Preservation of America's Wildlife

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  • Exploiters & Bottom Feeders – A Cultural Anomaly

    Written and Research
    by
    John Cox, M.A. C/M

    Throughout history, the existence of people who profit from the misfortunes or vulnerabilities of others is a near-universal sociological constant. Someone who uses other people’s troubles, defenseless beings i.e. humans or animals alike, exploitation of ignorant people, entire groups of conditioned-people via propaganda / advertising, weakness, disinformation campaigns, etc., as an opportunity to make money.  Indeed “bottom-feeders” create chaos by reducing clarity, preventing growth (except for their growth, and stirring things up causing others to compete for resources.

    Anthropologists and historians suggest that as social hierarchies and wealth emerge, opportunistic individuals inevitably find ways to exploit structural weaknesses for personal gain. 

    In the past, just as today (tremendous amounts of examples do exist), the “patterns throughout history”, and within reality, still exist.  Public Lands here in America, for example, the Wild Horses, wildlife, waterways and rivers, to name just a few, and administered through exploitation by use of previous cultural heritage exploitation methodology in communication.  The dynamics of Wilderness has changed, to exploit rather than enrich our Society and Cultural Development positively.

    A look at the ubiquity of exploiters across different eras:

    • Classical & Feudal Eras: Elites, warlords, and nobility often extracted disproportionate wealth by monopolizing land and leveraging taxes against impoverished agrarian classes.
    • Colonial & Expansionist Periods: Profiteers frequently built fortunes on forced labor, the displacement of Indigenous populations, and uneven, extractive resource trade.
    • Slavery & Human Trafficking:  Yes, a blight in our World History, and almost every country has developed this, in one way or another throughout history, within many types of exploitation – even today.
    • Modern Markets: Contemporary equivalents persist through predatory lending, insider trading, and corporate practices that prioritize short-term profit over fair labor practices or environmental sustainability.
    • Global Plunder:  Throughout history, imperial powers have enriched themselves by extracting minerals, labor, wildlife sacrificed, lands sacrificed, for the few, from territories meant for the general public, wilderness, and preservation of Natural Resources, and for social elitists to enforce the legitimacy of it all, even though morally and ethically questionable.

    You and I can also discuss Global Supply Chains and transportation, as well as Market Opportunism, but rather, in this discussion, I have covered and exposed the Exploitative as well as “Bottom Feeder Mentality”, and the extreme lengths they will go to, for favorable monetary outcomes.  Taking advantage of people, animals, and circumstances abusively, which indeed, has been a cultural travesty, and remains troubling within many societies. 

    The Greedy Win – The Honest Lose, which is a contradiction to almost every ethical and moral, as well as religious standard, we humans like to assume we live our life in harmony with . . .

    The alternative term I use here, also applicable, “Bottom Feeder” within this context an idiom, describes people who are scavengers, or prey upon the base, unwholesome, or unfortunate aspects of society.  Profiteering from Slaughter of Wildlife (i.e. Wild Horses, Bear, Wolves, Cougar, et al.) or the Overpopulating / Overkill ratios of Livestock, legal or illegal, within an unnecessary capacity, or overabundance, lack moral or ethical characteristics.  While the specific mechanisms and legalities have evolved over time, human nature and economic incentives have continually created environments where these dynamics thrive.

    These historical developmental aspects remain troubling, and one has got to be concerned about how Evolution can assist us, into something far better than exploitation of humans, and the destruction of our Natural World & Resources, we all live upon and within. The necessity is to make it a better place for all, not just a few.

    Left “as is” becomes troubling.  We seem to be evolving, as a “culture” into a deeply intertwined development of coercion, violence, and the unchecked-exploitation of power. 

    While societies continuously develop laws, labor standards, and other regulatory frameworks to mitigate these problems, the desire and drive by the wealthy, to exploit any and all circumstances of our life, remains pertinent, and a recurring element from the negative-side of Darkness, or what we call the human-condition and experience.” – John Cox, M.A. C/M

  • Forests Managed for Production – Wildlife & Terrestrial Secondary

    We Need Sustainability of Wildlife and Our Terrestrial Environments for Lands and Human Health – Priorities Need Changed

    John Cox, M.A. C/M

    Forestry Management Paradigms, despite the Wild Fires, remain favoring (yes – the Special Interest Lobby) logging and industry within our Forests. We often refer to it as Intensive Timber Management or Industrial Forestry; which, prioritizes high-yield wood production, timber stand uniformity, and rapid economic returns.

    This approach fundamentally shapes the forest ecosystem by favoring commercialized-returns by volume over biodiversity. Co-existence, between our Natural Environment and Human’s non-existence, or a very low priority, and Wildlife sustainability even lower.

    Clearly Observed Priorities Unfavorable to Co-Existence

    Aged & antiquated Cultural Heritage once again a fact; whereas, Industrial managers often clear-cut existing diverse forests and replant with a single, highly speculated profitable commercial species (e.g., Douglas-fir in the Pacific Northwest). This creates uniform, single-age stands. Yet, Old-Growth Timber Stands, at times nearby, keep sustainability possible, yet ignored, and often left out of Environmental Impact Statements (EIS) when considering the Clear-Cut, and potential damages to surrounding areas – inclusive of the Old Growth Stands.

    The Short Rotation Cycles of a Reforested-Zone is normal management procedure, in operational aspects of trees that are harvested as soon as they reach commercial maturity. The problem quite obvious, yet ignored — The Clear-Cut done, logs hauled away to the mill, typically long before the biological age when trees would naturally hollow out, fall, and provide diverse habitats.

    Afterwards the Vegetation Habitats,profoundly, are sprayed with Herbicides are often heavily utilized to eliminate broadleaf “weeds” and understory brush that compete with the commercial trees for nutrients and sunlight, directly reducing food and cover for native species.

    For better Reforestation, commercially that is, the Standing dead trees (snags) and large downed logs are frequently removed or burned. In nature, these are essential homes and foraging grounds for birds, amphibians, and small mammals

    When management is stripped of wildlife consideration, the ecosystem shifts in several distinct ways compared to ecological forestry:

    Feature Industrial / Timber-Focused ManagementEcological / Wildlife-Focused Management
    Tree DiversityMonoculture (one or two species planted).Diverse mix of native hardwoods and conifers.
    Dead/Downed WoodCleared out to prevent fire and make logging easier.Preserved on purpose to provide critical habitat.
    StructureUniform, even-aged stands.Varied ages, canopy layers, and open spaces.
    UnderstorySuppressed with herbicides to favor crop trees.Allowed to grow to provide forage and cover.
    Primary GoalMaximize timber board-feet and financial ROI.Enhance ecosystem health and biodiversity.

    While intensive industrial logging is heavily regulated by state and federal forest practices acts to prevent topsoil erosion and massive waterway damage, its core aim remains resource extraction rather than wildlife support.

    Conclusively, the conflicts we do see, easily observed by the way, is the outstanding conflicts in arbitrary logging operations, that damage the surrounding areas, as well as the Logged-Off areas. Something quite a bit more than resolving the issues by Select-Cuts Management. Not only Wildlife ignored in the EIS, but the issue of Sustainable-Forests also in competition with the rush for Dollars and Profits.

    The ultimate results? We see Wildlife coming into areas near homes, or ranches, near suburbs, and supposedly violating some people’s images of where Wildlife has to live, and they have to live — All the While taking away, irresponsibly and unnecessarily, the very Homes where Wildlife live – daily.

    We then move on to Wildfires, and Record Breaking Years for Wildfires, and come up with decisions based upon Profits for Industry, rather than, to conclude, or even resolve the Wildfire problem.

    Do we have a problem with this Cultural Heritage Problem? Absolutely! We seem to invoke, whenever issues develop, and questions asked as to why we have to sacrifice so much, in Our Nation’s Lands and Wildlife. Are Profits for a few, in industry-only, and the hell with Wildlife or the remaining Terrestrial Environment, a fair-bargain for America and American’s? Many American’s will say NO!