I made every effort to be as respectful as possible to the US's
native Americans, and specifically pointed out that the problem
stems from only a few tribes whose members have chosen to
ignore the science and take all they can, no matter the future
issues that will result as a direct result of their actions.
The site rules here on TNet do make it very difficult to discuss
a subject like this, because no matter how you slice it, there are
passionate emotions involved.
I do apologize if my comments failed to meet the standard of
the rules.
What America needs to realize is that the loss of our migratory
fish stocks results in a whole cascade of problems down the line.
It's not just about having fish for the dinner table, as the lack
of fish affects everything in the system. Eagles come to eat dead
Chum salmon...and find no salmon to eat. Raccoon's, possum,
skunks, weasels, bear, martin, mink and a host of other birds and
4 legged critters survive cold winters because there is salmon
there to eat.
And yes, in order to try and save what is left there are serious
restrictions on any use of creeks or rivers. Hell, I've seen salmon
spawning 2 miles up a creek that was no more than a fat trickle
of water...you'd never expect them there, but there they were.
BTW, it's not just the native tribes, but also commercial fishermen
(making a living) who catch these fish all the way up to Alaska, and
then hammer them again when they come back down the coast
to spawn again in their home rivers.
If the salmon populations were booming, we wouldn't see 10% of the
prospecting and mining restrictions we see now.
The "evil" here is not the native tribes, nor commercial fishermen,
but greed among the same.
