Constitutionality won out, Yay, the wolves are no longer endangered, for now.

Judge Molloy has consistently made his judgement, across the board, coming down on the liberal side of the issues.  He has made many decisions over the years that have reflected his ultra liberal thoughts, allowed forests not to be logged, wolves to be protected long past their recovery as endangered animals.  Wolf advocates just had the wolf issue back in court, after the Federal government had delisted them, on it being unconstitutional.  Well for once Judge Molloy couldn't come down on the side of the liberals, he may have wanted to, but they made it about the Constitution this time and he judged on the issue constitutionally.  I must say I am glad he is a stronger constitutionalists than a liberal.  The wolves are no longer an endangered species in Montana.  I am so glad.  It is not that I don't have some like of the wolves, I kind of like the romanticism I see about them but the cold hard reality of them is deadly.  They need to be managed and the numbers taken way down, to the amount that they were supposed to get to, when they were put on the endangered species list.  They surpassed that a long time ago and the wolves advocates couldn't accept that the species wad recovered and was moving into being uncontrolled predators.  I don't often like Judge Molloys decisions but thank God he made a good decision this time, he retires next month.  I would say a nice good-bye. 

Our county is the biggest strong hold of both cougars and wolves in the state.  The wolves actually push the cougars down into the more inhabited areas of the county. The county is only 15% private land, the rest is National Forest and State Land.  The south side of the river has the biggest populations of wolves and cougars.  I happen to live on the south side of the river.  If you walk in the National Forest behind my property, when you get to it, the wolf tracks are terrifying. They are huge and you see deer and elk bones everywhere.  I think unwittingly Judge Molloy had to finally make the right decision.  He did word his decision so that they can get an appeal pretty easy but for this year there will be a hunt. The fall hunt will allow 220 wolves to be harvested this year. Wyoming is going to allow for only 100 animals outside of Yellowstone park, and 10 breeding pairs and others can be hunted or shot on site,  Another win for Ranchers, Farmers and our preditated wildlife.

Levi came, but due to rain, the heat and the game warden not letting him track the cougars right away, can't get a track until we see the cougars again or they kill something.  We are all being careful to lock the animal up at night, they hate it as it is hot for them.  None of us want to sacrifice an animal to get a track on the cougars, so we are in a holding pattern.  They will show themselves soon enough and then maybe one or all three of them can be killed before one of our kids are.  I do so hate to have to watch my children while holding a gun, so sad that that should be a memory from their childhoods.  Today we got a partial victory on the wolves problem, but I am sure the wolf advocates will be back to court any time now.   I wished on the way to court they would spend a night, or try to spend a night in the back woods of Mineral county.  It would be like an old Vincent Price movie, they wouldn't make it through the night without being scared senseless..... tomorrow.