I'm sorry but a rancher doesn't get $800 for a calf, even in his wettest dreams. You barely get that much for a full grown steer.

And the rest of the article that quotes the so-called wildlife managers is also of the same category. You need to do the follow-up and call BS on them, just like what the media should have done to Bush's claims on WMD.

I once read an article about a rancher who was sure that coyotes were killing his calves because he found a dead calf being eaten by a coyote. The vet told him that there was no way that was happening and he needed to do an autopsy, and after four more calves died of blackleg, the rancher finally decided to vaccinate.

No mention of human over-population and loss of habitat. No mention of the loss of natural food sources for predators. Monetary considerations are at the top of the list.

Killing wolves, especially as is done in Alaska, is the new rich guy adventure, just as killing bison was in years past. Killing a predator conveys some sort of status to a "hunter" and is more a form of entertainment. When I have listened to folks from Idaho discuss the wolf situation there, it became obvious that on a very real level they enjoy the fight. They enjoy the so-called threat, even if they are not directly involved.

If dogs kill more livestock than wolves, when do we start hunting them? There's one next door that howls all the time.

Don't forget the big tax deduction the farmer gets for his loss, which when added to all the other subsidies we taxpayers give him entitle us to demand the occasional lost lamb in exchange for a world with wildlife.