ness

I always appreciate it when there is support given for statements made, and you're one of the best at doing it here, but there's an implication without context in your statement. Sure, 3/4 of a million dollars is a lot of jack, but it's over a 15 year period for one -- or about $51M a year. Still a lot of money, but I suspect it's proportional to the size of the operation to a large extent. If your point was that Republicans farmers take, I'll grant you that. If it was that they take more, well we need more info. Regardless, agriculture subsidies are one of the biggest black holes for spending, and are riddled with outdated and unnecessary expenditures. Too bad our government can't seem to figure out -- or anything else really.

Holy chit, there's a lotta nonsense in this thread. Tax on poor...huh? Those packs of smokes cost the same regardless of who buys them. More poor people smoke than rich, so it's targeting the poor and downtrodden? Cheaper butts stimulate the economy....how dat? Health is behind the initiative?...nope -- soaking smokers (and drinkers) is a time-honored way to raise money. Why would the petroleum industry care? Wrench -- I need a translation MO tax the lowest in the US just highlights a missed opportunity. But, I guess you're all content with the performance of your schools -- especially St. Louis and KCMO districts

Yeah, but you gotta agree Snyder's pretty special. Lots of top 25s and 10s in over 20 years. One of the best coaches around and had always run a clean program.

Somebody mounted a pretty good campaign against that tax. Seems like I was seeing ads, billboards and even hand written signs at convenience stores. Common theme was the 700% increase, or something like that. A tax like that is about as close as you get to free money. Too bad for your schools. Maybe open a bunch more casinos?

Hunting!

Put one one in the plus column for global warming

I should study up on this. I said earlier that it's a zero sum game, and I still do believe it is to a large extent. Money spent there is not spent elsewhere, but there is no doubt the jobs created boost the local economy. If that somehow gets folks off the government 'teet' (as dad used to say) that's a good thing. I think it comes at the expense of somewhere else though -- that's just the way stuff works. I don't think crime is a real factor anymore. That's mostly the reputation from the old days when the mobsters were so involved. Sure, some granny will gamble away her Social Security check and have to resort to armed violence, but that's probably the exception to the rule. If she's foolish enough to try that in JD's neighborhood -- well, we know how that'll go down. I suppose my fundamental issue is that there's the 'something for nothing' mentality at the core of this. The time and money spent on all this could be spent so much more effectively on other things. You know -- good old hard work and smart work. I don't gamble at casinos, because I know the odds are stacked against me. And, I recognize the way the casinos pay for all their glitz and glamor is on the suckers that think they'll be 'the one'. I know that for every big winner you hear about, there are many times that many that lost (and they tend to keep to themselves). Some lost more than they can afford, but most just pissed away some money for the excitement. I just get mine elsewhere.

Lotta truth in that, John.

Easy -- any thread can be jerked off topic and over to politics. All it takes is a little jerk Gramps, I hear you man. About the best thing I can offer is to stick to your morals -- because they're the right ones. Don't let a knucklehead ruin your day.

Yeah, I gotta agree with you. Sure, they create jobs, bring in tax revenues and provide entertainment, but it's a zero-sum deal. Most of the money spent there won't get spent elsewhere. So, whatever other entertainment and dining options you've got around there (where?) will suffer.

Every time a rabbit get's a sniffle, it's off to the doctor for an antibiotic! Seriously, this is something I've kept my eye on for years -- and I don't think it gets enough attention. Chemicals, radiation, pollution, climate change -- they're all bad things. But a breakout bacteria or virus could wipe us out. Think 1918 flu.

Being of the landed gentry, I typically have my angling garments tailor made. Generations of ness' have patronized Robjent's in Hampshire. They have my measurements and preferences on file, and those of ness men going back over 600 years. Give them a ring at 06-58-775-8-668-1, ask for Clive and tell him ness sent you. I assure you he'd be happy to discuss the matter with you. He'll be in the states early next month (delivering a fine, jewel-encrusted cane rod to Britney Spears, who apparently has decided to use the time afforded by her new found sobriety to learn the gentle art of fly angling) and you could possibly engage in a confabulation at that juncture. Cheers.

Ouch. That's a pretty long trip for nothing. I don't know a thing about SD, but in KS -- WIHA can be hit or miss wherever they are. Some of them you look at and wonder what they were thinking (or, who they are related to!) Google Earth can be somewhat helpful, but nothing like boots on the ground. Haven't heard boo about NE, but NW KS was sposta be less sh*tty than the rest. Might be a good year to take up waterfowl hunting.

We just happen to be heading down tomorrow -- I'll swing by and pick it up

Thanks -- that all makes sense. I can't picture the exact spot, but I know upstream at Forest Cut, it's extremely steep and rocky in the valley, so maybe the loose soil is less (whatever less is). We were out there in August, and it was heartbreaking to see the amount of dead standing timber. The west side was even worse. I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw Grand Lake Lodge and it's surroundings.

Big money, big money..... Is it a 5-weight?

That last pic looks really sweet, but it's the first one in post #3 that gets my predator instinct going. I hope you fished that spot. Do you have an idea of how rapidly the ground stabilizes and the siltation slows? I remember seeing pics of the Poudre right after the fire and then a month or so later. It was clearing, but had a way to go. And, I have no idea what rains or next-years snow melt will mean for it.

The beetle damage is so bad out there that it is inevitable that these fires will continue. Either way, fire or dead trees, this won't get fixed in my lifetime, which is what *I* consider long term. Maybe not even during my children's lifetimes. There's a piece of me that wants it to go ahead and burn -- get it over with and let it start to heal. I remember a few years back there was a fire in the north part of the park, and the scientists determined there hadn't been a fire in that particular section since the 1400s. (Fact check me, but I think that's right). I find that amazing, and think it puts some perspective on where we are in all this.

Yeah, it looks like the Fern Lake Trail cuts through the middle of it, and it follows the Big Thompson. Man, that would be tough going for the firefighters.

Nothing wrong with Walk-In Hunting, IMO. Sure, it's not the same as having your own estate to hunt on, but it gets you access to thousands and thousands of acres. Which makes it kinda overwhelming.... But, you can download a Google Earth file at the KDWP web site, load it in and do research from where you're sitting right now. You can't tell CRP from pasture, but you can tell a lot of other things. If you've got the time to scout, that can be pretty productive time. Sure, a lot of the best WIHAs get hammered, but if you're willing to walk a little farther or hunt a little smarter you'll improve your odds. Waiting a few weeks after opening day will greatly reduce the number of folks out there. The forecast is pretty gloomy for pheasants, but not so bad for quail. Didn't even go to western KS last year, and likely won't this year either. There are some areas closer to home I'm gonna focus on this year for quail. And, NW MO has been pretty good to me on pheasant the last two years.

Nice!

Pretty cool, Gilly.

I've got access to 4-5 farms up in SD but have never made the trek up. Just too hard to get a block of days big enough to make it worthwhile, and my hunting buddies are too cheap to make a trip like that anyway. I was reading a post on another forum and a guy that was out prairie chicken hunting in KS saw a lot of pheasants on WIHAs. Don't know where it was, but it was CRP and there were chalk hills in the photos -- like you'd see in Gove/Trego counties. So, I suppose that's a positive sign. Something else came up too. My older Brittany (12) has been showing her age the last year or so, but I figured she'd still have another year, maybe two left to hunt. The last couple months she has gone mostly blind though. She can get around if it's in bright light, but I'm afraid her time has come. I'm gonna get her out to hunt a preserve near here soon, and that'll probably be it for her this year.

Yeah -- I'd say check out Yakima too. They're not cheap, but they are built right.

Sweet! I like that shot of your rod/line. Makes my predator neurons start to fire. Looked it up -- I've got a niece that lives over in Hickory