Frogs, Toads and Best Available Science

As was advertised here on Amador Community News and elsewhere Congressmen McClintock and Nunes held a hearing on August 6th in Sonora regarding the designation of over two million acres as critical habitat for various frogs and toads. What follows is an observation of one element of that hearings’ discussion and a response an environmentalist’s letter to the editor in a Sonora area newspaper.  Since this argument hasn’t changed regular readers will notice that I have repeated prior statements.

At the hearing the US Fish and Game representative repeatedly stated that they would use the “best available science”. In 1930’s Germany the best available science proved racial superiority. In the former Soviet Union the best available science, Lamarckism evolution, would create the new socialist person within a few generations. In present day America the best available science says that a former rat poison ingredient, Sodium Fluoride, must be added to our drinking water for its dental health benefits. Science is in service to the mega corporations and the government (see who funds research). Probably the most blatant example of official science/best available science is the total fraud of climate change.

Climate change is one of the reasons noted by Justin Augustine from Oakland’s Center for Biological Diversity for the designation of over two million acres as critical habitat. He also gives pesticide use as another reason.  Who is using pesticides in the National Forests? I know of no one and if he does he should come forward with that information. Another of his reasons is habitat loss. Not only have the boundaries of the National Forests not changed, but vast amounts of land in California has been added to parks, preserves, conversation easements, etc. Go to the El Dorado National Forest website, look up Indian Creek and see the vast sums of public money being spent on building new frog habitat. He also cites introduced species as a cause. This is correct because California Fish & Game has introduced non native fish into higher elevation lakes. Has this stopped? Has the Center for Biological Diversity lobbied against this practice? His last reason of disease is also true; a parasite from the imported African claw frog is killing local species. But how does the designation fight the disease? It has been fought in San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park and on the grounds of UC Davis. And while I object to the cost, I would not publicly oppose the breeding in captivity of healthy allegedly endangered or threatened species and their release into the wild.

Mr. Augustine stated that the designation opponents don’t understand the Endangered Species Act and that it won’t cost jobs or restrict access. When he says that “This is simply untrue” I suggest that he look into the mirror regarding who is lying. He has chosen to ignore the track record of the Forest Service and their litigious environmental allies in closing roads and banning logging and grazing.  Grazing is essential for the health of our Sierra ecosystems. Over 40,000 elephants were killed in Africa because the prior best available science said otherwise. Go to Allan Savory’s videos on YouTube for proof.

What Mr. Augustine ignores or is uninformed about is that this designation is part of a larger program to depopulate the rural areas (Agenda 21) and to destroy the middle class as a precondition to a possible totalitarian state. The boisterously clapping participants at the recent hearing are well aware of this reality.

Copyright 2013, Mark L. Bennett