Why I believe that emotionally charged 
direct action, 
(or peaceful civil disobedience), 
will not help to save our Idaho Gray Wolves 
in the long run

http://keepwolveslisted.blogspot.com/2014/06/radical-emotional-charged-pro-wolf.html

Ok.
I’ve held off from addressing this again, as I have a life, and this seemed like mud wrestling at this point.
But there is a serious concern at play.
There is another protest planned for July 1. 2014, in Boise, Idaho by Howl4Wolves in conjunction with Wolves and Wildlife and Action (WWA).
I COULD NOT DISAGREE MORE WITH THESE FOLKS IF MY LIFE DEPENDED ON IT.

This comes on the tail of two days of workshops focusing on non lethal wolf control in Idaho, held by Defenders of Wildlife and Wood River Wolf River project, geared at teaching methods towards a peaceful compromise for this siege on wolves.

The bottom line for our war on wolves, is that wolves present a threat to ranchers who raise sheep and cattle for a living. Especially if the livestock are grazing on public lands. But it does not need to be a war, as ranchers have methods of deterring wolves from predation. It is called non lethal wolf control, and you can read about it here:
http://keepwolveslisted.blogspot.com/p/predator-friendly-non-lethal-predator.html

Defenders of Wildlife have been working peacefully for seven years now on non-lethal predation control methods, to find a long term, co-existence solution to this vitriolic, contentious battle between pro wolves and those whose existence is threatened by the presence of wolves, to their livelihood as ranchers.

Last night, after posting that very positive news about the co-existence workshops, a fellow activist leveled this at me. My replies are non italicized:

Heidi, your Governors might say they are going to protect the Wolf,but people lie, you know! US Fish and Wildlife Services people seem to all belong to the Shooters Party,and they are very strong, that is why Obama can't do anything to help! Protesting not "civil disobedience" is every persons right, at least in Australia and it has worked often here. If I was living in US, I would join the Protestors! Good on them! Being nice, does not work in extreme cases like this! You said, that there are Hunters all over the world. True! To me all of them are insane, like the Serial Killers, murderers, animals matter just as much as people do, if not more! They all have a Soul, same as we do! Do you hunt, do you own a gun, Heidi? I was just wondering, because you sometimes seem to be defending Hunters! To me, they are all Murderers and Evil Monsters!

I do not own a gun.
It is getting late, so I will refrain from responding to you in the same tone that you have addressed me.

I was not blaming you! It's just, that sometimes you have things wrong!:))

No, I don't have it wrong.

We are spending money we do not have in continuous litigation, we are becoming more and more unyielding on either side, be it prowolf or anti-wolf, and now activists are attacking activists who disagree with one another.

Co-existence with the ranching industry is a very positive step in ending wolf deaths, as there will be far less predation, calling for the removal of "problem wolves".

Wolf activism is getting ugly, folks, when activists turn on one another.
I’ve only been entrenched for a year in my second round of activism for wolves, and my life took a hit. My reputation as a legitimate activist was called into question a few times now, the first time because I saw the danger in wolf trap sabotage, and spoke out about it. 
At first, it seemed like a good idea to dismantle a trap, but then my dear friend Janet explained to me what it would result in. Wolf deaths caused out of sheer retaliation by wolf trappers who caught activists illegally dismantling their traps.
http://nowolfhaters.blogspot.com/2013/08/sometimes-i-am-really-wrong.html

This time my wolf activism was questioned by one of the folks who is calling for direct action via civil disobedience. Twice. Publicly. This is the second round, that was published as a comment in the Idaho Statesman online newspaper:

Katsumi, the actions you are advocating worry me for this reason:

I do NOT want Governor Butch Otter to be re elected. He hates wolves. So does Jeff Siddoway. There are politicians in Idaho that make it difficult for pro wolves, but having a faction of pro wolves charge at them sure as hell will not help our cause.

So, the news about the last "civil disobedience" plan is below. 

And for the record? I am not the one to call it peaceful civil disobedience. That is in the post announcing the event, and in the newspaper article documenting the last event. So, for that be thrown at me, as originating from me , is simply ridiculous.
This is the last time I will be posting something like this on this blog, G+, or Twitter. 

Two years of involvement online for our Buddies have taught me a few lessons. 

Activist rage does not stop abuse, hunting, nor turn carnivores into vegans. I can't deal with it, and I'm an activist. People who scream in my direction can be assured that I have tuned them out immediately.

Activists are not immune to ego posturing and hurting one another, in order to feel that they are the more effective activist. That's a shame, as we were supposedly all working towards the goal of helping our Buddies. So the Buddies suffered.

It's a bad idea to be flippant towards your elected government officials, when you are requesting that they change a law. Director Dan Ashe, and Secretary Sally Jewell, I sincerely apologize for my demeanor when I addressed you during the delisting comment period. Not my proudest moments by far.

Other than posting the Monday wolf actions for the week, I am finished with monitoring wolf activism here. 
Enough is enough.
Good luck folks, and Wolves.
Please think about what we are doing, and why we are doing it.
~Heidi


Wolf lovers meet with Otter at Idaho Capitol protest
Posted by Rocky Barker on May 19, 2014 
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Spiritual leader Jimmy St. Goddard holds lighted wheatgrass in front of the Idaho State Capitol during a small protest against the killing of wolves in Idaho. Monday May 19, 2014
KYLE GREEN — kgreen@idahostatesman.com Buy Photo
They back off civil disobedience after he talks to them
National pro-wolf advocates didn’t get the 250 protesters they hoped would join their call Monday for Idaho Gov. Butch Otter’s resignation for allowing Idaho to kill hundreds of wolves.

And they dropped their plans for civil disobedience Monday after Otter’s staff and then Otter himself met with them to discuss wolf policy. Only 19 people showed up at the Capitol carrying signs and howling in protest of Idaho’s policy to reduce wolf numbers by official killing, hunting and trapping.

Led by Blackfeet traditional chief Jimmy St. Goddard, of Montana, the group of mostly Baby Boomers from the Wolf and Wildlife and Action Group, called on Otter to stop the killing of wolves or resign.

The wolves belong to the American people, the indigenous people,” said Clarisa Damron, one of the protest’s organizers from Kansas.

Eventually they worked their way into the Governor’s office where Steve Goodson, Otter’s natural resources specialist met them and brought them to a conference room to discuss their issues. Meanwhile Otter finished a meeting with Secretary of State Ben Ysursa and was chatting with me in the hallway. Damron came over and asked him if he was going to protect animals indiscriminately killed by snares aimed at catching wolves.

Otter suggested she talk to the Idaho Department of Fish and Game, then explained Idaho's concerns with protecting endangered species and Otters. Damron didn’t get it right away but then Otter laughed and she laughed with him.

Then Otter told her he and Idaho were keeping their commitments to protect wolves at a minimum number of 150, reminding her he and the state government never wanted the wolves in the first place.

More of the group joined the conversation and Otter remained pleasant, eventually breaking off to return to his office.

I wrote earlier that if pro-wolf advocates wanted to help Otter build his credibility with the anti-wolf elements of the Idaho GOP they couldn’t have found a better way than to plan civil disobedience on behalf of wolves the day before the Idaho primary election.

Since most of the Republican Party in Idaho has opposed in one fashion or the other the reintroduction and the remarkable growth of the wolf population over the last 19 years, the protesters may actually may help Otter in his primary race against State Sen. Russ Fulcher, and now perhaps Harley Brown, the biker whose Idaho Public Television debate performance last week made the nation laugh and may help him to become a factor in the race.

Read more here: http://www.idahostatesman.com/2014/05/19/3191581/wolf-lovers-plan-civil-disobedience.html#storylink=cpy