SinCityFJC
Adventurer
Some on ExPo suggested I should better express my personal views on land use & access rights. The following article is one that James & I did. We work great together, we brainstorm a topic, he writes & we rewrite till we get what we want. What is expressed in this article are some of the things I feel strongly about.
ps: As a practice of mine I rather not be included in bylines or credits.
This and other pieces James Hennegan & I work on we regularly send to BRC UFWDA & others. This is the 1st one to be picked up & published.
This was originally posted Jan 13th 2009 http://justgoodtrails.com/waiting/view_topic.php?id=313&forum_id=23
I added it to the JGT blog on Jan 26th 2009 http://justgoodtrails.blogspot.com/2009/01/when-did-i-become-bad.html
Published in the current issue of BRC magazine.
Source Link - http://www.sharetrails.org/magazine/article.php?id=1721
When Did I Become Bad?
Editorial by James Hennegan
Let's look back at the history of this country. When we first started to come over and settle this country, we were considered explorers, settlers, pioneers, and we were looked upon as those who were forerunners and leaders. We used the skills we learned and developed to clear out areas and develop what are now our major population areas. We survived by hunting and fishing first, and then farming second. Our forefathers went into the wilderness and gleaned its resources.
As we became a more and more developed nation, and we needed less and less of the new lands, we set aside the open areas for our children to be able to see and use for recreation. Some of the first really strong advocates of national public lands being preserved were great hunters, such as Teddy Roosevelt, who enjoyed using the land under proper management. We then entered a time when we noticed we needed to set land aside. And we have. The amount of public land in America outweighs almost every nation in the world. We have more land under the BLM and Park Service than most nations have land.
I can remember as a child, packing up the 4x4 to go on a camping trip, or a picnic with my family, we would go deep into the lands following established trails. Most times we found areas for my father to fish and my brothers and sisters would play games, explore the outdoors, help my mother with picnic chores, and learn about the wonderful areas we visited. I was lucky, my father was a military man and we moved to different areas of the country a lot. So we had different types of land to explore, and I was shown and taught how to care for and protect where we would go and learned that the land came first.
We grew up and were looked upon by our friends and neighbors as outdoors people. We were respected for our ability to travel and do what others knew so little about. We would encourage others to come out and show them the outdoors in a way they would take away something with them. And we usually did it in a 4x4, going down back roads, looking for places that solitude was the norm.
I can remember the look on faces of those who rarely go out into these areas when you show them a site few have seen, perch them on the side of a mountain overlooking a desert. Shown some valleys I have seen grown men start to cry as they took in the beauty of what was presented before them. And at the end of a trip you would receive a thanks so big it made you happy you could share your love.
But now somewhere all has gone wrong. The current attacks I see on access to public lands increase on almost a daily basis. Just reading a forum in a site like JustGoodTrails.com and you will see posted up alert after alert of impending actions to shut down areas all over the country. All in the name of preserving the land.
I have become the enemy, I have become the person to protect the land from.
I volunteer many a weekend in San Bernardino National Forest in Adopt a Trail service, working side by side with a force of hundreds who toil to keep lands open to public use; we work on trails because we are needed by the Forest Service. I plan this year to expand that by also working with a group that goes and collects native seeds, germinates and care for the plants, planting them in areas to help the control of invasive species and planting seedlings over illegal trails.
I do not want anything new, no new trails, no new areas. I just want to preserve the access to what I have.
But somewhere I have become a bad person. Because I do not believe we should shut down any form of mechanical access to most areas, I have become bad. Because I do not want to deny most lands to most people, I have become bad.
Wilderness designation is a failure, it denies too much to too many, we need to push for and educate the public for the designation of Back Country, a designation that makes sense. Back Country preserves the lands, but allows access Wilderness does not. Denying access to the public never works.
Let us not become criminals for doing what we love. Let us be proud to maintain, enjoy and love the outdoors. Let us hold our heads high.
Go out and volunteer for a day on public lands and let your voice be heard.
After all, when did I become bad?
—Questions or comments regarding this article should be directed to the BlueRibbon Coalition: Phone: 208-237-1008, Fax: 208-237-9424. Email: <brmag@sharetrails.org>.
BlueRibbon Magazine, March 2009
ps: As a practice of mine I rather not be included in bylines or credits.
This and other pieces James Hennegan & I work on we regularly send to BRC UFWDA & others. This is the 1st one to be picked up & published.
This was originally posted Jan 13th 2009 http://justgoodtrails.com/waiting/view_topic.php?id=313&forum_id=23
I added it to the JGT blog on Jan 26th 2009 http://justgoodtrails.blogspot.com/2009/01/when-did-i-become-bad.html
Published in the current issue of BRC magazine.
Source Link - http://www.sharetrails.org/magazine/article.php?id=1721
When Did I Become Bad?
Editorial by James Hennegan
Let's look back at the history of this country. When we first started to come over and settle this country, we were considered explorers, settlers, pioneers, and we were looked upon as those who were forerunners and leaders. We used the skills we learned and developed to clear out areas and develop what are now our major population areas. We survived by hunting and fishing first, and then farming second. Our forefathers went into the wilderness and gleaned its resources.
As we became a more and more developed nation, and we needed less and less of the new lands, we set aside the open areas for our children to be able to see and use for recreation. Some of the first really strong advocates of national public lands being preserved were great hunters, such as Teddy Roosevelt, who enjoyed using the land under proper management. We then entered a time when we noticed we needed to set land aside. And we have. The amount of public land in America outweighs almost every nation in the world. We have more land under the BLM and Park Service than most nations have land.
I can remember as a child, packing up the 4x4 to go on a camping trip, or a picnic with my family, we would go deep into the lands following established trails. Most times we found areas for my father to fish and my brothers and sisters would play games, explore the outdoors, help my mother with picnic chores, and learn about the wonderful areas we visited. I was lucky, my father was a military man and we moved to different areas of the country a lot. So we had different types of land to explore, and I was shown and taught how to care for and protect where we would go and learned that the land came first.
We grew up and were looked upon by our friends and neighbors as outdoors people. We were respected for our ability to travel and do what others knew so little about. We would encourage others to come out and show them the outdoors in a way they would take away something with them. And we usually did it in a 4x4, going down back roads, looking for places that solitude was the norm.
I can remember the look on faces of those who rarely go out into these areas when you show them a site few have seen, perch them on the side of a mountain overlooking a desert. Shown some valleys I have seen grown men start to cry as they took in the beauty of what was presented before them. And at the end of a trip you would receive a thanks so big it made you happy you could share your love.
But now somewhere all has gone wrong. The current attacks I see on access to public lands increase on almost a daily basis. Just reading a forum in a site like JustGoodTrails.com and you will see posted up alert after alert of impending actions to shut down areas all over the country. All in the name of preserving the land.
I have become the enemy, I have become the person to protect the land from.
I volunteer many a weekend in San Bernardino National Forest in Adopt a Trail service, working side by side with a force of hundreds who toil to keep lands open to public use; we work on trails because we are needed by the Forest Service. I plan this year to expand that by also working with a group that goes and collects native seeds, germinates and care for the plants, planting them in areas to help the control of invasive species and planting seedlings over illegal trails.
I do not want anything new, no new trails, no new areas. I just want to preserve the access to what I have.
But somewhere I have become a bad person. Because I do not believe we should shut down any form of mechanical access to most areas, I have become bad. Because I do not want to deny most lands to most people, I have become bad.
Wilderness designation is a failure, it denies too much to too many, we need to push for and educate the public for the designation of Back Country, a designation that makes sense. Back Country preserves the lands, but allows access Wilderness does not. Denying access to the public never works.
Let us not become criminals for doing what we love. Let us be proud to maintain, enjoy and love the outdoors. Let us hold our heads high.
Go out and volunteer for a day on public lands and let your voice be heard.
After all, when did I become bad?
—Questions or comments regarding this article should be directed to the BlueRibbon Coalition: Phone: 208-237-1008, Fax: 208-237-9424. Email: <brmag@sharetrails.org>.
BlueRibbon Magazine, March 2009
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