Thank you, Congress. Slam dunk. Now please work EVERYTHING ELSE into your schedule--you know, national debt, defense spending, education, infrastructure, basically the future of the people who live here that are not themselves bison.
Bison are wonderful animals and are not in any way an endangered species. They are remarkably hardy and are even being raised much like cattle for meat. Bison is a much healthier meat than beef and most people can not even tell the difference except that beef has marbling and bison do not. (That is why it is a healthier choice). There is no need for a regulatory hammer but it is a great gesture. The reason that buffalo are killed is because they are so hardy and need to be thinned in order to prevent overpopulation.
Do you want food to be the national mammal? It seems a predator would be a better choice as a national beast and bison as dinner. Not that being named the national mammal really matters, of course.
Bison don't "need to be thinned." Humans have been eating bison since this species evolved - in fact we were eating its predecessor thousands of years earlier. One thing we need to do is to let the other predators of bison recover their territories.
Actually, why would the animal that provided most of the food and shelter for the American natives for thousands of years not be an appropriate animal? The fact that the Bison was so close to extinction and recovered is another reason to consider it an appropriate national mammal. We have a predator as the national bird.
Wrong, they are thinned due to ranchers running cattle on land that is not made for cattle and the fear that "it might spread a disease", no case of this disease has been dound in bison but reason and intelligence dont seem to matter. In just a short span of time millions of bison were slaughtered by non regulated creeps wanting to sell their skins.
I tend to disagree Cheryl. Like marie says, ranchers running cattle will eradicate any species that competes for space or foliage. They need to be protected. marie is correct.
"Bison are wonderful animals and are not in any way an endangered species"
Actually, they are.
The bison YOU are referring to aren't pure bison at all. They're the result of bison being interbred with cattle.
Thanks to humans reducing the bison population from a whopping 60,000,000 to a paltry 300 in less than a century the bison are faced with a lack of genetic diversity. As a result there are very few "real" American bison left and those few are very much an endangered species.
Fine work Congress. Now try dealing with the horrible economy, uncontrollable influence of money in politics, trade deals, justice reform and tax reform.
I think this is a great idea. I remember when we had a bison nickel, although it wasn't called that (before the Jefferson nickel). I don't recall that I have ever eaten bison meat, but perhaps it's a treat for my future. Gordon (in Tulsa)
If you're in Tulsa it shouldn't be hard to find bison meat to eat, either in a restaurant or a store. If you cook it in your home, say, ground meat, don't squeeze out the juice, and don't cook it past medium rare. Sage is a good 1st seasoning to try.
After near extinction, this is a good idea. I guess the promised jobs bill and the alternative solution to the Affordable Care Act will come up AFTER this pressing and important vote!
