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Don't Waste Resources by Dick Sherwin Lewiston Tribune, March 28, 2005

Robert Parrett Jr. claims in his letter, "Salmon Wasted," March 20, Idaho is squandering one of its great natural resources by not doing everything it can to restore salmon runs to what they were in the 1950s. If this were done, he claims, fishermen who have gone elsewhere would return to spend millions of dollars in Idaho.

Although Mr. Parrett doesn't openly advocate breaching dams in his article, he does advocate supporting "numerous organizations which are already working on re-establishing salmon populations." Most people in Idaho realize the efforts of nearly all these radical environmental organizations are more concentrated on breaching dams than on restoring salmon runs.

It is true, salmon runs bring money into the state. It is also true the money the runs bring in come from people who have good-paying jobs and money to spend on recreation. Let's not forget the people of Idaho deserve to have jobs that pay well enough to allow them the luxury of participating in the recreational pursuits of their choice also. That means real jobs, not low-paying service jobs catering to those who have real money to spend.

Logging, mining, ranching and farming are also great natural resources of the state of Idaho. Let's be sure we do not squander these resources in an attempt to restore salmon runs to a level that could never be great enough to satisfy radicals who will never be happy until they have achieved their real goal.

Do not become a parrot for radical organizations with their own selfish agendas.