The Dallas Post Dallas, PA Wednesday, August 23,1989 5
Anderson Afield
More and more people
means less foom for wildlife
By JOHN M. ANDERSON
Folks nowdays are much ado
about the right to life. It is a curi-
ous fact that all this attention is
focused on people as yet unborn. If
you are out of the womb, nobody's
gonna march and scream and wave
banners proclaiming your right to
catch a fish, breathe clean air,
shoot a duck, or drink water that
does not cause cancer.
I was in Washington last week,
arguing in favor of protecting and
restoring our priceless rivers and
marshes, and all the fish, birds,
and mammals that live therein.
People depend on them for food,
recreation, flood protection, and
other amenities that make life
worth living. But when you get
right down to it, nobody paid much
attention to this meeting; - no TV
cameras, no Sam Donaldsons or
Diane Sawyers. My right to hunt
and fish, and not have to worry
about poisons in food, water, or
the air, will not be tested in the
Supreme Court.
It was about 50 years ago, in the
European Theatre of Operations,
that men of the cloth (we called
them chaplains in those days)
solemnly assured us that it was
our sacred duty to take the lives of
as many young Germans as pos-
sible. They made it plain that those
misguided souls did not have any
right to life because they were a
threat to our own right to life.
Ifyou don't like to hunt and fish,
watch birds, or look at beautiful
scenery, you may figutre it’s just
as well that nobody raises a fuss
over your right to do these things.
On the other hand, the threat to
your right to any kind of life in-
creases steadily, day-by-day.
Money spent for the Stealth
Bomber and star wars is money
spent to deprive others of their
right to life. And the more we spend,
the more our so-called enemies
spend for the same purpose.
The one over-riding cause of it
all? PEOPLE.
There are about 250,000 more
people on earth today than there
were yesterday at this time, and
today’s count is 250,000 less than
tomorrow's. In a week's time, world
population growth is equivalent to
a city the size of Philadelphia. Over
a year, 90 million additional hun-
gry mouths equate to another
Mexico. About 90 percent of the
increase comes in the so-called
Third World Countries. They are
also called “under-developed”, or
“have-nots” nations. Whatever
they're called, in 30 years they
have added more people than the
combined totals in North America,
Europe, Japan, Russia and
Oceania!
Unlike my meeting with the U.S.
Fish and Wildlife Service, as hun-
gry hordes stream across the Rio
Grande and as thousands starve
in refugee camps in Ethiopia, the
TV cameras and reporters show us
what's going on. We usually re-
spond by sending boatloads of grain
and rice, about $300 million worth
in most years.
And our congressmen are now
introducing legislation to bring
those displaced people in Hong
Kong, Russia, Cambodia and else-
where into the U.S. This seems to
be the humane thing to do. Is it
really?
The root cause of all that misery
is - if you'll pardon the expression
- sex. Among the factors governing
the rise and fall of nations, sex is
Alexander the Great. Regardless of
their food supply, sex can subju-
gate hunger and cause folks to
turn their backs on a bowl of rice,
oysters Rockefeller, or even a
chance to hunt ducks! We can’t do
anything about that, because you
can’t modify an instinct.
Consequently, there are about
10 times more people on this globe
than it can support, atleast health-
fully and comfortably. Now instead
of millions of tons of grain which
only makes the problem bigger
next year, why not send ‘em a few
tons of birth control pills, offer free
vasectomies, tubal ligations and
condoms?
Ever since our ancestors gave
up hunting and gathering for a
living and took to raising and stor-
ing crops, our world population
has been going up while the amount
of land capable of supporting us
has been going down.
Whether or not a fetus has a
right to life is a question that gets
all our attention. A right to what
kind of life is almost totally ig-
nored. :
John M. "Frosty" Anderson was
Director of the Wildlife Department
of the National Audobon Society
Jrom 1966 until his retirement in
1987.
The Dallas Post
P. O. Box 366, Dallas, PA 18612, welcomes wedding
and engagement announcements and photographs.
For more information, call 675-5211.
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Wilkes-Barre, Pa. 18701
Phone: (717) 825-2024
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the area’s finest
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PLENTY OF DUCKS - At the western outlet to Harveys Lake there
are ducks-a-plenty. But more development often means less room
for wildlife. (Photo by Ron Bartizek)
Water
(continued from page 1)
anything from the restaurants
here at the lake unless it comes
from a can,” said Bob Dennison,
Wilkes-Barre. He said he fears the
water around the lake may not be
safe. “Restaurants mix water with
everything they serve,” he said. “I
really think local officials should
show more concern.”
Some other residents say they
feel safe. Jim Drury, owner of
Drury’s restaurant, says he has no
concern over the water problem. “I
have no concerns. We do not have
our own wells,” he said explaining
his water comes from the Dallas
Water Company. “Our water is
tested once a month by DER and
the Dallas Water Company.”
Dick Williams, Pole 126, said he
feels the council and authority are
doing their job well. “The council is
notifying and testing Warden
Place,” he said. Although he said
he is concerned about the prob-
"I feel sorry for
those people. I
hope they get it
straightened out."
Dick Williams
Harveys Lake resident
lem, Williams said he “is not ac-
quainted with it.”
“I feel sorry for those people (at
Warden Place),” Williams said
Monday. “I hope they get it straight-
ened out.” He said the council and
authority are doing exactly what
the should. “Talk to the Warden
Place residents and find out what
it is,” he explained.
Williams said he may have his
water tested just to be safe, but
does not expect to find any prob-
lems. “Water here has been excel-
lent, he said. “I feel the problem is
local (to Warden Place).”
==
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Gountry SKI(R SPORTS
Two charged in lake hit
and run boat accident
By SCOTT A. DAVIS
Post Staff
Charges have been filed against
two individuals in connection with
a hit-and-run boat accident on
Harveys Lake which sent two
women to the hospital during the
Fourth of July weekend.
Gary A. Evans, 45, 324 E. Broad
St., Nanticoke, and his girlfriend
Adrienne Ratchford, 44, 72 Pu-
laski St., Kingston were charged
Friday with recklessly operating a
watercraft, recklessly endangering
another person, and providing false
statements. In addition, both were
charged with summary offenses
including failure to submit a re-
quired accident report and failure
to render assistance to casualties.
The charges were filed with
District Justice Earl Gregory,
Shavertown, by Harveys Lake Po-
lice Officer Ron Spock and Fish
Commission Enforcement Officer
Claude Neifert.
The charges follow almost two
months of investigation stemming
from a boat accident which oc-
curred July 1 around 11:45 p.m.
near Pole 140. Police allege that
Evans and Ratchford were operat-
ing a 1955 Chris Craft outboard
motor boat, which Evans owns,
that slammed broadside into a boat
carrying five people, including a 6-
year-old boy. Two women aboard
the boat, Nancy Begala, Harveys
Lake, and Adelia Demoulee, Port
Orchard, Washington, were treated
at Nesbitt Hospital for shock and
facial injuries. Evans’ boat was
allegedly operating without run-
ning lights.
According to police reports,
Evans called the Harveys Lake
Police Department on the morning
following the accident to report his
boat vandalized. In a statement
submitted to police, Evans claimed
that he tied his boat at Pole 142
around 9 p.m. July 1. Then, on
July 2, he said he came down to
show a friend his boat and discov-
ered it underwater. The boat had a
By SCOTT A. DAVIS
Post Staff
a minimal cost.
bacterial contaminant.
days.
handed out as of Saturday.
RT |
Where to get water tested
Residents of Harveys Lake concerned about the contamination |
currently detected at Warden Place can have their water tested for
For $12, The Kirby Health Center, located on North Franklin St., :
Wilkes-Barre, will test residents drinking water for traces of
Residents must pick-up a special container at the center, fill it
with the water, and return the sample to the center. tr
According to a spokeswoman at the center's lab, results from
the test should be received by the resident in the mail within two
The Harveys Lake Environmental Advisory Council is offering to
have the test done. Residents must pick-up a container at the
borough building and pay the $12 fee. About 50 bottles had been
hole in the left side and Evans
claimed he tried to patch it but
could not.
On July 3, Harveys Lake police
said they received a call about a
gas and oil slick on the water near
Pole 142. The police discovered
Evans’boat underwater tied to Pole
142. Neifert impounded the boat.
According to reports, the State
Police did a comparison test with
broken glass and fragments and
determined Evans’ boat was the
one involved in the accident.
Evans and Ratchford claimed in
statements to the police that they
were not involved in the accident.
According to them, at approxi-
mately 9:15 p.m. July 1, they got
out of the boat and sat on the dock
until about 10 p.m. Then, accord-
ing to the statement, they both
went up to his boat house. One of
them returned to the boat about
five minutes later toretrieve Ratch-
ford’s purse. “Atabout 11 p.m. my"
girlfriend went home and I re-
mained at the house the rest of the
evening,” Evans said in the state-
ment. ho?
Marion Attanasio. a neighbor of
Pole 142, told police she saw Evans
and Ratchford on the dock after
10:30 p.m.
“I am not sure of the exact time,
but I know it was after 10:30 p.m.
Saturday evening. I saw Gary Evans
and his girlfriend both in Gary
Evans’ boat,” Attanasio told po-
lice. She said that after midnight,
she was awakened by loud talking
and saw the police and a boat with
a spotlight looking for something.
“I also saw Gary Evans and his
girlfriend looking down where the
boat was tied. I could not see the
boat but I could see the ties. When
the police came back this way,
uy and his girlfriend went up the
Warrants will be issued through
the mail to Evans and Ratchford
for a preliminary hearing. No date
had been set as of Monday.
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