Thoughts on carp eradication

There has been an ongoing battle over the Asian carp. The main worry is that it will get in the Great Lakes and destroy the sport fishing resources. Other states, like Michigan, are trying to force Illinois to close lock traffic from the Chicago River and other waterways into the big lake. Closing traffic on Illinois waterways would affect the Illinois economy into the billions, but carp infestation of the Great Lakes would devastate a whole region's economy.

There are a few possible solutions to this problem:

• Put a bounty on the fish. Throughout our history, whenever we placed bounties on predators like wolves and coyotes, we have taken these species to near extinction. Catfish and carp fishermen can make a few extra bucks, and perhaps the federal government can free up some unspent stimulus funds, and count the fishermen as jobs created.

• We can just accept the fact that the carp will invade the Great Lakes, just as the country slides toward European Socialism, and in Europe the carp is a prime game fish. The Administration can "re-educate" the sport fishing public away from salmon, trout and walleye to the new universal prize: the carp.

The only drawback I can see, since all our river systems eventually lead to the ocean, is our waterways will soon be under the authority and regulation of the United Nations, since our Administration has signed on with the Interagency Ocean Policy Task Force.

Bill Hopkins

Huntley