Why We Need One Less Government Agency

It is my opinion that the United States Department of Agriculture should abolish the Forest Service agency.  There are several reasons for my conclusion:

* They have overstepped the boundaries of their original purpose.

* They have mismanaged our forests to the extent that they are no longer healthy.

* They are a waste of money.

* Forest Service Law Enforcement Officers are running amuck.

* They are successfully taking livelihoods away from people. 

The forerunner of the modern-day Forest Service was the Forest Reserve.  It was created in 1899 for two main purposes.  Those were 1. To provide a continuous supply of timber for the people until the states could take over management; and 2. To provide a continuous flow of water for the people until the states could take over management.

It was not set up to fight forest fires; run roughshod over anyone who disagrees with their practices, as they%u2019ve been known to do; or any number of things they%u2019ve taken on themselves.

The Forest Service is an expert of mismanagement.  Because of their policy of extinguishing all fires in the forest for many years, there is now so much over-crowding of trees and other plants in the forests that they%u2019re strangling themselves, becoming much more prone to diseases and drought.  Also the Forest Service, as a direct result of pressures from radical environmental groups, have stopped timber cutting, and even thinning, further permitting the overcrowding.  That means the American public also suffers because we have to spend much more to import timber from other countries.

Cattle are also being removed from forest allotments.  When this happens, the grass is not grazed as efficiently, which causes fire hazard; in several years, the grass will become too crowded and die, in the same way as it would if you completely stopped mowing your lawn.  It has to be used to remain productive.

The Forest Service is also a tremendous waste of taxpayer dollars.  There are many more employees than are necessary.  Each employee has to drive his or her own government vehicle, even when they%u2019re all going the same place.  At the current prices, fuel costs alone are staggering.  They spend exorbitant amounts of money to do research on things that have already been researched numerous times.

When they have a big fire, they often spend in excess of a million dollars per day to fight it; yet they have never stopped a big forest fire.  Nature has always eventually accomplished that by precipitation or a change of wind direction.

In 1905, Congress plainly stated to the Forest Service that under no circumstances do they have law enforcement authority.  That has never been changed.  But now the Forest Service Law Enforcement Officers all pack guns, have vehicles equipped with sirens and lights, try to enforce civil laws such as traffic violations and other misdemeanors, in addition to their own unreasonable regulations.  In reality, the only people they have authority over are other federal employees.   Moreover, the brainwashed American citizenry just lets it happen, with little or no effort to fight for our rights.  If someone dares to defy them, though, it%u2019s not against their policies to fabricate wrong doing in order to get the private citizen in trouble.  Does this sound like someone you want to have in charge?

The federal government has no authority over anything except military installations and Washington, D. C.  But they act as if they have clear title to all this forest property.  The Forest Service claims that if a person owns land inside forest boundaries, he cannot do what he wishes, such as moving livestock from one place to another, if he has to cross lands claimed by the Forest Service.

All the logging, mining and ranching are being taken from the forests, putting many out of work and devastatingly harming local economies.  Not only are they destroying livelihoods, but they are taking away freedoms and destroying a way of life that goes back for several generations, for many of us.

The Forest Service%u2019s most recent victims are everyday citizens who use the forests for recreation.  We are no longer allowed to take motorized vehicles off main roads, and certain areas are being completely closed off to all humans, because of the impact they claim people have on the forest.

They are turning our country into Nazi America.  It may not be too much longer before you hear the expression %u201CHail Government%u201D and may be required to say it; or suffer the consequences.  A good example of what%u2019s in store for the American people can be found on The Wildlands Project internet site (http://www.citizenreviewonline.org/special_issues/wildlands_project_step_by_step.htm).  The Forest Service is merely aiding those who dreamed up the project, to see it realized, all the while enslaving the American public.

These are just a few examples of why I think the Forest Service should cease to exist, and how our nation would benefit because of the discontinuation of this particular agency.