The stones were assembled in a loose circle of five, each as huge as a beach house, verdant layers of moss covering them like furs draped from kings’ shoulders. I’d come through the forest quickly, following the meandering logic of a deer trail. When I rounded the a sharp corner, rising from the dry gully […]
In the presence of stones
Posted inWotr
Slow down, you drive too fast
Just for grins, let’s talk about lowering the speed limit on our interstate highways – say, to 65 mph on roads where it’s now 75 mph, and where most people drive 80 mph. Go ahead, roll your eyes. We’ve done this before, and I’ll admit it that it wasn’t much fun. That was in 1974, […]
Posted inWotr
Ranching still has a place on our public lands
I found a recent photograph that shows three people in cowboy gear – I’m the one pouring coffee from a thermos into beat-up cups. We’d all just gotten down from our horses, and the guys are leaning on a pickup truck marked U.S. Forest Service. Here’s the surprise: We’re all laughing. I’m a rancher, and […]
Posted inDecember 24, 2007: Last chance for the Lobo
Boodog roasting on an open fire
How to cook a marmot, Spokane’s tastiest resident.
Posted inDecember 24, 2007: Last chance for the Lobo
Selling empanadas, building a community
Can you recall that time in your life when you first encountered the world on your own, when your eagerness fought with your shyness, and friends and books and music and movies seemed vital sources not just of amusement but of new, remarkable, and attainable lives? If you can’t, The Empanada Brotherhood, the 11th novel […]
Posted inDecember 24, 2007: Last chance for the Lobo
No ordinary stroll
One of the most beautiful books of 2007, The Walk, by William deBuys, tells of life, death, crisis and love in northern New Mexico. It’s a poetic book, to be sure, but one that’s entirely down-to-earth. Sometimes, when writers recount their experiences farming or working the land, it’s hard not to see them as dilettantes, […]
Posted inDecember 24, 2007: Last chance for the Lobo
Not Rupert Murdoch, that’s for sure
Matt Jenkins’ update on L.A.’s Metropolitan Water District is a wonderful and necessary piece, taking up slack since the Chicago Tribune gutted the once-proud L.A. Times, which no longer appears capable (HCN, 11/12/07). It gives me little pleasure to note that where mainstream media regularly fails to look out for the public interest, your independent […]
Posted inDecember 24, 2007: Last chance for the Lobo
The cure is worse
While it is always compelling to hear individual anecdotes of the suffering caused by West Nile virus, the danger posed by this disease has been blown out of proportion in the United States (HCN, 11/12/07). In Colorado in 2006, for example, there were 724 suicides, 609 deaths due to influenza and pneumonia, 226 deaths from […]
Posted inDecember 24, 2007: Last chance for the Lobo
Personal freedom, personal responsibility
Our communities have successfully developed smart solutions to avoid foreseeable nightmares from sprawl, traffic and other infrastructure limitations (HCN, 11/26/07). Across the West, new affronts to a legacy of urban planning are now emerging in response to these successes. Arizona’s “wildcat” subdivisions are one remarkable example, and last year’s so-called “takings” initiatives another. Thanks in […]
Posted inDecember 24, 2007: Last chance for the Lobo
Where have all the (exotic) flowers gone?
I enjoyed the article “Beetle Warfare” ( HCN, 11/26/07). However, I disagree with Ruth Hufbauer of Colorado State University when she says, “So we have to hope that today, we have a pretty good understanding of what’s going on, and that we’re not making mistakes that 50 years from now, we’ll look back on and […]
Posted inDecember 24, 2007: Last chance for the Lobo
The Promised Land?
Churches use a federal law to trample local land-use rules
Posted inDecember 24, 2007: Last chance for the Lobo
Two weeks in the West
When it comes time to court the ladies, male greater sage grouse puff up their chests, displaying bright yellow air sacs, and fan their tail feathers like a peacock. But former Deputy Assistant Secretary of Interior Julie MacDonald apparently had no taste for crazy mating rituals or, for that matter, wildlife in general. She did […]
Posted inDecember 24, 2007: Last chance for the Lobo
Canis fiasco
Government sharpshooters may soon stalk elk in Rocky Mountain National Park, picking off one animal at a time. They promise to do their shooting in the early morning, so as not to disturb park visitors, and officials have assured the press that they plan to preserve the herds’ “viewability” throughout all of this. After all, […]
Posted inDecember 24, 2007: Last chance for the Lobo
The troubled times of the Mexican wolf
Note: This article is a sidebar to this issue’s feature story, “Last chance for the Lobo.” PRE-1970 Mexican wolves extirpated from the Southwestern U.S. by private, state and government control campaigns. 1970s 1976 Mexican wolf listed as endangered under the Endangered Species Act. 1977-1980 Five wolves captured in Mexico to establish a captive breeding program. […]
Posted inDecember 24, 2007: Last chance for the Lobo
Heard Around the West
NEVADA Five years ago, Douglas Hoffman and his wife, Debbie, bought a house in an upscale retirement community outside of Las Vegas. The spectacular neon lights of the Strip at night were what passed for a view, and the just-planted trees were small. But as Sun City Anthem in Henderson grew to 7,000 homes, the […]
Posted inDecember 24, 2007: Last chance for the Lobo
A river sacrificed
In Washington, helping one fish has meant harming another
Posted inDecember 24, 2007: Last chance for the Lobo
Dear friends
DECKING OUR HALLS AND TAKING A BREAK Dozens of friends attended our open house on Dec. 12; thanks to all of you who came by. For the last two weeks of December, we won’t be putting out a news magazine; instead, we’ll be catching up around the office and enjoying a bit of holiday cheer. […]
Posted inDecember 24, 2007: Last chance for the Lobo
Last chance for the Lobo
Mexican wolves caught in the crossfire of the battle over public lands.
Posted inWotr
How to feel abundant at Christmas
In recent weeks I repeatedly found myself shopping for gifts and stocking stuffers. More than once I roamed the aisles of discount stores that specialize in out-of-fashion, out-of-date, not-quite top-shelf merchandise. You know, not the Salvation Army, but definitely not Target. I was not alone. The stores were crammed with shoppers looking for bedroom slippers, […]
Posted inWotr
For sustainability, a city beats the country
In 2006, my husband and I moved to a little town in New Mexico called Socorro where he was starting his Ph.D. program. Socorro means help in Spanish. We should have known we were in trouble, but how hard could it be to find an energy-efficient house and a sensible way to live? I was […]