because we live here lance Waldren 041507

Our Klamath Basin Water Crisis
Upholding rural Americans' rights to grow food,
own property, and caretake our wildlife and natural resources.

Because We Live Here

By Lance Waldren Pioneer Press April 11, 2007

Farmers verses fisherman. Is this the real issue behind the water crisis? This is what the radical environmental groups would have you believe and the message big media has grabbed hold of. The anti-farming position continues to grow by people accepting the argument made by these groups that farming operations located several hundred miles from the ocean are responsible for the fishery restrictions and the coastal crisis.

The truth is that both farmers and fisherman are producers - men and women that get up in the morning and go to work. They scrape out a living from the land and the sea because it is a life and lifestyle that they love. We need to continue to work together cooperatively towards real solutions to these real problems. By doing this, we take away what has been a very successful tool for the environmental groups: divide and conquer.

We need to know our true enemies. We need to understand their tactics and goals.

Groups such as Klamath Forest Alliance and now the off shoot group of theirs called the Klamath Riverkeepers are the real culprits. These groups are the ultimate hypocrites - and, yes, I looked up the definition.

Hypocrite - Somebody feigning high principals: somebody who pretends to have admirable principals, beliefs or feelings but behaves otherwise.

If you look at the websites of these groups, and I suggest that you do, you will see they say they are concerned over the "vanishing salmon." They are supporting healthy rivers and are raising relief for Klamath River communities. These are high principals for sure. Then the Klamath Riverkeepers sue the fish hatchery that produces 25 percent of the salmon. They even say in their own writings that this lawsuit is nothing more than another tool to get the dams torn out. These groups have their own agendas and looking out for fisherman and the people who live in these communities are not on it.

Because we live here, we need to pay close attention to what these groups are doing. By working cooperatively towards real solutions, we can stop their divide and conquer tactic. By uniting and supporting each other's issues we can bring strength to the table and make our voices heard.

Lance Waldren loves to hear from those in the community. He can be reached at 541-892-7677 or ldwaldren@yahoo.com