The one political post I have allowed myself on this blog was a little dance of joy over Governor Rod Dracula, uh, Blago's arrest. Well it is time for dancing again.
The normal course of events have ensued. The undead governor is impeached and gone forever. The sun has risen, birds are singing and our new governor Pat Quinn has appointed Marc Miller, his chief of staff for environmental affairs to head the Illinois Department of Natural Resources.
Before we go further, I'll need to pause.
This is going to be hard. I need to inoculate this post against any appearance of a suck-up. I can't think of anything negative to say about Marc, but for the sake of this post, please just assume I did. Assume I said some big hairy insulting thing to be determined later. Assume what I said was so horrendous that it would preclude any appearance of ingratiation....
...and with that out of the way...
...it's dancing time!!!
Marc probably would not remember me, but I knew Marc by reputation, one chance meeting at the Izaak Walton League, and a couple of emails at the Illinois Smallmouth Alliance. By all appearances, he is a conservationist who cares about
fisheries done the right way. Marc was an organizer at Prairie Rivers Network (an aquatic environmental group) and an active member of the Illinois Smallmouth Alliance.
As far as I can tell, he has an outlook based more on science and good policy than anything he learned in the good old boy network. Perhaps I am projecting, but I really get the feeling that Marc understands that quality, sustainable fisheries come from diverse, sustainable ecosystems. From Marc, we will get a strong ally of the idea that fishers should be the allies of clean water, good science, and free flowing rivers.
Disclaimer: I don't know any former IDNR Chiefs. When I worked there I was a lowly grad. student and biologist. They are all fine people I'm sure. Perhaps they all agree with those ideas as passionately as I do and as Marc does.
...but I don't think any of them have the kind of background or outlook Marc has. I suspect the IDNR is about to become a very different place. If all goes well, some fantastic stuff may be happening soon.
Dancin' time!!!
