Ithaca.....it's your attitude that sucks above all others in matters such as this. Among plain folks like the rest of us, it is easy to assume that salmon are near the top of the public's priorities.....Just look at the polling results. (They are just like assholes, every lobbying organization has one) Ha! But getting specific answers to specific questions is something else.....Everyone supports salmon and especially wild salmon. But, the fact is, that salmon recovery is only one of the many priorities that we, as a society, rank high. Those of us who rank salmon recovery as high...rank these priorities even higher; water for drinking, water for irrigation, water for manufacturing, water for generating electricity, and water for any of a hundred other needs rank as high.....So, it clearly points out that OPINION POLLS MEAN "DIDDLY SQUAT"! - The main thing missing is nobody talks about population growth - all these new people yet to come are going to have higher priorities - housing, schools, tennis courts, football stadiums, expressways, planes, trains, automobiles, Starbucks, McDonalds, WalMarts, pipelines, marinas,computers, DVDs, 12 screen movie theatres, ski resorts, golf courses, weed free lawns, big city hotels, University Conference Centers, and the list goes on and on.
The only ones truly in favor of salmon recovery are the 35,000 or so Idaho salmon fishermen.....but their interests, on a whole, pale when choosing from the list just mentioned.
So.....argue as we will...wild salmon populations have been in a declining slide foe 150 years, and will continue to do so because of all the core issues......even if all dams are breeched......The only thing to look forward to is more hatchery runs when the snow pack melts will support them......Sorry!