From one who has known him for some years, arguing with liberal-minded Ben will get you nowhere. But I can at least elevate the discussion by setting the record straight on a few counts:
Keith, Ben is not ‘gay’. He likes the ladies, irregardless of whether he has had much long-term luck with them or not. And he actually does hunt a fair amount; and likely has a zebra-hide tablecloth….having gone to Africa a couple of years back.
And, in general, he is not the ‘goody-two-shoes’ type some assume….after having been on the wrong end of a MDFWP citation book a few years back for some serious violations we won’t go into.
But what Ben IS, is a ‘water-walker’ who is happiest when asserting his perception of the world’s problems irregardless of our need for him to do so. One of the things I’ve done over time is to save all of his personal e-mails to me (back when we actually had some mutual respect for one another)……and not all of which pertained to lead shot bans.
However, just one of several which illustrates that Ben’s mind is already made up on this issue was an e-mail lecture I received about the lost Franklin Arctic Expedition of 1845. Ben related to me that the crew all died from lead-poisoning via food consumed from metal cans whose seams had been lead soldered. No mention of other reasons or circumstances of death beyond plumbism. His pitch seemed a bit simplistic, so I ‘googled’ up all that I could on Franklin and his crew, and sure enough, discovered that lead poisoning was a factor. Problem was it was about fourth on the list after 1) hypothermia, 2) pneumonia, and 3) probable cases of tuberculosis. (It is also theorized that the bulk of the lead poisoning originated from the engine plumbing of the ship’s sea-water conversion apparatus, and not so much the food tins.)
But no matter, for in Ben’s mind, their demise was wholly attributable to lead consumption…or else ‘why’ write me this page and a half to support his lead-ban study initiative of 2008? I also have another e-mail where he puts on a white lab coat and suggests that my chronic dealings with systemic lupus are very probably a result of a higher-than-normal lead burden caused by my shooting activities. He was concerned enough that he suggested I be tested. As usual, a helpful sort short on science….. but long on supposition.
Ben is one of those who seems happy to accept all science, just as long as it supports his position. We think of him here in Montana as our own little mini-Gore, who refuses to recognize that contemporary ‘science’ can often be manipulative. And why should he, when it is flowing his way for the moment?
For me, however, just seeing how the CDC reported the North Dakota ‘contaminated meat’ study of 2008 is enough to create suspicion of our Federal government’s ever supplying objective data on this subject. Read the entire report thoroughly, if you care to, and you’ll learn that sportsmen and women from ND eating wild game harvested with lead bullets/shot for as long as forty and fifty years duration have lower lead levels than our national average! But, read just the abstract and conclusion of same report and you’ll only deduce that pregnant women and young children should not consume game harvested with lead components……no mention of the long-term insignificance of lead upon long-term consumers. For that you’ll have to dig deep and read all fifty-some pages.
I won’t belabor this further other than to again mention Ben’s initial proposal of 2008 which was intended to induce MDFWP to contract or perform the necessary studies that would support his proposal’s resolution points. If any of you are interested in that document, I’m sure Ben would be open to supplying you with a copy. If not, it can still be found here in the message archives of July and August of 2008. Or just look up the posts for 'Grouse Guy' and myself and you’ll come upon it. You might even ask him how he advanced his 2008 effort on the local level, as I’m sure he is real proud of that too!
Ben keeps saying throughout this thread that "it is not about him",..... but in truth, it is very much about him, and others just like him, who assume the moral authority to alter our lives only because they ostensibly know better. In short, and as a retired wildlife biologist of 35 years experience, I still need convincing....
Rob Harris
Conner, MT
Last edited by Robt. Harris; 01/18/10 02:16 PM.
