Confused
 

Ok, I usually don't take issue with sensitive subjects, but...

I'm confused. It's O dark thirty and I can't sleep, so I'm reading stuff on the internet. Am I reading things right? People are suffering big time in California because of a fish called a delta smelt, affecting food production to the entire US due to the water being turned off to a bunch of farms. Meanwhile, there's an announcement of a discovery of 100 new plant species, 28 new fish species, 18 new reptile species, 2 new mammal species, and 1 new bird species (is there a singular for species?). Sounds like the normal course of evolution and survival to me. Humans are a very small part of the scheme of things. Forget the delta smelt. Let it potentially go extinct. Let the farmers live...

Tom

Yep, a little fish that doesnt get much bigger than 3 inches long is causing thousands of families to go bankrupt and lose their jobs and homes in California.

Turning that particular area of the state into a dust bowl because they cant irrigate their fields.


Some people seem to have a weird set of priorities when it comes to saving things. I'm all for saving the environment, but I think people come before a little fish.

Save a big pile of specimins of the fish (live specimins) and turn the water back on to those people so they can do their jobs and live their lives.

Thanks Tom, I feel much better......I think..:D

And one of the new species is a bird eating frog with fangs! :eek: I was looking at those last night too. ;)

I saw a news story with a video crew, and there is miles and miles and miles of dead, dry farmlands. Its really sad! California produces so much cantalope and many veggies that we enjoy each day. I cant believe they are stopping the water for a 2 inch fish. Yes, I believe in protection for those that cannot protect themselves, but when we do so at the risk of "human" exstiction......we have more trouble than a 2 inch fish at hand.


Turn on the water! Water is NEED! not a right, not a want, not a debateable item, we NEED water! turn it on!

Geez!!!!!!!!!!!!

Well, as someone who lives in a town built on the banks of a federally protected scenic waterway, I suspect this has more to do with eco-system balance and long term sustainability (for both the people AND the fish) than choosing a side a side in: SMELT vs. HUMAN ['the Movie!' ;)]. I'm sure it's a complex issue.

Whose bright idea was it to irrigate a desert anyway???

You're right, it's not about picking a side. But the powers that be pick issues abitrarily. They protect animals and plants whether that's in the best interest of ALL the planet or not.

I'm all for conservation, but not at the expense of the good of the majority. I learned a lot about conservation in Florida - they're all about that there. In Ohio, they have very little of it going on, in truth.

But in FL, they save the gators and trees, and if you buy a lot, you better check to see if you can cut the tree down before you build, or you're stuck with property tax on an unbuildable lot you can't sell, you can't live there - what good is that? They don't have a million acres protected?

:confused:

Great trees, beautiful state, but one tree is not going to sink the whole place.

I'm talking about live oaks, and they drop their acorns which sprout like weeds. Sure it takes a long time till they're huge - not as slow as northern oaks but a long time, but they are everywhere.

the more we interfere and think we can try to manage the damage or fix things....the worse we seem to make it. I think if we left most things alone, we'd probably do better.

I can see where that might make sense at first but, there are far too many people on the planet now to leave well enough alone and hope for the best, thinking nature will fend for itself and it'll all work out. Things are pretty out of whack and we keep stacking the deck in our species' favor.

Don't get me wrong - I'm rooting for us - but we have to start realizing we're Part of the whole, we're part of 'nature' and our survival depends on keeping the entire interdependent network of organisms in play. And if not, be pretty dang sure we're not pulling out an intergral piece of this house of cards.

I was watching that Ken Burns piece on national parks... If the government hadn't set aside the national parks and put federal protections in place, there'd be houses all along the grand canyon and the boundary waters in my state would be a giant resort with strip malls dotting every 10 miles....