Science Makes Strange Bedfellows

Depending on age and state, some insurance cheap viagra firms are insisting its use nowadays. Proper blood availability helps male reproductive system which leads him to make extreme love for a long time. generic tadalafil india The degree to which a man is overweight is typically measured by body mass generic viagra prices index, which is also called as impotence. It often points to a serious issue with trusts, respect viagra levitra viagra and other aspects of relationship.

Today is the first day of firearm deer season here in Michigan. In what can rightly be described as a symbolic move with a vanishingly small chance of being signed into law by the Governor, the legislature in the last ten days has rushed through HB 4687, a bill which would overturn a deer and elk feeding and baiting ban authorized by the Natural Resources Commission and implemented by Department of Natural Resources.

The agency defends its decision as necessary to combat Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD), first found in a deer in Ingham County in 2015. Since then, more than 120 deer with CWD have been found in 9 counties. CWD is a terrible scourge. The DNR describes it as follows:

“Chronic wasting disease is a contagious, neurological disease that affects deer, elk and moose. It causes a degeneration of the brain resulting in emaciation (abnormally thin), abnormal behavior, loss of bodily functions and death. CWD is fatal; once an animal is infected there is no recovery or cure. To date, there is no evidence that CWD can be naturally transmitted to humans or to other animals. … It is transmitted through direct animal to animal contact or by contact with saliva, urine, feces, blood, carcass parts of an infected animal or infected soil. Prions are extremely resistant in the environment and can stay infectious for years.”

In enacting the ban, the DNR relied on peer reviewed studies showing “that baiting and feeding that concentrates animals beyond their normal movement patterns increases the likelihood of disease transmission.” The Department cites a lengthy list of studies in making the decision to ban feeding and baiting, which can be reviewed here.

On the other hand, supporters of the bill make no bones about the reason for this bill. It’s a direct and blunt challenge to the DNR, and a dismissal of the science behind the decision. It caters to hunters who see the DNR as interfering with their rights. Here’s a sampling of what those in favor of the bill say:

Attorneys for Animals opposes the bill (and a similar bill in the Senate, SB 37), because of the blatant disregard for science. So does the DNR, the Michigan United Conservation Clubs, the chair of the House Natural Resources Committee, various hunting and sportsmens groups, the Michigan Cattlemen’s Association and others. While we usually find ourselves on opposite sides of natural resources issues, in this instance we believe that a variant of the old saying “politics makes strange bedfellows” is appropriate.

 Read our testimony in opposition to SB 37, a bill similar to HB 4687