Sassafras: Anti-war Human Shield ...

“Sorry, Sass! But you have been found out!

Sass”

“I thought there was something about Sassafras!”

“lol”

“Have you seen that picture of her baby?

That's some head of hair!!!”

“man this is so sad. I like the part where they say "the wolfes avoide the blasts"
give me a break!!”

“Yeah,, I noticed that. They say that if they see them, they won't fire. All the poor thing has to do is duck out of eyeshot and she's fair game”

“Mapleleaf, did you miss the part where it said the wolves had moved in to that area despite the bombing?”

“I was going to make the same point as hyway.”

“So, this is a blame factor to lay on the mentality of a wolf?”

“and did you ever wonder WHY she moved there?”

“Because there ain't no people there.”

“This is a reccuring situation on military bases. It is not uncommon to see deer or any kind of other wildlife out in the field. The Army does not advocate killing the beasts, and will even take measures to protect them. One that I remember is shooting a flare or a flash/bang grenade toward them to scare them out of an operational area. This is a very effective method.”

“Maybe, I'm being unrealistic or maybe just humane, but if we are talking about 5 wolves here, can't they be sedated and either taken into captivity or moved before proceeding with this all important test firing?”

“your right!!!


too bad to because I bet she had a sweet little place to live in before. but hhmmm im wondering WHY she felt that she had to move? maybe people took over her sweet little home.
what do you think??”

“I don't know how much you know of bombing ranges, but the ones I pass through all the time at camp lejuene contain more buffer areas where there isn't any bombing than they do of areas that actually get bombed.”

“I agree with treebeard. relocate them before something very bad happens to these poor animals.”

“Maybe the house you live in was where she had her home.”

“sorry hyway where is that place at?

now to think of it. i dont think ive ever been near one. but you are right again about there being alot of land ava. but like i said it will only take one "OOPS" then thats it.”

“You're getting away from the point, I think. All that's being advocated here is a simple relocation process.”

“I guess it depends how often the range is used, and how big the area is. It can make a fantastic refuge as so few people go there.”

“sorry hyway, i live in an apartmnet.
when I do plan on getting a house i will look for one already built. its just we are running out of room and the animals are running out of room”

“Moving them would be a great idea, and it would reflect well on the base they are at.”

“vey true tahoe”

“how about just stop shooting there”

“I don't know where that firing range is located. I was referring to Camp Lejeune Marine Corp base in eastern North Carolina. It encompasses a huge amount of land so there is a public road that passes through the back section of it, mostly forested areas where they play war games and such, but they have this one section where the road goes across a firing range. They detour you around when they are actively training, but sometimes you can get through before they close the gate but are still forming up their tanks. Its pretty awesome to see a line of battle tanks formed up on top of the hill, but a bit nerve wracking to know that in a few short minutes they would be firing over the road you are traveling on.
When you drive through at night you see quite a few deer and other animals. In the day the sky is filled with hawks and other birds.”

“That's one answer, Pop. But, to not rile the 'military-right or wrong' position, all we are talking about is a simple answer to a problem here...”

“In the article, I didn't see where anyone considered it a problem. seemed to me that both the wolves and the military were co-habitating just fine.”

“Even if they do kill a wolf or two, it would still be worth it.

Our Boys are the world's best because they're the world's most well trained.

"Q: How do you get to Broadway?
A: Practice, practice, practice."


Sassafras is prolly a former #2 female that was ran away by the alpha beeyatch of her old pack.


She wandered the wood until she heard the call of a lobo, whom she soon married. They had no choice but to establish their own territory away from Sassy's and Lobo's old haunts.

Perhaps their pack will someday have the strength to takeover a better territory.”

“Maybe because the article didn't get the wolve's point of view...”

“or her male was killed!!


we do live near West Opint. I would like to take our children there to watch them practice. I know that they had to block a section of hiking trails (i think its was the Storm King) because they found land mines that were still armed. they did open up the area I think last year. but thats scary knowing that kind of stuff is still around from the old days.”

“BTW -
There are many huge military reserves.

There's an Air Force(?) base on the FL panhandle - I think where they tested that new MOAB bomb the other day - that has many many square miles of wilderness. Adjacent to the north is Blackwater River State Forest, and above that is the Conecuh Natl For, AL. The three combine to create one of the largest "wilderness" areas east of the Mississippi. Larger than the Okeefenokee, for instance.

If I'm not mistaken, the FL Natl Trail crosses the base...”

“i still think every one has a little child in them. I would love to drive one of those tanks!!
very cool!!

its like a big Tonka Truck :)

ok hyway, you distract them ill get the keys!!”

“Mapleleaf driving a tank......
Be afraid, be very afraid. ;)”

“I remember being on the firing line at Fort Dix during Vietnam.A Turkey Vulture flew over the range.
All that was left was feathers.”

“Hope she doesn't run over my bad foot,


I mean, feet...”

“The issue of the Army cohabiting with wildlife is pretty well established. On Fort Dix, groundhogs have moved in and the Army is doing absolutely nothing about it. Holes appear all over the place, on parade grounds, ranges, even in company areas.

The point about the wolves moving onto the base was that they seem to have adapted to the situation as it exists. If living on a firing range were that dangerous, they would have moved out on their own. They seem to have evolved a way to avoid being in the impact area when the shells fly. Perhaps they sense the preparations.

And the fact the Army has ordered the troops not to fire if the wolves are in the area pretty much sums up the fact that they are not being careless. An impact area is cleared by virtue of shells blowing up there. Spotters can see what's out there.”

“I guess, Geo. but, I can't help playing devil's advocate. It's in my nature...”

“What I want to know is why Sassafra hasn't posted. Trapped in an army quagmire, perhaps???”

“Whoa, a case of beer, a tank and Mapleleaf!

I wanna go along for the ride!”

“It would be a picture worthy of posting next to the one of Slim Pickens' riding the bomb at the end of Dr. Strangelove...”

“I was covering a National Guard Armored Cav training weekend at Indiantown Gap once, and somebody snapped a photo of me in the hatch of an M60 tank. Looks like the old Dukakis shot!”

“Another point to remember ... the wolves are there because of the success of reintroduction/relocation here in Wisconsin. The original habitats used for reintroduction already have wolf packs (there are several around where I live), so this group had to find its own big patch of woods. Relocating them to some other "suitable" territory in Wisconsin would likely just put the wolves in conflict with resident wolves -- a turf conflict between wolf packs often results in a least some dead wolves, and the outsiders or losers having to move to some other territory -- such as Ft. McCoy, which is a huge installation.

The firing at McCoy is not some new program that has been set up. It is a major training area with a very long history that is currently in very heavy use for staging Iraq-bound troops. It is also a bombing range for tactical fighter squadrons (F-16s and A-10s are common users). So bombing and shelling activities are no surprise for any wildlife that decides to wander in.”

“silly question here but why cant they fence off the area? is it too big? and do people really walk out there to watch them blow up things?”

“You are a silly person. ;)
If they fence a smaller area, the fences will just get blown up.
"People" don't just walk up to a bombing area being used to look around.”

“These days military bases are under very strong security. You couldn't just wander in.

Training areas and impact ranges are vast pieces of real estate - many square miles. Some bases are fenced, some are not. Impact ranges are pretty heavily screened from the public.

The ground on impact ranges is pretty plowed up. You would know it was an impact range just from the looks.

Both artillery and air units use forward spotters to mark targets during exercises, using lasers and such. There is pretty good "eye" control, and the forward spotters would see somebody or something wandering around out there. Besides that, there are range control officers who have overall control of the range at all times.

Is it possible something could go wrong? This is the real world. Yes, something could go wrong. But we all face that reality whenever we walk across a street, or open the refrigerator door. Life is full of risk, whether human or canine.

The fact that a pack has established itself on the base pretty much means the wolves have adapted.”

“"Both artillery and air units use forward spotters to mark targets"




RAISING MY HAND VERY HIGH!!!!

can I recommend a target??


j/k LOL


all very good points. and we did this without yelling. awwww time to hug your livers or your ducks in this case!”

“"What I want to know is why Sassafra hasn't posted. Trapped in an army quagmire, perhaps???"



Actually, playing playdoh, for the first time, with Abby. Also had errands to run, lunch to make and laundry to do.

Sassafras the wolf is probably safer in that bomb range than in the UP of michigan, where the locals hate wolves and take a shot at them whenever possible. I think the wolves' intelligence is underestimated. I'm sure their den is far away from the actual range, but in the safe area surrounding it. I bet it's an ideal place for them...there's no human contact, probably the place is crawling with prey for them.”

“Good points, Sass. Lots of deer are going to be in the areas of the base that are off limits to hunters (which means all or most).

You are right about the human hazard to wolves here in the north of Wisconsin and the U.P. A number have been shot in recent times and no one caught yet in those incidents.

Last year I was fortunate to see a radio-collared wolf cross M-95 in front of me between Republic and Channing.”

“pekka, that must have blown you away. it would have for me. something about just being near these animals is very humbling. (well to me it is)
they take my breath away.

gee aside from the loud noices every once in awhile, sounds like a nice place. I wonder if treebeard would want to live there???”

“"the wolves appear to be doing well, in spite of the occasional bomb blast."”