Key grip and trout wrangler at the Middle River Group, LLC. Playing Doc Holliday to the Wyatt Earps of the fish and wildlife conservation world. Deputy Director, Marine Fish Conservation Network. Guide and instructor, Mossy Creek Fly Fishing. Freelance outdoor writer.
The true worth of fishing, as the experienced, sophisticated angler comes to realize, lies in the memorable contacts with people and other living creatures, scenes and places, and the living waters great and small which it provides. -Sparse Grey Hackle
Warren Buffet who has both credibility and skin in the game has this to say:
OUR leaders have asked for “shared sacrifice.” But when they did the asking, they spared me. I checked with my mega-rich friends to learn what pain they were expecting. They, too, were left untouched.
While the poor and middle class fight for us in Afghanistan, and while most Americans struggle to make ends meet, we mega-rich continue to get our extraordinary tax breaks.
By and large most of the remodeling around here involves our kitchen.
MRS has that sinking feeling
But last Sunday I reworked this site with a new look. It is still a work in progress and there will continue to be some tweaks to the design especially on the pages.
I would love to hear what you think, so comments and suggestions are encouraged!
One of the really cool things about getting involved in something new is seeing the recognition grow. When I picked up a tenkara rod for the first time I had no idea it would become such a part of my life.
On the cover: Flyfishing Without A Reel
Since then I have had the opportunity to introduce tenkara to people who then do a story about tenkara. Of course I appreciate the coverage of tenkara and naturally since I am a bit of a ham, enjoy seeing my name and face in print.
The article and photo’s in Garden & Gun August/September issue may very well be my favorite. It gave me a chance me to introduce two new friends to tenkara, fish in my favorite places and because of their excellent craftsmanship, share tenkara with Garden & Gun’s readers.
First stop was Ramsey’s Draft with the article’s author Donovan Webster. Don was an accomplished fly fisherman and he was a quick study with the tenkara rod. As you will see, Don did an outstanding job of capturing the essence of tenkara in his article Whisper Fishing.
Michael J.N. Bowles is an extremely talented photojournalist and no slouch with a fly rod as well. He was a bit reluctant to pick up the tenkara rod since he was supposed to be shooting images not fishing. When he finally did and caught a fish, his excitement was infectious. You can see his marvelous photos from our trip to the Rapidan River in Fly Fishing Without A Reel.
Garden & Gun is a favorite in our house and has been long before I was fortunate enough to grace its pages. If you want great writing and beautiful photography steeped in southern charm, then do yourself a favor and subscribe.
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The Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation caught a lot of flak for supporting legislation to open up roadless and wilderness areas. There membership didn’t agree with that position and RMEF to its great credit withdrew its support. Read it here.
More on this topic later but for now some brilliance from Hal Herring: Roads to Nowhere
Here is a taste,
“What we are witnessing with the demand to dismiss any new discussion of wilderness or roadless public lands is part of the tremendous move in our country to privatize wildlife and to make the quality hunting and fishing available only to those who can afford to buy land and rivers, lease hunting rights, to bring hunting and fishing into line with the other privileges that are the sole province of the wealthy.”
and his parting comment,
“I’m not saying that we need to start declaring wilderness and roadless designations willy-nilly across the public lands. I am saying that we don’t need politicians to wave their manicured hands and declare the debate over, and declare themselves, their ideology, and their contributors’ the winners.”
Nicholas Kristoff offered a provocative column; Republicans, Zealots and Our Security, in Sunday’s New Your Times. Kristoff opens with an intriguing notion. If foreign fanatics were to take our country to the brink of financial crisis we would be up in arms. He makes a compelling case that ideology by the more conservative wing of the GOP should be no different.
We tend to think of national security narrowly as the risk of a military or terrorist attack. But national security is about protecting our people and our national strength — and the blunt truth is that the biggest threat to America’s national security this summer doesn’t come from China, Iran or any other foreign power. It comes from budget machinations, and budget maniacs, at home.
In other words, Republican zeal to lower debts could result in increased interest expenses and higher debts. Their mania to save taxpayers could cost taxpayers. That suggests not governance so much as fanaticism.
We should be alarmed and outraged.
How did we get to this point? When did politics become more important than responsible governing?
Kristoff focuses on the damage this mania for budget cuts does to education. The same could be said for conservation and environmental programs. Try substituting conservation or the environment for education, Kristoff’s words ring just as true.
More broadly, a default would leave America a global laughingstock. Our “soft power,” our promotion of democracy around the world, and our influence would all take a hit. The spectacle of paralysis in the world’s largest economy is already bewildering to many countries. If there is awe for our military prowess and delight in our movies and music, there is scorn for our political/economic management.
While one danger to national security comes from the risk of default, another comes from overzealous budget cuts — especially in education, at the local, state and national levels. When we cut to the education bone, we’re not preserving our future but undermining it.
