00:00:09 Speaker 1: From Mediator's World News headquarters in Bozeman, Montana. This is Kel's we Can review with Ryan kel Kell in now Here's Kel. Body shaming, the act of shaming someone for their body type is a common tool of the bully and sadly not limited to humans. Recently, US Fish and Wildlife posted a picture of a black bear to Facebook. Like any picture post on Facebook, the picture generated a lot of nasty comments. The arguably very healthy bear was called names like chunky monkey and tubby. Some people did, of course, come to the bear's defense, suggesting that the black bear was in a pre hibernation state or was pregnant. However, the bear pictured was in the spring, as in post hibernation and to a mail, which of course rules out pregnancy. Good news. The bear is a bear. It is not aware of this, and the only thing on his mind, thanks to his beautiful physical condition, is finding a mate. You find me sexy. This week we're talking policy, law enforcement, and the Great American Outdoors Act. So hold onto your butts. But first I'm gonna tell you about my week. Just like I mentioned last week, I met a group of friends on the Mighty Missouri just outside of Craig, Montana. We cooked all the prep turkey bits. I was talking about Gizzard's tails, hearts and wings over raging camp fire. Firewood you know by now was cut by a steel electric chainsaw. Actually ran both the ms A two twenty that day. How's a good day. Then I used the steel pro splitting hatchet to work up some kindling the two point seven pound drop forward steel head. That steel as an ste e l is a fine way on a twenty inch hatchet. I greatly recommend it. It's a heck of a camp asset. After that we even got some fish on the river using a leader a little too short in length and flies a little too small for comfort under bobber. Primarily, it was a very good time to top it off. Out of all those turkey wings, several pellets appeared, but no broken teeth. We did well. Here's a fun fact for you. If you stay at Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks fishing access site campgrounds, your camp ground fees are discounted if you have a valid Montana fishing license, So pick one up. Quick public service announcement. Last week I had part of a statement from Georgia Department and Natural Resources telling people to fill holes on private property that could potentially be the boroughs of an invasive and destructive species, the Argentine black and white tegu Do not do this unless you are absolutely sure that the whole or borrow in question is only occupied by an invasive lizard, not the gopher toward us. In fact, why don't you just set up a lawn chair and enjoy Memorial Day weekend with the twenty two in your lap, monitoring the suspected whole for a monitor type lizard. Next onto emails and this is a good one. I do not know the answer, so please write in A father with a newborn in need of an open heart surgery and some time in the outdoors rights in to ask about the existence of any support groups that are outdoor oriented and may have been through similar troubles with their kids. And yes, calling in Denver, join b H A and chat with those folks in the Colorado chapter. It's a very active b H chapter, very full of good people. If you need proof as to the sort of people in back country hunters and anglers will jump over the crime desk briefly in Oklahoma, Non Colorado to Piedmont, Oklahoma, teens Eastern Karam and writer Jones, when fishing in a neighborhood pond, not only witnessed but confronted a full grown man cast netting bass off of their spawning beds. According to the Oklahoma one of the teens, the Eastern Karam, is quoted as saying, hey, dude, you can't keep a bass out of a cast net. You can keep a bass on a rodden reel, at which point the confrontation turned a bit ugly. The so called adult began cussing at the two legal and younger anglers. Eventually, when the now poacher was informed that Oklahoma Department of Wildlife and Conservation had been contacted, the angry little man threw the fish back, cussed at the teens, and drove off. Later that individual was contacted by the O d w C, ticketed for unlawful take and in a bizarre twist of behavior displaying oddly adult like tendencies, even he paid the full fine. Now the point for calling the listener looking for outdoors oriented support group is Easton's father, Josh Carram, is the chairman of the Oklahoma Chapter back Country Hunters and Anglers, and he obviously did a fine job raising this young man. Another point I would like to make that the good folks at Channel nine News Oklahoma who posted the video taken by the teens failed to mention is the subadult, unlawful fisherman is in full golf attire, striped colored shirt, those short little socks striking. Now, I don't want you to think I am stereotyping here based on costume alone. I have, in full disclosure, spent some time on golf courses, starting at a very young age, watching my uncle's grandpa dad play, and I have witnessed temper tantrums consistent with the footage I just saw. So you know if the low top insignificantly spiked shoe fits anyway. For those of you in the golf community, be careful who you share that next tea time with. And to wrap up this story, a good samaritan steps forward after watching the confrontation and having been reminded of his own similar situation as a young man being exposed to bad behavior from a fellow adult angler, and how that bad behavior can leave a lasting scar. This good Samaritan didn't even want to go back to the same lake after his incident. He didn't want something similar to happen to these two kids, so he went out and purchased them lifetime Oklahoma fishing licenses and gift cards for more fishing gear. Eastern and writer, Well done, You acted like adult by giving the person a chance to right their wrongs, when even then the person couldn't do the right thing or chose not to. Rather, you called the proper authorities. Well done. You acted like a steward of the resource should act. You acted like an adult. You can fish with me any time, but be careful out there when approaching strangers, especially those who are already breaking the law. Also Eastern, great looking, first light hat, buddy writer, take some fashion tips, bro. I'm not you, bro, bro, and sincerely to our good Samaritan, Mr Josh grogis well done. Way to act and act selflessly. It is so easy to criticize and do nothing. Rewarding good acts takes a lot more thought and effort. Thank you. Moving on back on episode nineteen. Way back in September of two thousand nineteen, we covered the Department of Interiors acting Secretarial Order three three seven six, in which Secretary David Bernhardt instructs directors of the National Park Service the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Bureau of Land Management, and the Commissioner of the Bureau of Reclamation to expressly exempt all the bikes from falling under the definition of off road vehicle and further to exempt e bikes from being defined as a motor vehicle. It further orders those individuals to plan for expanded use of e bikes where appropriate. For the National Park Service, Secretarial Order three three seven six stated that e bikes are now allowed wherever bicycles are allowed. As a refresher within Secretarial Order three three seven six lies a reclassification of what should be considered motorized. Spoiler alert. If it is a bike with a motor on it and you are thinking, boy, that sounds a lot like a motorcycle, you're wrong. As long as that motorcycle as a one horsepower or less motor, it is considered non motorized. For the record, I think the brains of Americans have broken when we have to try and come up with a rule that says a motor is not a motor and we use the word motor when defining the rule. I think motorcycles are great and sometimes fun tools. I think a t V S and side by sides, and even e bikes are great and sometimes fun tools, and the courses, mules, lamas, and my feet are great and fun tools. My confusion and frustration on this one lies with the why why do we need to redefine what we call a motor? I have a hard time understanding how that benefits the recreational community at all. We already have a process in place to change trail use designation, making a non motorized trail motorized or vice versa. This can already be done. Changing what we call a motor is not a necessity, So again, what is the reasoning? Senator Mike Lee of Utah introduced a bill that would allow mountain bikes in wilderness areas just this last fall as well. Could this be a step to open wilderness areas to motorize vehicles excuse me, non motorized bicycles with motors on them. I don't know. It's interesting, though, we have about five twenty nine million acres of public land that already provide at least some access for motorized or mechanized travel. According to the Bureau of Transportation Statistics, we have over one point three million miles of public dirt roads in the US and roughly two point eight million miles of paved riding surfaces. Do we need to open up the less than two percent of federally designated wilderness two wheels when that's the only place left that doesn't have them. I sure don't think so. Right now? Can go burn gas with my neighbor and his pile of dirt bikes on BLM ground. When I want separation from that crowd, I can find a non motorized trail and hike or pedal on us for a service ground. When I want something different, a chance to maybe take the pack string of mules and ponies to a place where I won't risk or wreck or rodeo. By having a mountain bike or e bike quietly surprising the string, I can head into a wilderness area. It is the regulations that helped provide these experiences. To choose your own adventure book we live in right now. Another thing that I find interesting as the public comment periods, which are National Park Service, Federal Fish and Wildlife ending June eight, BLM June nine, Bureau of Reclamation June twelve come to a close, is the twisting of stories being told here one in particular by an e bike manufacturer and Eagle Colorado. For those of you who don't know Eagle Colorado, the quite fancies key resorts of Veil Aspen and Beaver Creek are right in this vicinity. You could call him a little elitist even well. This e bike manufacturer located here is regurgitating a tired old anti wilderness argument that people who are willing to walk are in fact the elitist, that wilderness should be open to motor vehicles the choice of the common person. You see more folks come into this world with nothing, just naked. It's them and their motor vehicle, not them in their feet. In this case, this particular company is making the argument that the e bikes that they sell that start at two thousand, five d sixty nine dollars and top out at about sixty two hundred dollars. That's six thousand, two hundred dollars, is making the case that the elitists are the ones self propelling themselves. What kind of snobs self propel themselves. If you were egalitarian type one who sat on a six thousand dollar electric bike like the rest of us folks, you'd see those people with their hoity toity feet as elitist. I'll tell you what I wonder how far this company is willing to take this argument. If you sit up in bed under your own power, putting those stomach muscles to you, instead of having what God gave everyone, an electric hospital bed that can do it for you, then are you an elitist? If in order to get around you must use a wheelchair that you wheel under your own power, are you an elitist? Let them eat cake. There are electric wheelchairs out there. The argument that an easier way will allow people to get to these amazing places that are at this point by design out of the way, which is what keeps them amazing, is I'm sorry to say, just a bunch of crap people. It is these same folks who are crying that if only electric bicycles were allowed then they could travel to the heart of the Bob Marcia Wilderness area and see the Chinese Wall in the spring. It is those people that if those bikes are allowed, they're gonna be complaining about how hard the bike seats are and how there should be something better. They're gonna be advocating for hovercrafts or hoverboards or r v hookups next spring. Let me put it this way. I am a college dropout. I attended the University of Montana and eventually quit. There were many people I went to school with who continued on to graduate. Nothing conspired against me. Had I wanted to complete my degree, I would have found a way to do it. Saying anything else would be a lie, A lie like saying a bike with a motor on it is not a motorbike, A lie like saying the reason for allowing motorized bikes on non motorized trails is to end elite as in the back country. If you love e biking and you want them everywhere, that is fine. That is a fine argument, an honest belief that I cannot disagree with. It's what you love. I get that. Don't twist it into an argument that soel's division Amongst the other people who love to be outside doing what they love to do. Those people who are motorless or bike less, or horse rich or bike rich love that stuff too. So if you love e bikes and want to use them wherever you choose, your deadlines are again. June eight for Federal Fish and Wildlife in the National Park Service June nine for the BLM June twelve for the Bureau of Reclamation. Now it gets a little tricky, right, and in your comments you need to reference the regulation, identify your number for each proposed rule, and the agency you are providing a comment to. If you go to People for Bikes Org, you will find that all of this information is laid out for you and you can click copy and paste what you find there and draft your own letters. If you think e bikes are just fine and a great tool, but only on motorized trails, then you can go to People for Bikes dot org and use all that information and build your own responses and tell those agencies that you don't want the electric motorcycles on non motorized trails. You probably know which direction, Eileen, Moving on to the law enforcement desk. Just this week, a fifty six year old Yooper, which is a person residing in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, was arrained Wednesday in Chippewa County's District Court on charges of killing eighteen wolves, three bald eagles, deer, turkey bear, and bobcat. Wolves in Michigan are on the federal Endangered Species list, and eagles anywhere are protected under the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act. In a statement from the hooper, who presumably knew at this point how much trouble he was in, he said he was catching the animals because he could, and he likes to do it straightforward fella, which oddly enough makes me respect the guy to a degree, not for the reprehensible, sociopathic theft of wildlife, but for the straightforwardness in that regard. The guys from the previous story who are bringing egalitarianism to the back country for the low, low prices six thousand dollars in e bike could learn something from that guy. Of course, the poacher is pleading not guilty. According to Detroit News, the Chippewa County Prosecutor's office is seeking thirty dollars in restitution to the state. He could face an additional ninety days in jail per wolf, per eagle, and up to ninety days in jail for the additional one D plus wildlife crimes not listed. We'll check back in on this one to see what sticks. Good job Michigan d n R Jumping for Oregon, four people have been charged with illegal taking of deer, elk, black bear, bobcat and cougar in the midwill Lamt Valley and Coast range. The foursome allegedly poached at least twenty seven big game animals. The Statesman Journal reports that in this case, the d A will seek a hundred and sixty two thousand, seven hundred dollars in restitution. A couple of things here. First, a fun fact for you. If you turn in a poacher or have information leading to a conviction in Oregon, you can either take a cash reward or if you were a hunter, take that reward in preference points, which will go towards your next drawing of your next tag, which is a pretty cool way to get ahead on that whole point creep. Not sure how many points you get for turning in what sort of crime, or if it's like a graduated scale, like, uh, you know, somebody forgets their fishing license, you get a point versus somebody kills twenty seven big game animals and the state gets a hundred and sixty seven hundred dollars, so you get maybe sixteen points. I'll check into that second. Either, the state of Oregon is much more serious about wildlife crime, judging by the difference of over a hundred and thirty thousand dollars in restitution, or our up poacher just hasn't had any federal charges yet on the killing of E. S A listed animals. I'll check back in on that one too. Moving on to the National Park Desk. As national parks reopen, the public rushes in and of course, attempts to pet bison has not surprisingly happened in Yellowstone National Park last week. One woman received minor injuries and refused medical help. Perhaps a little too late, the National Park Service released a new series of posters encouraging park visitors to practice their social distancing with animals and with other visitors. All of eight agencies fishtancing campaigns. The National Park Service suggests standing at least the width of a moose's antler's apart or one grizzly bear from the next park guest. Of course, the appropriate distance from an actual grizzly bear would be three feet and if you want my opinion, a bit more and make sure they are down wind of you. Back to the policy desk, and this one is a biggie. It looks like the Senate will finally be voting on the Great American Outdoors Act when Congress returns from recess next month. Senators Corey Gardner, Joe Manchon, Steve Dain's, Mark Warner, Rob Portman, Martin Heinrich, and fifty three other senators have co sponsored this package, which means we're one co sponsor shy of a possible super majority, Meaning we aren't out of the woods yet. But if you have ever heard the words Land and Water Conservation Fund, that's not anything new to you, old hat, you could say yes in this package is full dedicated funding of Land and Water Conservation Fund l w CF nine million annually starting fiscal year one for one of the most powerful tools in providing more access to the out of doors. We love it so much. We want to see this happen. But don't forget. This package has nine point five billion dollars to address the maintenance backlog international parks. Parks get seventy are US for a service ground, fiftent five percent for the BLM, five percent for the Bureau of Indian Education, and five percent for US Fish and Wildlife Service. That is a heck of a maintenance backlog, a heck of a budget, and a heck of a lot of jobs to get the work done, make those phones ring. Hope you had an excellent outdoor oriented Memorial Day weekend. I hope you said your thank using prayers. Who are men and women who have died service for this country. This is your homework. After you do all those good things, call your duly elected and make sure they know how much America's public lands mean. Do you your health and your family and you want that land taken care of by passing the Great American Outdoors Act. And don't forget to say thank you to Senators Gardner, Mansion, Danes, Warner, Portman, Heinrich and the fifty three others that co sponsored the Great American Outdoors Hacked package and lead the charge. That's Republicans and Democrats alike. By the way, thanks for listening. Remember you can always get a hold of me by writing in to a s k C. A L At the Meat Eater dot com that's asked Cal at the meat Eater dot com. Tell me what I'm missing in your neck of the woods, tell me what I got wrong, and don't be afraid to just tell me hunting or fishing story. Thanks again, I'll talk to you next week n and when the land the Tom of the L had cover