Link herding

The Moon of Popping Trees: If you aren't deeply moved by this post by Tim Giago at Huffpo, then I'm afraid nothing can be done for you.

Damn, cephalopods are cool.

This sounds like something Dick Cheney would come up with to mitigate global warming. Wait -- that was gratuitous and it minimizes the grave subject of that article. But seriously, doesn't it?

"If the animal is reacting, you're too close." Good rule. But still, I envy this experience.

Montana wilderness bill likely still a long shot, even with Jon Tester's election. Tester's position right now appears to be to sit back and listen to the local conversations. This seems like a sound approach, at least for now. My house is on the edge of the Cabinet Mountain Wilderness Area. Even given the many competing interests, it's hard to disagree with this statement from the director of the Northern Rockies office of the Wilderness Society:

"As our valleys in Montana fill up, this wild country we have will become even more valuable to people," Ekey said. "I just want my kids and grandkids to be able to have the same experiences that we've been able to enjoy.

"If we do nothing, it's not going to stay the same — it's going to change."