I remember as a very young boy the ravages “The Great Depression” caused to our community and country. Also, a drought and frequent dirt storms made life even more miserable. There was sparse forage for the farm animals and many starved. The government stepped in and they paid the farmers and ranchers so much per head for the cattle. Then they dug pits, drove the animals into the pits and slaughtered them. Then the carcasses were covered with lime, so no one could salvage the meat, and then they covered it all with dirt.

During this era our countryside became prime breeding grounds for the jackrabbit. These animals could get by on very little water and forage. Also, they were most prolific breeders and these animals were everywhere in great numbers. In fact, they were so prolific they became a threat to other animals. The farmers, ranchers and others started killing these pests by the thousands. Even under these conditions there were those who considered this as being cruel, even if the booming population caused someone or some animal to starve.

This past week we were given another lesson on what the government can come up with. It seems that much of the state of Nevada is government-owned. Many of the farmers and ranchers in that area lease this land from the government, and have ever since Nevada became a state.

Now, all of a sudden, it was determined that a specie of desert tortoise may be losing too much of its habitat and might someday cause them to become extinct.

It even came to the point that some of the ranchers and farmers were forced to remove their livestock from these areas.

Well, the farmers and ranchers rebelled and picked up their guns and prepared to fight for what has always been their livelihood. This came very close to becoming a tragic event, until the government reps backed down, realizing these folks would fight if necessary.

Did anyone ever think about moving some of these turtles to another location? We killed our cattle one time, and millions of rabbits as well.

Neither failed to propagate when favorable conditions returned.

Longtime Plainviewan John Perry is a freelance writer living in Amarillo.