Here it is in black and white:

NOAA Fisheries Stewardship Commitment

Thanks to all those who helped shape this decision!

If you remember right , when the doom and gloom started flying and the Bush bashing was in full force on this I said NOAA was the agency to look to and that they promised from the get go not to abandon the wild fish....Came true I guess....Is it Bush's doing? It was his fault when you thought it went the other way wasn't it?

Who'da' guessed?

The proposed action now suggests adding Lower Columbia River coho as the 27th listed ESU. This should be a positive step for most interests except lower Columbia River gillnetters, which target the large returns of hatchery coho salmon.

Other news is that Sacramento winter chinook would be upgraded from endangered to threatened, upper Columbia steelhead would also be upgraded from endangered to threatened. On the downside, central California coast coho would be downgraded from threatened to endangered.

Public input is solicited, and a final rule will be proposed a year from now.

Sincerely,

Salmo g.

GP2,

Depends how you look at it. It was Bush's people who proposed weakening salmon protection. It was a pretty high level in the administration (Bush's people, right?) that leaked the draft hatchery proposal to gage public reaction. The public reacted, and the recommendations of the scientists are now the proposed government action.

Are you suggesting that Bush gets credit for protecting salmon, or are you suggesting that Bush should be given credit for 1) leaking to the public to gage reaction; 2) hearing public reaction; and or 3) responding by incorporating the scientific recommendations as the government's proposal? If he gets credit for any of those three, he also gets credit/blame for stirring the pot in the first place by suggesting that salmon protection be weakened.

Sincerely,

Salmo g.

I knew I could count on you for a full fledged spin job on this.....Just can't get anything good to come out can you?

Who gets the credit? The blame?

I couldn't give a rat's a$$.... all I know is that this time the fish win. Chill guys, it's all good!

FNP wrote

"I couldn't give a rat's a$$.... all I know is that this time the fish win. Chill guys, it's all good"

Thanks!

I couldn't of said it any better!