The political campaign that was used to accomplish the Clinton roadless rule seemed open to serious criticism on the grounds that it was intentionally insensitive to the voice of many Western constituencies that would have (and subsequently have) objected (HCN, 11/9/09). A narrowly targeted minority of activists was mobilized to win the day while most […]
Taking the high road(less)
Posted inDecember 7, 2009: Dueling Claims
Roadless: The prologue
I agree that tactics on both sides of the roadless issue have fouled the process and the intent of law (HCN, 11/9/09). To fully understand this matter, though, I think it’s important to go back to the RARE1 and RARE2 (Roadless Area Review) processes of the 1970s and 1980s, meant to identify potential wilderness areas […]
Posted inDecember 7, 2009: Dueling Claims
Keep it legal
While I am all for keeping roads out of our national forests to the extent practicable, I found former Forest Service Chief Mike Dombeck’s view of the process disturbing (HCN, 11/9/09). Mr. Dombeck says in your story “Roadless-less” that “(t)he bottom line is that the mechanism of how we keep wild places wild is less […]
Posted inDecember 7, 2009: Dueling Claims
How about a nostalgic piece on hunters shooting at bagels?
I am beginning to wonder if the “Essay” section at the end of each issue shouldn’t be re-named “My goodness! As a yuppie I had no idea!” There must be more interesting topics available for essays than just gushy nostalgia for country grandmothers, bagel lovers displaced east of the Mississippi, or unprepared hikers who think […]
Posted inDecember 7, 2009: Dueling Claims
Holiday open house
The staff of High Country News cordially invites all readers and friends to our holiday open house. It will be at our Paonia, Colo., office (119 Grand Ave.) on Wednesday, Dec. 9, from 5 to 7:30 p.m. We’ll provide refreshments. Hope to see you there! READERS ON ROAD TRIPSThe warm Indian summer days brought traveling […]
Posted inDecember 7, 2009: Dueling Claims
Forever roadless
Ray Ring’s article “Roadless-less” was misleading to suggest that the roadless rule was created with inadequate public process and without the support of the American people (HCN, 11/9/09). The roadless rule represents the most extensive public rule-making process ever undertaken by the U.S. Forest Service. During more than three years of review and public participation, […]
Posted inDecember 7, 2009: Dueling Claims
Birders without borders
Border SongsJim Lynch291 pages, hardcover: $25.95.Knopf, 2009. “In war, truth is the first casualty.” It’s a quote attributed to the Greek playwright Aeschylus from the fifth century B.C., back when wars were wars, fought on actual battlefields by men in helmets who wielded swords and spears. Novelist Jim Lynch understands this adage, and he also […]
Posted inDecember 7, 2009: Dueling Claims
A return to the West
Name Mary Jane SkalaHometown Cleveland, OhioVocation former journalistHCN subscriber since 2005 Mary Jane Skala took some time to visit HCN a few weeks ago while cruising cross-country on a two-month-long road trip. After 40 years in journalism, she “saw the writing on the wall” and accepted a buy-out, leaving her post as senior editor at […]
Posted inGoat
A new line of defense
The attorneys for Tim DeChristopher, the University of Utah student who made bogus bids at a BLM drilling-rights auction last year, have come up with a new line of defense: selective prosecution. DeChristopher is charged with such federal felonies as interfering with a government auction and making a false representation. If convicted, he […]
Posted inHeard Around the West
Potty on the go
Speaking of camouflage, Big R stores in Klamath Falls, Redmond and White City, Ore., featured a camo-covered toilet seat in one of their newspaper inserts. The “off-road commode” for campers works this way: You attach the padded seat to a special truck hitch down by the truck’s bumper, and voila! “Now you can GO where […]
Posted inRange
What the Nuclear Boosters Don’t Tell You
On its surface, Grants doesn’t look like the Gateway to the Nuclear West. Its shuttered buildings, dilapidated store fronts, and overgrown vacant lots are what’s left of the promised prosperity from the last uranium boom. To really understand Grants’ and the region’s past and potential future, you’ve got to go below the surface. From the […]
Posted inWotr
A “shock jock” in Montana has a great fall
Environmentalists are “green Nazis … pure, unadulterated satanic evil … vile vomit.” Does that hateful tone sound familiar? Radio and TV commentary tycoons — Rush Limbaugh, Glenn Beck and their ilk — often use that kind of language against their targets, including not only environmentalists, but also liberals and gay people. Their broadcasts encourage destructive […]
Posted inDecember 7, 2009: Dueling Claims
Betting on the rails
Buffett buys BNSF as Congress considers reform legislation
Posted inHeard Around the West
Bedroom Camo
It’s always a treat to get Cabela’s Christmas catalog, that compendium of rugged outdoor gear for hunters, anglers and all those who love camouflage in its myriad incarnations. We could devote this entire page to describing those incarnations, but instead will tantalize you with these few samples: camouflage infant wear, bedspreads and boots; insulated suits […]
Posted inGoat
Doggone it
The black-tailed prairie dog won’t be protected under the Endangered Species Act, the feds announced today. Despite the fact that the ‘dogs now occupy about 3 percent of their original habitat, and despite plague, poisoning and “varmint hunts”, the federal Fish and Wildlife Service says populations are increasing. That’s good news for farmers, ranchers, and […]
Posted inDecember 7, 2009: Dueling Claims
Dueling Claims
A tribal attempt to protect Mount Taylor sparks a battle over ancient claims to the land
Posted inDecember 7, 2009: Dueling Claims
‘The West’s Biggest Bully’ gets his
“Shock jock” John Stokes loses his radio station in a battle over bankruptcy
Posted inWotr
A federal agency tries to hold on to what it’s built
Western Colorado’s Uncompahgre Valley is a garden artificially created. Corn and alfalfa grow plentifully around Montrose and other towns in this valley, about five hours southwest of Denver, as do apples, pears and cherries. A complicated web of dams, canals and river-depleting diversion projects created this produce bin of the agrarian West. A key piece […]
Posted inWotr
A Thanksgiving toast to a mom who passed the torch
It’s no secret that the traditions of hunting and fishing are dying. Academics have identified it, anti-hunters have rejoiced in it and families are living it. People who cherish hunting are trying hard to stem the decline. These days, lots of kids are growing up in a single-parent home, often headed by a mom who […]