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Posts: 25
| From the League of Wisconsin Conservation Voters:
Wisconsin has always been a leader in conservation, in large part because Aldo Leopold created the Natural Resources Board to be the citizens' voice for our natural resources. The Board – made up of well-informed citizens from across the state – helps the DNR set scientifically sound natural resource management policies. Oh, and did I mention that it costs the state of Wisconsin nothing ?
Sounds like a pretty great deal for the DNR and for Wisconsin! But Governor Walker's budget kneecaps the Natural Resources Board, stripping it of its authority and turning it into nothing more than an advisory committee.
So what does that mean for our natural resources? With the Board silenced, Governor Walker's DNR Secretary, Cathy Stepp – a developer by trade – gets to decide which of our public lands get sold off. That's right, instead of informed citizens, scientists, and conservationists deciding which public lands to buy and which to sell, a developer will be making key decisions about the future of Wisconsin's treasured public lands. Without oversight, Cathy Stepp can set her own rules about which of our public lands should stay public. And that means she will have free reign to sell any public land she wants, when she wants. This level of unchecked power is unprecedented.
What are your thoughts guys?
Edited by muskybites 2/11/2015 3:50 PM
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| I am guessing Sled is behind this, he has a big crush on Walker. |
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Posts: 4343
Location: Smith Creek | Not surprised.
Expect GTAC and the Koch Bros. to start buying up huge tracts of public land. And expect to be told it's for our own good (job creation).
But the budget hasn't passed yet. There's a small chance it will revised by the mostly Republican legislature. |
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Location: Rhinelander, Wisconsin | I am not much of a fan of the Conservation Congress and the entire process needed to acquire changes to our regulations.
I've seen biologists unable to do what's best for the waters and woods they manage because they have to ask you and me if we like it first, and then run it by endless public bandying. Simple needed adjustments to issues like bag limits are turned down because of the Spring hearing vote decided by a tiny number of vocal citizens. I've also seen what the public wants and voted for repeatedly held up by the Board.
Now, we need to have the DNR Secretary elected...not appointed by the Governor.
Any government official who wants to have a job in the future needs to be sure the public good is front and center. If she 'steps' too far over the line, there will be hell to pay. |
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Location: minocqua, wi. | he's gonna shake up the corruption in the UW system too ... more doing things that he promised to do earning him yet another election. |
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Posts: 8780
| sworrall - 2/11/2015 6:06 PM
I am not much of a fan of the Conservation Congress and the entire process needed to acquire changes to our regulations.
I've seen biologists unable to do what's best for the waters and woods they manage because they have to ask you and me if we like it first, and then run it by endless public bandying. Simple needed adjustments to issues like bag limits are turned down because of the Spring hearing vote decided by a tiny number of vocal citizens. I've also seen what the public wants and voted for repeatedly held up by the Board.
Now, we need to have the DNR Secretary elected...not appointed by the Governor.
Any government official who wants to have a job in the future needs to be sure the public good is front and center. If she 'steps' too far over the line, there will be hell to pay.
I'm not saying the system isn't flawed. But what would it look like if the interested parties actually showed up at the hearings and voted for what they believe in? |
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Location: Rhinelander, Wisconsin | An even bigger mess? |
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Posts: 8780
| sworrall - 2/11/2015 7:03 PM
An even bigger mess?
Quite possibly... Being that the general public is largely uninformed and only has their own personal interests in mind, I can only imagine what the results would be in the long run.
I'd tout the benefits of a "Government for The People and by The People", but knowing who "The People" were that introduced that concept in the first place, I'm not sure that would benefit the public at large. When they said "We the People" they were referring to themselves, NOT the great unwashed public. 240 years later, and not much has changed... |
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| good riddance. the idea of the CC and NRB actually making decisions on resource management is an anachronism whose time is long past. maintaining the tradition of organized citizen input for advisory purposes is a good one.
it's right and proper for the governor to appoint department heads to run the government in a way that's consistent with his/her vision and policies. these branches of government are all under his executive authority, so he should be able to appoint the key leaders; electing them would result in potential conflict and inefficiencies.
of course, i too want a DNR that's operating in an evidence-based manner and with all of our interests in mind...and the sky isn't falling in terms of resource management despite all the fear-mongering about it. if you don't like what how the secretary leads a department like the DNR, elect a different governor who will appoint a different department head. if you do like what occurs, re-elect the governor who's making that happen.
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Posts: 5874
| PHISHMAN - 2/12/2015 8:02 AM I sure am happy I moved from Wisconsin. So are we!
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Posts: 688
Location: Northern IL | I don't even live in WI and it makes me happy  |
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Posts: 337
Location: Watersmeet, Michigan | I'd sure hate to see Wisconsin follow the path of resource mismanagement so long prevalent here in Michigan. 
Fr. K |
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Posts: 457
| Or you could live in the land of Lincoln and have virtually no public land to hunt or fish. Then you wouldn't have to worry about selling off any public land, or buying more. |
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| The problem with stating that the professionals will now be in charge is that Walker's new budget calls for dramatic cuts to the science staff at the DNR, with a minimum of 18 full time scientists being cut. When questioned about this Walker casually stated that if they needed scientists, they could hire consultants on an as needed basis. If they need scientists??? |
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Location: minocqua, wi. | anybody see when and where the public land auction is scheduled? |
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Posts: 910
Location: Hastings, mn, 55033 | Thankfully only 10 more years until I am able to become an expat and really choose where to call home. With where this country was just 6 short years ago I am dumbfounded by the way so many want a return to that very thing. I guess I shouldn't be, as VERY FEW of them recalled the exact same "crisis" happening a short 20 years prior, but I am. The attention span in this nation is just downright pathetic.
Edited by castmaster 2/14/2015 12:57 PM
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Posts: 358
| I have not learned to speak without thinking.....I'm not a Politician ! Thank God ! |
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