Letters to the editor, December 2022
Comments from readers.
HOPE FOR MORE
The November 2022 issue gives evidence that some things are getting better and that there is hope for more.
Keeping the balance between despair and hope is important.
Charles F. Tucker
Swall Meadows, California
INSPIRING INTERVIEW
I enjoyed your recent piece on National Park Service Director Chuck Sams (“From dominance to stewardship,” November 2022). What a masterfully done profile, and I especially appreciated the question about parks being “loved to death” and how that evidences a non-Native vision of land without people. And I enjoyed the thread you drew from that to the idea of “wilderness” being a colonial invention. Overall, it was really inspiring and a breath of fresh air to read.
Tania Lown-Hecht
Portland, Oregon
COLLABORATION CONUNDRUM
“The extremism vaccine” (November 2022) presents too rosy a picture of collaboratives. Even the sketch accompanying the article fails to depict the diversity and underlying tension that are present at many meetings. The work is very, very difficult, and it has often failed.
The article needs to let readers know in stronger terms that the collaborative system is not a 100% effective vaccine. While the High Desert Partnership may be having some success, there are many frustrated people and organizations across much of Oregon and Idaho who have reverted to other methods to achieve conservation goals.
Mathieu Federspiel
Powell Butte, Oregon
What an excellent job you did on “The extremism vaccine” — very well written and exceptionally readable (and digestible).
Howard W. Braham
Spokane, Washington
CAUGHT UP
Seldom does one find such a magnificent marriage of image and idea that begins on the cover and simply does not let up. This is what photojournalism should always look like and feel like and, frankly, be. Sanders and Hansel (“Recollecting,” October 2022) take us where some of us have not been, show us the way, rearrange our theretofore muddled thinking and probably confused feelings, and gently release us at the only logical place. We, too, are caught.
Dick Shohet
Carlisle, Massachusetts
POETRY CONNECTION
I loved the “Pearl & Lee” poem (October 2022). The unfolding structure, the wordplay, the way the names of the lovers made the story of their connection. And how it caused me to imagine how that time had been for them.
Holly Griswold
Mosier, Oregon
LANDBACK LEARNING
I just wanted to reach out after reading the HCN piece on the LandBack movement (“6 questions about the LandBack movement, answered,” September 2022). I appreciated your combination of humor and concise, but clear, explanation. It’s a helpful starting point for me to learn more.
Stacy Eisenstark
Washington, D.C.
In addition to reporting on important issues that mainstream media ignores, I continue to subscribe to HCN because I love to see the reader feedback. It helps to restore my faith in humanity, such as AJ Womack’s “LandBack Love” and Pat Rauscher’s “Superb Snark,” (both October 2022) in which they expressed their support and personal commitment to the Landback movement. The U.S. tax code, an expression of our societal values, make it simple, easy and tax-free to give land to nonprofit and/or religious organizations. Unfortunately, even if citizens want to give land “back” to Native peoples, they face substantial barriers and penalties. Actions speak louder than words: Let’s make doing the right thing easier, not a punishable offense. LandBack!
Leaf Hillman
Orleans, California
BEST EELS ARTICLE
Just finished reading “Underwater Legends” in the October 2022. It is of great impact. Thank you for writing the best article I’ve ever read about lamprey ... “eels,” as you point out. B. “Toastie” Oaster’s wordsmithing is fun to read and very educational.
Ricardo Small
Albany, Oregon
PEOPLE ARE ASSETS
Cheers and kudos to Nick Bowlin and Daniel Rothberg for their coverage in “Trouble at Nevada Gold Mines” (October 2022). For 10 years (2001-2010), I was a contract instructor at the University of Nevada’s Emergency Management Institute and Fire Training Academy. My colleagues and I taught classes in occupational safety and emergency response. Most of those students were employed by Barrick and Newmont, along with firefighters and law enforcement. Shop talk is inevitable in training environments, and there were always unanimous opinions regarding the mining companies’ management ranks. To Mark Bristol and his cronies, I offer a resounding “bovine fecal deposition”: Listen to and protect your people. After all, according to you, “Your most important asset in any business … is its people.”
Bill Christie
Westcliffe, Colorado
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