Monthly Archives: September 2016

“The fall of Empire, gentlemen, is a massive thing, however, and not easily fought. It is dictated by a rising bureaucracy, a receding initiative, a freezing of caste, a damming of curiosity—a hundred other factors. It has been going on, as I have said, for centuries, and it is too majestic and massive a movement to stop.”   ― Isaac Asimov, Foundation

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Washington, DC — The U.S. Bureau of Land Management is carrying out an ambitious plan to map ecological trends throughout the Western U.S. but has directed scientists to exclude livestock grazing as a possible factor in changing landscapes, according to a scientific integrity complaint filed today . . .

In the face of this reaction, BLM initially deferred a decision but ultimately opted to – Updated and still exists today = Evidence, Base Information in research reports from government, and some colleges, do not mention Cattle what so ever, in their Data-Gathering . . . which would be 80& plus of an Honest Research Paper — Ratios of Cattle to Wild Horses 80 : 01. . .

1. Remove livestock grazing from all Eco-regional assessments, citing insufficient data.  As a result, the assessments do not consider massive grazing impacts even though trivial disturbance factors such as rock hounding are included; and
2. Limit consideration of grazing-related information only when combined in an undifferentiated lump with other native and introduced ungulates (such as deer, elk, wild horses and feral donkeys). — Posted on Nov 30, 2011 GRAZING PUNTED FROM FEDERAL STUDY OF LAND CHANGES IN WEST    http://www.peer.org/news/news-releases/grazing-punted-from-federal-study-of-land-changes-in-west.html

   {In 2013 they denied further cattle being mentioned (i.e. ongoing at this time as well), or examined within any Rangelands Studies, Research, Science Data Gathering, and all around worthless science – paid for by American Taxpayer dollars!  AS they explain here}

In reaching this conclusion, BLM ignored meeting minutes produced by PEER in which BLM managers are quoted saying that study of grazing impacts would concern “stakeholders” and the Washington Office due to “fear of litigation.” The claim that the real reason was lack of data does not hold water because:

Attempts to exclude grazing began at the earliest stages of the study, before data availability was even examined. Further, BLM assertions of data gaps were never examined, let alone verified;

Other factors being studied, such as invasive species, also have data gaps but these issues did not prevent invasive species from being selected as a study focus; and

BLM managers hid the existence of a major livestock database which was never given to researchers.

“Caught with its pants down, BLM would have us believe it is wearing ankle warmers,” stated PEER Executive Director Jeff Ruch, noting that the $40 million study was the biggest in BLM history but will end up being largely useless. “As by far the biggest disturbance factor on Western range lands, commercial livestock grazing simply cannot be left out of a scientific landscape assessment.” Posted on Jan 24, 2013 BLM SAYS IT CANNOT TRACK CATTLE ON ITS LANDS http://www.peer.org/news/news-releases/blm-says-it-cannot-track-cattle-on-its-lands.html

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One of the major problems we have with the Bureau of Land Management, as well as many of the non-profits now associated with them — i.e. BLM supporters Pesticide PZP Advocates – pushing dishonest science information and outright misinformation to the taxpayer public favorable to BLM and Wild Horse Extinction only, but there exists other options, several . . .  and this is unacceptable!

Of note:  these non-profit supporters to include the Humane Society, WHE, Cloud Foundation, AWHPC, Freedom for Horses, lack credibility, as well as no credibility with their pesticide known as PZP and due to nothing more than no present factual information, and truth — factual scientific information is indeed contrary to their misinformation — as shown above — the consistency of so many facts left out, and misinformed over-population of wild horses (they are not what so ever over-populated on Public Lands and BLM and their information, and specifically information left out of their statistics and assumptions, are in truth very crucial toward truth, but left out — with truthful facts showing no over-population of wild horses at all); thereby, BLM and their supporters lack any factual information to support their assumption they give to the public and taxpayers.  They have no credibility what so ever, other than $$$$$.

When all remarks, statements and research data was taken out of the Rangelands Studies and Research, and Scientific Research on Public Lands – demanded in 2011 by Bureau of Land Management to Not Include any information in regard to cattle (only under specific circumstances favorable to cattle only) on Public Lands, nor Grazing Permit issues –

Then yes, absolutely, we as American Taxpayers have problems from them and their exclusion of information damaging to the approval of future budgets, et al.  Then to generate, or develop within any capacity for credible and very costly monitoring programs, any Rangelands Studies, any Science when BLM involved, as well as the aptitude and education of those doing the monitoring program (the BLM supporter base $$$$ and conflicts of interest = special interest monitoring only) and gathering information about Public Lands, is nothing more than a dishonest endeavor.

There is no credibility here with any of those organizations, and Conflict of Interest very much alive and abundant within the BLM and the BLM Supporters $$$$$$$ . . . and within welfare ranching and Grazing Permit Programs. . .

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 “Always listen to experts. They’ll tell you what can’t be done, and why. Then do it.” ― Robert A. Heinlein, Time Enough for Love

Sometimes within the dynamics of writing, we start with a subject or attempt at informative resolution.  Suddenly the writing takes on a personality, a form, and conducts itself to obvious resolutions.  This is where we not only learn more from, and about, the specific problem, but the nature of ourselves, as well.

Interesting how this interaction can envelop into our interactions with our personal horses, as well as with the wild horses – I cannot but agree in total, horses give us something special indeed – they also give of themselves for us, to learn this . . . and give to many Ecological Systems their natural abilities to enhance them – much different than what the convoluted and corrupt government agencies and welfare ranchers want us to believe – but they are corrupt . . . and we, well, many of us are not corrupt at all . . . Honesty wins, believe it or not, and no matter during the down and out times, honesty will win . . . make no doubt about it.

Things are confusing for everyone in today’s deception and convoluted world of outright lies, especially in the realm of information gathering.  It is no different with the Wild Horses on our Public Lands.  Sadly, there exist those that will exploit and even capitalize on this situation.  Today, this is what we are seeing, becoming more consistent than ever before in history, and as the situation for the Wild Horses becomes worse and tomorrow will be even worse yet, and as the days move onward.

Profoundly, what is lost to us all is the very premise, the basis of what it is we are attempting to achieve.  Non-profits, for example, and the very premise of their operational aspects, is to receive donations from those separate and apart from the situation they advocate for; which, in this case it is in order to remain neutral, and the decisions based on truth, non-manipulated of a special-interest concern, or paid-for and bought actions and decisions; which, in this case is advocating for the Wild Horses as a priority, and not as a secondary situation while making money the priority.

“To stand in front of a watering hole, with a small herd of wild horses (if indeed they were, as there seems to be a debate on this as well), and stating there is an over-population of wild horses, is nothing more than a gimmick, a ploy, basically to spread misinformation.  The scene was not truth, but rather deceptive.  The fact is, along the same route of deception, one can also stand in the middle of any land mass, and since there is nothing seen other than vegetation and sky, we certainly do not develop the mind-set that we are the only being in existence on the face of our planet!  Ignorance is quite obvious at times, is it not?  It has come to the point that people are going to have to start thinking for themselves; yes, some things are reasonable, and other things are obvious and very dubious at best – key word here is the term “Obvious”!”

True non-profits make this distinction quite well, and remain within their appropriate ethical boundaries.  But, we have many non-profits today that have lost this ideology of Humane Principle’s and ethical boundaries alike.  In the case of America’s Wild Horses, this did and remains, creating tremendous problems for the Wild Horses, as they get closer and closer to the reality – Extinction!

To do this, one must always be aware of the ethical boundaries, the situations to avoid, as well as knowledge in the matters of what issues to resolve.  What becomes a truthful priority, is the distance so to speak, from the corruption . . . and becomes very important to not become part of the corruption.

One must remain neutral and not obtain money within grants or payroll, from the very government agencies or people who are corrupt.  In this case scenario, those who abuse or mismanage our Wild Horses on Public Lands – and are obviously corrupt themselves.

Working within the corruption is not an option, especially in order to save the Wild Horses.  If done, this is when the non-profits step into the realm of Conflict of Interest, and within questionable realms of ethics, ideology, misinformation and lies to cover-up their questionable conduct and actions, and illegal activity.  But there is a history of these exact situations, as we see when perusing the actual history and problems of returning America’s Wild Horses to their legal homelands, and rid our nation of the very corrupt government agencies that are paid to manage our Wild Horses appropriately, but do not do so what so ever.

The Wild Horses become neutralized, and obviously if receiving any type of funds from the corrupted source, or those who mis-manage our Wild Horses, then obviously the situation for the Wild Horses becomes, indeed, much worse.  Today this is an ongoing situation with a few non-profits, and the Wild Horses lose – onward to their road to extinction = Reality!

Wild Horse and Burro Act of 1971

Often it is a good thing to step back into the realms of basics, of the very premise of our own mind-set.  So let’s meander into the Law that was established to protect America’s Wild Horses.  Here we will find, and discuss openly, why many of us got involved in saving the Wild Horses.

The truth is, Laws are being broken daily by those that taxpayer’s pay to manage our Wild Horses = Corruption.  Yet, there seems to be so much misinformation, cover-ups, and excuses, that we have lost sight of the very Laws that are meant to “Protect America’s Wild Horses” – and let us not forget these are America’s Wild Horses, as explained in the very premise of the Wild Horse and Burro Act of 1971:

“. . . Congress finds and declares that wild free-roaming horses and burros are living symbols of the historic and pioneer spirit of the West; that they contribute to the diversity of life forms within the Nation and enrich the lives of the American people; and that these horses and burros are fast disappearing from the American scene. It is the policy of Congress that wild free-roaming horses and burros shall be protected from capture, branding, harassment, or death; and to accomplish this they are to be considered in the area where presently found, as an integral part of the natural system of the public lands.”

This is a truth.  The government agency meant to abide by this, convolutes the law entirely, for nothing more than special interests!  And this is Wrong for them to do!  And at the same time these disgusting people wave the American Flag, talk of patriotism, and yet destroy such a significant Icons as the Wild Horses!  This simply makes no sense to many American’s!

So we do not run wayward, let’s first define what a Wild Horse is, as defined by this Law (not someone’s perception or convoluted idea of the Law), as there seems to be a lot of “other” situations develop that confuses this issue – the purpose here is not to go over the entire WH&B Act of 1971, but reacquaint ourselves with the pertinent information within the Law itself:

WH&B Act 1971 — 1332 Definitions:  . . .

(b) “wild free-roaming horses and burros” means all unbranded and unclaimed horses and burros on public lands of the United States;

(c) “range” means the amount of land necessary to sustain an existing herd or herds of wild free-roaming horses and burros, which does not exceed their known territorial limits, and which is devoted principally but not necessarily exclusively to their welfare in keeping with the multiple-use management concept for the public lands;

(d) “herd” means one or more stallions and his mares; and

(e) “public lands” means any lands administered by the Secretary of the Interior through the Bureau of Land Management or by the Secretary of Agriculture through the Forest Service.

1333 Powers and Duties of the Secretary:  “. . . The Secretary shall manage wild free-roaming horses and burros in a manner that is designed to achieve and maintain a thriving natural ecological balance on the public lands. He shall consider the recommendations of qualified scientists in the field of biology and ecology, some of whom shall be independent of both Federal and State agencies . . .”

16 U.S. Code § 1338 – Criminal provisions: . . .

(a) Violations; penalties; trial Any person who—

(1) willfully removes or attempts to remove a wild free-roaming horse or burro from the public lands, without authority from the Secretary, or

(2) converts a wild free-roaming horse or burro to private use, without authority from the Secretary, or

(3) maliciously causes the death or harassment of any wild free-roaming horse or burro, or

(4) except as provided in section 1333(e) of this title, processes or permits to be processed into commercial products the remains of a wild free-roaming horse or burro, or

(5) sells, directly or indirectly, a wild free-roaming horse or burro maintained on private or leased land pursuant to section 1334 of this title, or the remains thereof, or . . .

(Pub. L. 92–195, § 8, Dec. 15, 1971, 85 Stat. 650; Pub. L. 101–650, title III, § 321, Dec. 1, 1990, 104 Stat. 5117; Pub. L. 108–447, div. E, title I, § 142(b), Dec. 8, 2004, 118 Stat. 3071.) 16 U.S. Code Chapter 30 – WILD HORSES AND BURROS: PROTECTION, MANAGEMENT, AND CONTROL

Corruption Exemplified – Taxpayer Dollars!

So what is this corruption that we speak of most often?  Now we can step into the situations primarily ignored by the Bureau of Land Management (noted here as BLM).  Here, exemplified within the following example, is where the corruption takes place, as America’s Wild Horses disappear from BLM inventories (to slaughter, to KB’s in the field or disappear from BLM or other holding corrals illegally, et al.) — as we have found within their inventory system and documents over the years – a simple and very brief synopsis here to show one example, of many more examples available, of their corruption.

Previously, we found within their inventory sheets (and their common $$$ rates of roundup expenditures paid to their government contractors), $345 million dollars paid out to government contractors for Dead Horses, left on the range or non-existent.  This was over a few-year time period, and within regional areas, to include much of the Northwest and Murderer’s Creek being one of a few others, et al., out of the Burns, Oregon Administrative Unit.  These Dead Horses were not loaded onto the transport vehicles to the Burns Corrals, but all supposedly Dead before loading – as we were told they do not load Dead Horses.

The problem here?  Well, quite obvious corrupt activity, illegal and Fraudulent, to say the least.  So American taxpayer’s pay for Dead Horses (i.e. millions of dollars’ worth of dead horses, and without explanation), and to government contractors, specifically within that area (friends and family of BLM employees).  This makes the process obviously corrupt, since inventories of Wild Horses captured, and loaded supposedly done at the holding corral – trap-site trailer loading site, and counted while loading the trailer appropriately.

It is not within the capacity here to surmise or guess where these Dead Horses were, or how they died, but that indeed, they exist on the Inventory Sheets.  What is not shown is transport from origination to any holding corrals located at BLM or other sites.  So we can, via deductive reasoning, state as a matter of fact the horses either died in the field near the roundup sites, or did not exist at all, and simply outright fraud committed by the on-site personnel, or office personnel back at the Burns, Oregon Administrative offices; whereas, in both situations, by adding the Dead Horses to Inventory, which in reality and quite obviously falsified payment to the government contractors.  The government contracts clear as well, and Dead Horses from the sites not to be an inclusion to inventory – nor to be shown on transport sheets, nor to be shown in Inventory and/or movements, from one corral facility to another (which is yet another vain of corruption that will be discussed later).

Again, the Supervisor and staff were clear in explaining no Dead-Horses were loaded onto trailers, yet could not, nor did not, explain the Dead Horses on the Inventory Sheets (i.e. BLM Inventory Sheets of Wild Horses in captivity – which brings about many more questions here in regard to captivity counts within BLM corrals, as well as other corrupt situations within their inventory or Wild Horses in captivity as well as Wild Horse counts in general).  Then why are the Dead-Horses on the Inventory Sheets – well, as usual no one at BLM can answer the questions put to them – and honesty?  Well, who knows . . .

Keep in mind the BLM does not want to Public to know these Inventory Sheets even eixist, and since publication of some of this information a couple of years ago, we have also been blocked from obtaining further inventory sheets – as a lot of history can be derived from them, as well as horse counts, et al., Information BLM does not want the Public and taxpayer’s to know!  Why is this, as it is our right to know!  Corruption at its worst!

Still, the overwhelming fact is this:  That payment vouchers (i.e. $1,200 per horse captured) to the government contractors from these particular sites, for example, were created from Inventory Sheets produced by the Supervisor (BLM employee) and the staff (forestry employees), in one case scenario, at that location and while loading, for transport to the Burns, Oregon corrals.  This fact undeniable — over-all (from many different sites) $3.45 million dollars’ worth, taxpayer’s money, of undeniable reasons = Fact!

Corrupt History of Ignoring Law & Regulatory Situations (a quick perusal of significant information only)

In 1978 Congress passed the Public Rangelands Improvement Act (PRIA). The PRIA limited adoptions to only four horses a year per individual and allowed BLM to relinquish title to the horse after one year (during which inspections regarding the animal’s treatment were to occur).

The law also required BLM to inventory all feral horse herds, scientifically determine what constituted “appropriate” herd levels, and determine through a public process whether “excess” animals should be removed.  Congress further amended PRIA in 1978 to require updated herd counts – not estimates, but actual Wild Horse Counts . . .

In 2004, Republican Senator from Montana Conrad Burns inserted a rider into the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2005 (a 3,000-page omnibus appropriations bill) which amended the WFRHBA to require the BLM to sell excess animals more than 10 years old or which have been offered for adoption three times.

The amendment also required that excess, unadoptable horses “shall be made available for sale without limitation.”  Burns was reportedly acting on behalf of ranching interests, who wished more of the horses removed from federal land.  The legislation, signed into law by President George W. Bush, was described by one media outlet as “undercutting more than three decades of lobbying and legislative action aimed at protecting America’s wild horses from slaughter”. . .  Adverse to the WH&B Act of 1971

In May, 2005 the “Rahall Amendment” was passed to limit implementation of the Burns amendment by preventing appropriated funds to be used to facilitate the sale and slaughter of protected wild horses and burros.  In the 2007 Interior Appropriations Act the language of Rahall Amendment was re-added. As of August 2012, it remained in effect.

In early 2005, the BLM discovered that some of the excess wild horses it had sold had been slaughtered.   BLM suspended the sales program in April 2005 and resumed it in May 2005 after implementing new requirements to deter buyers from slaughtering the animals. In the fall of 2007, the last three horse slaughterhouses in the United States closed.

In January 2007, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit ruled that a 1949 Texas law banned the possession, transfer, or sale of horse meat. This ruling forced the two slaughterhouses in Texas to close.

In September 2007, the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit upheld a similar ban in Illinois, causing the plant located in that state to close. [a] However, BLM procedures do not ban the export of wild horses for sale and slaughter outside the United States.

In 2008, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) concluded BLM was not in compliance with the 2004 amendment, as the department had imposed limitations on the sale of excess horses to help ensure that they were not slaughtered. The GAO also stated that the BLM had a serious “dilemma” in the need to balance their charge to protect and preserve the feral horses with their charge to destroy or sell without limitation excess animals. It recommended that the BLM “develop cost-effective alternatives to the process of caring for wild horses removed from the range in long-term holding facilities and seek the legislative changes that may be necessary to implement those alternatives”

Conclusion

What is the point to all of this?  Well, information?  First and foremost, we need to be clear about the corruption, how it takes place, what exactly is the ongoing circumstances, and how is it, through deceptions, we are being misled?

The very basic situation, and point to all of this, is the fact that when we see or hear something of a convoluted nature, or something obvious in error or wrong, then look around and hunt for why this deception is even taking place.  There exist many convoluted situations right now, that are simply distractions.

We as well as the Wild Horses, have laws that protect us all.  There exist those that will ignore or even break these laws, for money, for employment, for job security or other circumstances of a human nature to do.  What we do is separate the right from the wrongs, and hopefully can save America’s Wild Horses, as a priority!

Humane Principles, and preserving our truthful heritage and American dynamic, remains very significant to many of us.  To others, well, not so much.  But the responsibility is ours to bring back the heritage, the Iconic symbols of our very life, and Lord knows many have sacrificed for these exact things I speak of, and with their life as well.  America can be strong again, but only through honest and truthful endeavors.

Many of us speak from our hearts, and many Stand and Speak Up for the Wild Horses.  It is just time to do so – as no other greater situation exists right now, but to save those who need defended, from those who want to see them extinct.