Just called Schwarzenegger’s office–no hope there, altho I will contact again. Called Feinstein’s office and the aide read me her letter in which she lists EVERY single lie the BLM has ever spouted as true–they do scientific research to set…..,they get public input……, they close monitor range…………..yada, yada, yada. I told the aide that every thing in that letter was a lie and that the BLM was playing her for a fool. Told them there is no science and imparted the information from GAO and the lack of any degree of scientific integrity. Bottom line is I was given the distinct impression that Feinstein just wants to sweep the issue aside and not deal with it. Well guess what Di? I told her about the lies and the emergency ruse of the BLM in Owyhee. She really does not care. I’m am furious, the lack of knowledge that is present in the local and DC office is just phenomenal. I told the aide that if this is how corrupt the BLM is I am scared to death about CIA and the Defense Dept. At the end I asked her if she thought it was OK that Feinstein supported a corrupt agency on my dime. She wasn’t real nice after that.
LikeLike
Morgan, I am surprised this aide stayed on the phone. But it is very vealing what is going on there. This means people need to meet with them and talk. I hope someone can do this out there. You were great to keep pushing. She apparently thinks that what there position is has justification. Sad to know this is another BLM snow job. It is maddening there is another side and we rarely get to tell it. mar
LikeLike
Morgan I get the typical “I am not on the Energy Committe” line of bull. That she will keep my comments in mind when she goes to vote yada yada yada.
I thought Di was on some oversight committee that funded DOI…if this is so–she doesn’t have to be on the Energy Committee to raise hell about the horses.
I had just posted a comment here a couple of weeks ago. Not 90 secs later my phone rang and it was Lynn Woolsey asking me if I wanted to participate in this phone town hall meeting. Sadly my question was never taken. I have to check my mailbox to find out if she ever wrote me while I was absent. I told her to email me…
This is the best I can do. Find people who are like minded and TALK. Really let them understand that while our first priority are the horses there is a much bigger dishonorable thing going on.
LikeLike
It’s definitely disheartening when they use what committee they are or are not on to hide from further addressing this issue. Let me put this out there. Dianne and the other Senators CAN start to realize they are getting a lot of calls regarding the malfeasance at the BLM and as Congresspersons it IS there job to make sure that there is no graft, corruption or science mandated decisions made using junk science. They are the only ones who can call for a complete Senate investigation–in the Senate not inhouse such as the one going on now. THAT they can’t say is the job of someone else.They can try reading some of the reports released by the government to come up with the idea that maybe there needs to be at least a quick review by their office into the mass of reports concerning BLM and that should lead them to call for a full investigation. OPEN YOUR EYES FEINSTEIN AND OTHER SENATORS
LikeLike
Thank you, George.
The more I read, the more I think that the big issue in some of these areas is mining.
It makes more sense than anything else. The increase in roundups began under the Bush administration, and we know that as much as he loved the land, he was from a big oil background. The West is full of valuable gas and other mineral resources.
I followed up on the idea that if there had been a real emergency at the Owyhee HMA, BLM could have drilled a temporary well because there was a mine in the area using millions of gallons of water a day. That led to another article that said that mine would be closed in five years, and when it is, all kinds of toxic by products will be released with no possible way of stopping them from entering the underground water system. It sounded to me that if the horses stayed there, they would eventually be drinking poinsoned water.
Minerals mining requires a great deal of water, and some of the by-products are the release of toxic amounts of chemicals into the underground water supply. The same water supply that eventually flows into ponds, lakes, rivers, etc. The same water supply that will eventually flow into the water supplies used by people. The first animals to show the effects of drinking toxic water (after frogs—here in the East we’re told to look out for frogs) could be the horses. The horses could show neurological damage, and as I think Ginger pointed out in the podcast last night, dead horses in the area could shut down the mining operation for a time.
Dead animals, especially horses, would be a glaring warning that something was terribly wrong with the environment, and that is the last thing that DOI wants to interfere with its plan to turn our beautiful, pristine environment into Hiroshima. And why do we want to plant an invasive species of trees in Northwest Nevada that could migrate into Northeastern Utah.
Not only must we watch the big Oil and Gas Companies as well as their subsidiaries, but big agriculture companies are just as dangerous. Simplot has over 15 cattle operations on over 2,000,000 of public land, but they also produce fertilizer. That means they neat phosphates, so Simplot is in negotiations to buy public land from the BLM to build a phosphate mine, and if they can not buy it, they want to lease it.
I think if we believe that the cattle industry is the driving force here, we will miss what is really going on. I am not sure it is just mining, but I think we will get closer to the truth if we follow the money, and the way the BLM operates cattle grazing, it might as well be a 501 (c) 3 organization. Follow the money, minerals, and the water.
If I were a cattle rancher in Nevada and some of the other Western states, I would be very, very worried. Although it is illegal for the government to remove a protected species from lands specifically designated for them, it will be easier to deal with ranchers once the horses are gone. And make no mistake about it, a lot of cattle will have to go because poisoned cattle aren’t good for PR either. Of course, the effects of eating cattle who have ingested water laced with poisonous chemicals or who drink the milk of cows drinking polluted water or eat the goat cheese should be a little worried, too.
This story begins with the horses, but it is so much bigger. It is a story about how corruption in one government agency led by a deeply flawed human beings are about to create the second largest man-made disaster in this country. We must save our horses as many as we can, but in the process, we have to get our country out of the hands of people who are so terribly mismatched for the positions they hold.
However, the people of Nevada who will be drinking this
LikeLike
Christie, you are correct – it is mining, oil, gas, and cattle.
Find YouTube Bush, Oil & Mustangs, and watch for Documentaries coming out soon. There is quite a bit more about Ruby Pipeline on TCF.
Cattle need to be removed from Public Lands regardless of the horse issue. It is sucking up tax dollars to go directly to “for profit” corporations who are benefitting financially off of our backs and we get NOTHING in return – most of that beef is exported and the industry employs few people.
Mining, gas, oil and I’ll add renewable energy sources are needed. But it is in the “how, where, why and who benefits” that needs control and regulation. There is no reason these can’t live with the environment if done correctly. Until we as consumers stop sucking up the “need” these will be facts of life. And think how much could get done if cattle were out of the picture all together,
BLM has indicated that they don’t have money or man power to properly inspect these energy developments, but they have plenty of money and time to give observers the run around, hold these ridiculous and inhumane roundups and manage cattle grazing!
Think MMS and the Gulf spill were bad?
LikeLike
The BLM is moving along very swiftly – they have all but silenced public opinion – mainstream media buying the spin – dismissing the representatives letters – in order to remove as many horses as possible before their funds run out, or the hearings in September. Horses are not being observed once “gathered” and slip into the abyss where we have no right to view them. It is all very disheartening. What it signifies is a government out of control of the people or Congress. Today it IS just “follow the money.”
Do not be fooled by the “armed” deputy dogs at BLM but be very wary. Most of our city police departments or even the SWAT teams in smaller cities do not have sufficient tactical training or in depth knowledge of gun laws. This is a fact. BLM carrying guns is another disaster waiting to happen. Since you are now considered an ecoterrorist if your opinion does not jibe with the government’s, it isn’t farfetched that an unarmed “activist” could be shot.
Remember Pat Tillman, who gave up an NFL career to go to Iraq after 9-11? The military transferred him to Afghanistan after he became vocal about the war in Iraq being a sham. He planned on meeting with the media soon. He was eliminated, probably by Delta force, not by “friendlies,” with 3 gunshot wounds to the forehead after he had been shot in the chest, legs and hand. The doctors who viewed his body immediately wanted an investigation but were “hushed.” Then the military and government covered it up, portraying Mr. Tillman as a hero and issuing posthumous medals. When the cover-up was discovered, they merely apologized for their poor judgment but upon testimony their memories failed them. No one has ever been brought to justice or ever will be. We must keep in mind that THIS is the America we live in today, one in which the government is capable of anything.
LikeLike
If they shoot me-they had better finish the job..because I will really not shut up..I’ll still be kickin my coffin cussin them to the bitter end…honestly, I don’t think they could hit the side of the barn..I want my ashes scattered on the Owyhee HMA, with the palamino mare..I will keep her company.
LikeLike
If cattle were removed from the Horses Ranges the horses could stay because the AML would be adjusted. The horses do get removed to have more cattle put on their range very directly. This is also Fraudulent activity. BLM is a Fraud. mar
LikeLike