thenorphletpaperboy: Hogs Named Feral

thenorphletpaperboy: Hogs Named Feral:              ARKANSAS                                                                     By                                    Ri...

Hogs Named Feral

             ARKANSAS

                                                                    By

                                   Richard Mason                

                                                  Hogs Named Feral

This is an open letter to the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission, and the subject is the proliferation of feral hogs in Arkansas. In my opinion, these animals that are reproducing at almost unbelievable rates are the greatest threat to native wildlife and wildlife habitat in our lifetime, and we are doing very little to solve the problem. No, it is not just a few wild hogs rooting up someone’s back yard. It is literally millions of feral hogs decimating both wildlife habit and contributing to the ever decreasing quail and turkey population in our state. Feral hogs are quail and turkey egg eating animals that roam the woods, and they are finding most of those nests and eating the eggs.

I live on thirty-seven acres with a couple of small ponds surrounded by mixed timber and open grassy areas—excellent quail habitat, and up until about 15 years ago, I had a large covey of quail on the property. When I first built my house in the mid-1970s the covey was somewhere between 15 and 20 birds and seeming very stable. I didn’t allow hunting since we were in the city limits. Over the next fifteen years, I began to notice the covey becoming smaller and smaller until about ten years ago I heard the last bob-white call—and there was no answer. What happened to my quail? I believe feral hogs were a primary contributing factor in the disappearance of my quail.

Let’s consider the size of the feral hog problem: Conservative estimates of the feral hog population in Arkansas puts the number at over two million, and that’s growing daily. A mature sow will have three litters a year, usually 6 to 10 piglets, which mature into breeding stock in less than a year, and since we have killed off most of the natural predators, most of those litters reach maturity. You don’t have to do Calculus to get an understanding of the problem. It is huge and it will require drastic measure to solve it.  However, our Game and Fish Commission is fiddling while the expanding feral hog population soars. Around 1000 feral hogs have been added to the feral hog population in Arkansas while I’m writing this columns. In order to just stay even with the expanding population at least a half million feral hogs will have to be taken out of our ecosystem---each year! We are not even scratching the surface of the problem.

Our Game and Fish Commission needs to think outside the box if they are to solve the problem. Evidently, they need some suggestions so here goes: First, let’s reach back to the 18^th Century for part of the solution. Put a bounty on feral hogs. Well, we managed kill off a healthy wolf population by putting a bounty on them, so why not do this: A $5.00 bounty for every feral hog tail submitted to local game warden. If you consider the destruction of wildlife and wildlife habitat one feral hog inflicts each year, that $5.00 to remove a hog is a tremendous bargain for the state.

That is step one. Step two is to restore the natural predators of feral hogs.  We are the ones who have put nature out of balance by killing off essentially all the natural predators that would keep the feral hogs population under control. Along with the bounty, the second part of the solution is to reduce the number of feral hog is by rewilding Arkansas. Rewilding, which is rapidly gaining acceptance in Europe, is a reintroduction of species that were once abundant in an area. In Arkansas it means to restock the feral hog predators we have killed off, and stop the killing of the few existing predators that are still here. That, along with a bounty, is the only way to reduce the number of feral hogs.  It’s that simple. We must reintroduce as many as 150 mountain lions and several 100 wolves into the State, and close the bear season. Those predators will thrive and multiply because of the abundant food, and they will reduce the feral hogs that are destroying habitat along with quail and turkey nests.  With the small number of bears we have in the state, it borders on stupidity to even have a bear season. In addition, we should stop the killing of other predators such as coyotes and bobcats. No, little Jonnie is not going to be gobbled up by a mountain lion or wolf. According to statistics, he would be in more danger from being stuck by a meteorite.

If we don’t do something drastic about the feral hog population, you will see the problem continue to grow and become more and more difficult to control. A bounty and the re-introduction of predators into the ecosystem is the only way to counter this wildlife crisis.

thenorphletpaperboy: Let's Join the War on Dirty Coal!

thenorphletpaperboy: Let's Join the War on Dirty Coal!: ARKANSAS By RICHARD MASON Let's Join the War on Dirty Coal First, just to set the record straight, I am a na...

Let's Join the War on Dirty Coal!

ARKANSAS

By

RICHARD MASON

Let's Join the War on Dirty Coal

First, just to set the record straight, I am a natural gas producer, and dirty coal is a competing fuel.

So I do have a vested interest in putting the few dirty coal miners that are left out-of-work, but let’s consider the reasons to join the war on dirty coal, other than my economic ones.

           Of course, the out-of-work miners in West Virginia aren't ever going back to work mining dirty coal, but it's not because of environmental concerns; it’s because dirty coal simply costs more to use. That’s right, cheap, clean natural gas is eating dirty coals lunch cost-wise, and over 200 dirty coal-fired plants have closed during the last few years and more are on the list to be closed. The environmental problems have only a minor part in the closing.

The war on dirty coal is one we need to win, because the spoils for winning are lower utility bills, and a cleaner environment. Maybe, you’re a ‘coal miner’s daughter’ and you’re in dirty coal’s hip pocket. If that’s the case, you support the use of dirty, coal-fired generating plants to provide electricity, then you’re on the hook with all the negatives that come with it. Of course, at a minimum, dirty coal plants spew out huge amounts of carbon dioxide that contributes to climate change caused by global warming, but there are a whole host of other problems in the burning of dirty coal. Take a look at major Chinese cities where thousands are wearing masks, and the air is so dirty you can’t see the sun. Of, course their incidences of lung disease are off the wall as well as numerous other ailments. Yes, dirty coal is a big part of the problem!  Are you okay with that?

But that's not the main reason I have in joining the war on dirty coal, and that problem is directly related to what a dirty coal-fired plants put in the atmosphere here in Arkansas. All dirty coal and dirty, dirty, lignite plants spew thousands of pounds of mercury into the atmosphere each year, and that vaporized mercury comes down in the frequent rains we have here in Arkansas. Our weather systems almost always move from west to east, and that brings the mercury leaden air from Texas right over Arkansas. Texas has four out of the top five dirty coal and lignite plants in the nation that emit mercury, and a  stunning 4500 pounds of mercury from these plants goes into the atmosphere every year in Texas, and a lot of that drops into the lakes and rivers in Arkansas. But Arkansas has nothing to brag about since around 800 pounds of mercury is put into the air from Arkansas’s three dirty coal-fired plants. As the mercury contaminates the streams and lakes it entered the food chain at the very bottom, and is ingested by the smallest organisms. However, the problem with mercury is very simple. It is not passed through, but stays within the organism, and when the larger fish in the food chain consume these small fish the mercury is slowly added to the larger fish until at the upper end of the food chain in large predatory fish such as bass and catfish it become concentrated enough to be harmful to humans who consume those fish. That's the real problem with dirty coal as far as I’m concerned.  Numerous studies have shown the harmful effects of ingesting contaminated fish, and the Arkansas Department of Health has issued a warning about consuming fish from certain lakes and streams. Studies have shown babies born from a mother who consumed more than the recommended amounts of mercury contaminated fish during the early months of pregnancy are very likely to produce a child with a lowered I.Q. So that's the big problem with dirty coal fired generating plants.

The combination of the Texas and Arkansas dirty coal-fired plants and industrialization of America in the last 50 years has caused the mercury in fish problem. It's a tough problem to solve, but a good start would be to convert the dirty coal and lignite burning electrical generating plants in Arkansas and Texas into clean burning natural gas fired plants. Then our mercury in fish problem would begin to slowly disappear. 

However, we seem to be taking a step backwards. Arkansas's attorney general is suing the EPA to stop them from enforcing the new standards that would force these dirty coal-fired plants to add scrubbers to remove the various harmful elements they emit, if they continued to burn dirty coal, or have them stitch to clean burning natural gas, and this week the head of the EPA announced he was suspending the new rules that would lower the coal-fired plants harmful emissions. He announced “The War on Coal is over!” Yes, you guessed it: it's all about making a buck now and facing the consequences later. What we should be doing is trying to eliminate the use of dirty coal as an electrical generating fuel, and not trying to dodge regulations that would solve the problem, and for God's sake don't open National Forests for dirty coal mining as has been proposed.

Okay, I know most of us could care less about what mercury will do to us, since we're primarily adults passed the child bearing age, but what about the young, country girl in Bradley County who knows nothing about mercury in the fish that she is eating several times a week while she's pregnant? Consider this: If she hadn't eaten the mercury contaminated fish, her son or daughter might have become doctor or an attorney, but instead his lower I Q. will turn him into a high school dropout. Shouldn't we do something to prevent that from happening? What if that child was your grandchild?

Arkansas Department of Health: Fish Notice: Pregnant or Breastfeeding Women, Women Planning to be Pregnant, and Children under 7 Years of Age--General Public 1. Felsenthal Wildlife Refuge – including the Saline River up to Stillions Bridge (Union, Bradley, Ashley Counties) Should not eat largemouth bass (13 inches or longer), flathead or blue catfish, pickerel, gar, bowfin or drum from this refuge. Should not eat flathead catfish, gar, bowfin, drum, pickerel or largemouth bass (16 inches in length or longer). No more than 2 meals per month of blue catfish and largemouth bass (13-16 inches in length) should be eaten from this refuge. 2. Ouachita River – from Camden to the north border of the Felsenthal Wildlife Refuge to include all associated ox-bow lakes, backwater and overflow lakes and barrow ditches (Union, Ouachita, and Calhoun Counties) Should not eat largemouth bass, flathead catfish, pickerel, gar or bowfin from this river. Should not eat largemouth bass, flathead catfish, pickerel, gar or bowfin from this river….

thenorphletpaperboy: The World is Flat (Socially)

thenorphletpaperboy: The World is Flat (Socially):       ARKANSAS                                                                     By                       Richard Mason     ...

The World is Flat (Socially)

      ARKANSAS

                                                                    By

                      Richard Mason

                                 The World is Flat (Socially)

My hat’s off to Tom Friedman and his business focused book THE WORLD IS FLAT. I think Mr. Friedman makes a great point of how goods and services are being bid, contracted for, and the work done by freelance workers around the world. I’ve published over 20 books and 19 of them have been handled by a great self-publishing service in Australia called BWM Books. They   get the cover work done in Pakistan. Yes, if you want a subdivision in Norphlet plated out, you can put it on freelancers.com and get bids from all over the world to do the work. That’s great, but I want to focus on the social aspects of a ‘flat’ world.

In 1965, Vertis and I were living in Benghazi, Libya, and I had built up enough vacation days for us to spend a long weekend in Athens, Greece. East African Airways had a route from South Africa to Athens that stopped to refuel in Benghazi, and if you didn’t mind boarding at 3:30 A. M. you could fly nonstop to Athens in an hour and a half. We decided to spend our 5th wedding anniversary there and leaving Libya at 3:30 in the morning was a no-brainer. Our wedding anniversary is January 17, so it was cold in Athens when we arrived, but we jumped right into trying to do everything possible in the few days we were going to be there. Of course, we hit the Archeological Museum first and then late in the day, when we were ready for dinner, we asked the desk clerk where he would go for dinner. He seemed surprised that so called “rich” Americans would eat where Greeks would, but since we really weren’t “rich” we weren’t about to stop at a fancy tourist restaurant. He gave us directions and after walking deeper into the old city, we found the little hole-in-the-wall restaurant. We walked in and the Greek customers seemed surprised, but not as surprised as we were when the waiter handed us an all Greek menu. However, the waiter just smiled and motioned for us to come to the front display case where it was to point and pick our dinner. Well, looking around, if we were from Mars, we couldn’t have been more noticeable. Yes, we stood out, and the next night when we ventured deeper into the old city and stopped in a large Greek restaurant with live Greek music. Well, not only did we standout, but every person in a nearly full restaurant was dressed in black. Of course, that was the night Vertis decided to wear all white, but even if we had been wearing black, we would have stood out. Greek clothing and ordinary American wear was miles apart.

             That’s not the case today. A few weeks ago we were on a driving trip through western Greece on vacation, and stopped in Patas, a Greek town well away from Athens. Vertis and I walked across the street from our hotel to have a light lunch at just an ordinary local place with counter service, and an all Greek menu. Of course, we were lost as a goose trying to read Greek, but after help from a waiter, owner, and a customer, we dined on lamb k-bobs, fries, salad, and drinks for under $12. However, the lunch was an open display of how the social world has become flat. First the clothes: if you had picked up the crowd of locals who came by while we were eating and dropped them in the Dallas, Texas Galleria shopping mall they would have blended right in with torn jeans and all; and not only the younger ones. After we started really taking notice, we were amazed. But the clothes were only part of the social scene we noticed. Virtually, every customer held a cell phone and seemed glued to it, the television featured a random selection of American fare as American music blared background music. The USA has clearly dominated the social world, and whatever is hot fashion-wise or leading the music charts dominates the tastes of nearly every European and West Asian person. America culture is so all encompassing that there is no second, third, etc. It’s an all American social imprint on the rest of western culture, and that social style is rapidly encompassing the rest of the world. Of course the root of the influence is the American internet that now pervades every country in the world, and our lifestyles are being copied worldwide. That social scene, combined with the use of English as the language of trade and tourism, puts even a stronger American imprint on the rest of the world. If a Japanese and a Greek converse, it’s in English, etc.

Well, it’s obvious, that for better or worse, our country has a tremendous worldwide influence on the social life of the average person. However, it seems to me, it is impossible for that influence to just be regulated to the social aspects of life. American internet, cell phones, and movies are penetrating every corner of the world, and I think, not only is the penetration commercial, but the democratic values of United States are having a global influence that goes far beyond just social, and with all our wrinkles, it makes the world a better place to live. As Thomas Freedman noted in his book, it also makes the world a safer place to live. You are not going to war with your major customer, so the deeper the world becomes dependent upon the United States for commercial and intellectual items, the safer we become, and the less conflict we will have in the world.

thenorphletpaperboy: We're Booming Again!

thenorphletpaperboy: We're Booming Again!:              ARKANSAS                                 By                      Richard Mason                                   ...

We're Booming Again!

             ARKANSAS

                                By

                     Richard Mason

                                  We’re Booming Again!

Wow, what a week! If what we received during opening weekend of MAD is any indication of what’s to come, El Dorado will never be the same! Yes, we’re booming again, and the long anticipated grand opening of MAD was certainly worth waiting for, and the folks, who worked night and day for weeks on end, have hit a home run. The opening ran smoothly, considering the huge task of having a quadruple venue of restaurant, cabaret, amphitheater, and music-hall all having simultaneous grand openings. I can only marvel at how the team pulled it all together, and their effort moved El Dorado up, from being just a stop to buy gasoline, into a world-class destination.

If you had talked with some of the thousands who attended the five day grand opening, which by the way, had the largest  group of top entertainers together in the state at one time, you would have marveled at how many of the attendees came from, not only out-of-town, but out of state. And after the entertainment spectaculars, the ones I talked with, will carry back rave reviews to Shreveport, Dallas, and Jackson, etc. “We’ll be back!” was the overriding theme I heard from the dozens I interviewed.

Yes, there were a few minor wrinkles, but that’s to be expected, and until you put on a production of that magnitude, it’s really impossible to predict every item that would smooth things out. However, as an overview, I was shocked at how smoothly most all of the attractions ran. Without a doubt, the GRIFFIN MUSIC HALL will become a must Mid-South stop for many of the top flight entertainers in the country. Personally, after seeing the stage lighting and sound, in the Griffin, I can’t wait to attend one of the many Broadway Plays that will be lining up to perform there.

I especially liked the variety of entertainment on tap for the grand opening, and looking ahead at the acts to come, MAD will have something for everyone, and not only just something, but top quality acts. If you want to be entertained by some of the best in a variety of entertainment fields, look no further than MAD.

Of course, since Phase One of the entertainment complex is such an overwhelming success, the forthcoming addition, MAD PLAYSCAPE, which will be the largest, innovative, and attractive children’s play area in the state, will greatly add to MAD.

Well, we’ve been served up a grand opening week, which whets our taste for more of the same top quality entertainers, and make us anticipate Phase Two. Wow, the addition will include The MAD ART GALLERY, a top of the mark three level art museum, with a possible connection to Crystal Bridges. Just think of how many more visitors will be attracted when this state-of-the-art museum opens with world class, quality art. But I saved the crown jewel for last: Yes, the fabulous 1929 RIALTO THEATER will be totally renovated and returned to its original splendor, but with added modern acoustics, lighting, and seating. Upon completion, the Rialto will once again be a venue combination of live music and drama entertainment.  Add that to the already runaway success of MAD, and then include MAD FARMERS MARKET in the amphitheater area, and you will have to stretch your mind to fathom the impact the whole package will have on our city.

Get ready folks, it’s only going to get better and better! 

But I would me amiss if I didn’t mention one of the sparkplugs who moved the project forward, and couldn’t be with us for the grand opening; Edwin Alderson.  Edwin is fighting a serious illness, and those of us who know Edwin, are pulling for him to kick it, and to rejoin us at MAD.