PART II
FEAR IS A WEAPON
Songs 5-6
5. interlude 2
(fear is a weapon)
1:11
Fear is a weapon. Fear is a trap.
Fear has me losing things
I’ll never get back.¹
1. Do you remember the first time you heard the story of the big bad wolf? A shorthand for evil, both scary and bad, the wolf has been demonized throughout our history. The wolf was so villainized that there was an organized government-led campaign in the 19th and 20th centuries to eradicate wolves – and many other animals deemed in the way of progress. Through poison, traps and bullets, wolves were eliminated. By 1940 not a single wolf remained in Colorado.
A forest of teeth. A mouthful of dirt. Cold roots like a dagger. So frozen, it hurts.
This vast frozen ocean, is sweeping the woods. But who is it drowning? Me or the wolves?
6.
frozen ocean
5:12
In another lifetime, I thought of you as a vessel, we found shore
But our love was fleeting, and the water, freezing
We found land, but then you skated home
Say hello to the darkest night, It’s the sounds in the darkest night you know
Say goodbye to the ones you loved, say goodbye to the ones you used to know
Now it’s a frozen ocean, it’s a chasm between us and I can’t stand
While it traps me deeper, I can only pray it keeps them at bay til they all go away
Say hello to the darkest night, It’s the sounds in the darkest night you know
Say goodbye to the ones you loved, say goodbye to the ones you used to know
I don’t think I believe in someone else,
While the embers that flick are burning out
I think I can see movement through the smoke
Do I have a disease that’s mounting now?
Do I feel live breath on frozen ground?
Should I turn this ocean to a moat?²
2. With fear and misinformation ruling our natural world, we can not understand the real wolf.I just want to stay away from you
Anytime of day push them all away, I just want to stay away from you
I just want to stay away from you
Push the ground away, sifting out decay, I just want to stay
Tough little chipmunk you’re standing
Empty your pockets
You don’t look right
It’s dead clear
Burning bones
It’s a funeral home
It’s a terrible year
Keep them all away from me
Threatening to slay, blocking out the day, keep them all away from me
Keep them all away from me
I think I’ve found a way
These delicacies are scanning
Eyes in their sockets
You’re wound up tight
Bound with fear
Six foot tongues
Smoke in your lungs
It’s a foul frontier³
3. The real wolf avoids humans; the real wolf has neither decimated the livestock industry nor hunting. Where wolves remain or have been restored, such as in the northern Rockies states, they are helping maintain and restore the balance of natureI will start a fire
Burn them all away
I will start a fire
Keep them the wolves at bay
I will start a fire
Burn this whole thing to the ground
Now, with a greater understanding of the role the wolf has to play in our ecosystem, we need to understand that there can be a process that allows wolves, other predators and people to successfully share landscapes.Some non lethal coexistence practices are:*having human presence through range riders because wolves naturally shy of humans*using non-lethal tools such as fladry (fencing with red flags), electric fencing, night pens and fox lights.*progressive cattle herd management to rekindle herd instinct and keep cattle more confident and safe.