Bureaucrats - the same all over

[Newt]

Nightwing post this elsewhere as part of a long discussion of mountain lions (aka cougars, lions) in the area where he lives.

 

DNR = Department of Natural Resources = EA basically

 

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Here in Michigan, there are literaly hundreds of cougar sightings yearly. In every case, the DNR has poo-pooed them, saying that the witnesses are mistaken or lying.

 

Finaly, an independent research group (the Michigan Wildlife Habitat Foundation) did a long term study, searched the areas where numerous sighting have occoured, found deer kills, found scat, and did genetic studies.

 

They determined via the genetic studies that there were likely in the neighborhood of 80-100 cougars, split between both the upper and lower peninsulas of Michigan.

 

This has gotten alot of press, as more and more cougars are seen, and even video taped up here.

 

So, now that there is indisputable proof of cougars, genetic evidence that goes as far as showing that the cats are of original northern strain (not the central american strains used for pets), what does the DNR say?...

When asked about the proof provided by the MWHF, they say that since THEY did not do the actual field work, and fund the research, the information is not valid and cannot be used as even an INDICATION of possible cats, let alone proof!

 

When asked if, then, they had any plans to duplicate the research, they said "no, because we already know that there are no mountain lions in Michigan, so such a study is a waste of time and money".

 

So in a nutshell, they dismiss the evidence of cougars out of hand because it was not funded by the state, but they won't fund studies becasue they claim there is no evidence of cats.

 

Your tax dollars at work, ladies and gentleman.

[Peter Waller]

There are numerous sightings of wild cats in this country Newt. My old cyprus tabby is now totally immune to government types logging her very whereabouts. They would have saved £1.7 million simply by asking me where she was. Costly research into cats in this country does show that their owners are gaga and besotted by their animals and that 9 out of 10 cats prefer food. The UK angling community would have prefered that this money had been spent on cormorant research.

 

There are also countless female wild cats in our delightful county of Essex. This variety tends to make a lot of aggresive noise and dig their claws in.

 

[ 25. October 2002, 09:16 AM: Message edited by: Peter Waller ]

[chesters1]

there was a sighting about 100yds away from our old house , one night we heard a very large animal running across our roof (we lived in a large bungalow with several roofs and flat roofs) from one end to the one we were sitting in whatever it was jumped off and we distinctly heard it hit the ground ,there was nothing in the garden (the end it landed in) and whatever it was jumped a six foot wire fence ,on investigation there were several broken tiles and deep scratches on others

[poledark]

That was Father Christmas Chesters,he doesn't always get his landings spot on,

 

Den

[chesters1]

Na i always have a "real" fire ,the chimney was built so even a chimmney brush couldnt go round it ,we swept it with a 2lb weight on a rope with a big bundle of holly tied in the middle ,i pulled up my mrs pulled down ,result a clean chimney and a sooty wife ,maybe he stopped for a sarnie

the "new" house has a gas fire ,very old and very ugly "usual council back boiler type" we have just changed suppliers ,this morning had the final bill from the old firm ,had a shock on reading it £456 on looking at the meter realised it had been read wrongly (by a strange pointing machine) and it had added a 4 instead of a 3 in the thousand range

how many other wrong readings are going on :mad:

 

[ 25. October 2002, 07:56 PM: Message edited by: chesters1 ]