Relax, Everything is Going to be Okay!

[BrentD]

If it was easy this Public Lands Forum wouldn't be needed and HT would be a grip and grin site where we just argue about people asking for help and posting unit numbers.

I disagree. It is not the public, by and large. It is the politicians that threatened our public land, along with a few other special groups like miners and and a few elite ranchers. Politicians caving to very vocal minorities with lots of money are the problem.

 

[SAJ-99]

I disagree. It is not the public by and large. It is the politicians, That threatened our public land. How long with a few other special enters groups like miners and and a few elite ranchers. Politicians caving to very vocal minorities with lots of money are the problem.

Good point. I'm not sure politicians are listening to the people anymore. And if they make the mistake once they sure won't do it again.

Baumgartner faces angry, disruptive town hall following two months of Trump's presidency

U.S. Rep. Michael Baumgartner was confronted by a disruptive, angry crowd that demanded answers for the freshman Republican congressman’s voting record and recent actions in President Donald Trump’s White House – and regularly interrupted each answer during a town hall Monday evening at...

www.spokesman.com

 

[jimh406]

Veterans against Musk.

 

[Irrelevant]

I disagree. It is not the public by and large. It is the politicians, That threatened our public land. How long with a few other special enters groups like miners and and a few elite ranchers. Politicians caving to very vocal minorities with lots of money are the problem.

I'm not sure. I think there is a factually based and compelling case for both. I sure know a lot of people that don't value public lands over development. I tend to see them as the same people they buy on credit, they are pre-dispositioned to be short-sighted in their ability to assess life. But once you walk them through it, you can often get them to see the logic behind retaining and supporting public lands.

 

[TOGIE]

I disagree. It is not the public by and large. It is the politicians, That threatened our public land. How long with a few other special enters groups like miners and and a few elite ranchers. Politicians caving to very vocal minorities with lots of money are the problem.

It is largely the politicians and vocal minorities and they get away with it because the overwhelming majority of americans have no understanding of, connection to, or even fleeting thoughts of federal public land. If they do it's in regards to a National Park that they maybe visited once and they might raise their voice in defense of Parks after that experience.

I grew up in a western state, hiking, backpacking, camping, fishing, climbing, and mt biking and that recreation took part in its majority on federal public land. I started hunting when I was like 26 or whatever and i can tell you that hunting is the only thing that opened my eyes to the true vastness of and the near ethereal experience of recreating on the vast and largely unknown to the masses chunks of public land. Nothing opened my eyes to how valuable so many places are that very few people ever visit.

Take your average coloradan and you will probably have a hard time convincing them of the intangible values of the vast BLM acreage in the northwest corner of the state that they have not and will never spend time on. Then insert any other random location of public land that isn't a developed campground and they will likely struggle the same to see why anyone would place such an intangible and large amount of value on it. Heck chances are this person doesn't even camp.

Now remember that like 80% of the US population lives east of the 100th meridian. The majority them don't give a shit. They just don't.

Thinking about all that is why if, hypothetically, Colorado could gain ownership of all of our federal public land and I could be guaranteed it would be retained in its entirety as public land for all the uses the public enjoys on public land, well.... I'd take that deal in a heartbeat given current trajectories.

 

[WildWill]

It is largely the politicians and vocal minorities and they get away with it because the overwhelming majority of americans have no understanding of, connection to, or even fleeting thoughts of federal public land. If they do it's in regards to a National Park that they maybe visited once and they might raise their voice in defense of Parks after that experience.

I grew up in a western state, hiking, backpacking, camping, fishing, climbing, and mt biking and that recreation took part in its majority on federal public land. I started hunting when I was like 26 or whatever and i can tell you that hunting is the only thing that opened my eyes to the true vastness of and the near ethereal experience of recreating on the vast and largely unknown to the masses chunks of public land. Nothing opened my eyes to how valuable so many places are that very few people ever visit.

Take your average coloradan and you will probably have a hard time convincing them of the intangible values of the vast BLM acreage in the northwest corner of the state that they have not and will never spend time on. Then insert any other random location of public land that isn't a developed campground and they will likely struggle the same to see why anyone would place such an intangible and large amount of value on it. Heck chances are this person doesn't even camp.

Now remember that like 80% of the US population lives east of the 100th meridian. The majority them don't give a shit. They just don't.

Thinking about all that is why if, hypothetically, Colorado could gain ownership of all of our federal public land and I could be guaranteed it would be retained in its entirety as public land for all the uses the public enjoys on public land, well.... I'd take that deal in a heartbeat given current trajectories.

Nailed it. For most of the people I know public lands aren't even on their radar.

 

[Gulf of America]

I just found out the feds aren't signing any PE (preliminary engineering) mods for grant-funded projects, which is a huge blow to project development within the Department of Transportation. These projects have to meet tight deadlines and engineering is typically scoped in phases, and this means every project is stuck in the current phase. For one project, the feds refused to grant a SOW amendment with no cost or schedule impact, just cleaning up project limits, so that project is also grinding to a halt. This is tens, maybe hundreds, of millions of taxpayer dollars (in Montana alone) being held up and it's going to mean more road and bridge closures. That's bad for everyone.

 

[Bonasababy]

Trump weakened regs during his first administration, they were restored during the Biden administration. But he's back!

The assault on the migratory bird treaty act continues:

Trump weakens one of the nation's oldest environmental laws - Center for Western Priorities

As part of a sweeping suspension of Biden-era legal opinions, the Trump administration weakened protections for migratory birds under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, an environmental law that has been in place since 1918. The administration suspended a legal opinion that held companies...

westernpriorities.org

 

[Deleted member 27192]

Not a joke.

For Veterans Fired by Trump, Sense of Betrayal Runs Deep

Donald Trump's cuts across the federal workforce include many veterans—some of whom were later rehired—sowing outrage and anger.

time.com

Trump administration plans to cut 80,000 employees from Veterans Affairs, according to internal memo

The Department of Veterans Affairs is planning an “aggressive” reorganization that includes cutting 80,000 jobs from the sprawling agency.

apnews.com

5 reasons federal cuts are hitting veterans especially hard

For the past month, the Trump administration has been cutting federal spending, causing numerous hardships for government employees, the agencies they work for and the people they serve. But veterans are among those hardest hit, and the impact goes well beyond job loss.

www.pbs.org

Let this political, shit thread die... Jesus.

 

[mtmuley]

Let this political, shit thread die... Jesus.

Yeah. Some members need to move along. All they are here for is the perpetual BS they stir up. mtmuley

 

[Bonasababy]

Let this political, shit thread die... Jesus.

So its OK to make a joke out of what the administration is doing to veterans, but not OK to call them out on it.

I see.

 

[Deleted member 27192]

So its OK to make a joke out of what the administration is doing to veterans, but not OK to call them out on it.

I see.

I'm a veteran and a federal employee, you dont see me crying about any of it. You and a few others go on every thread and rant your bullshit. No one wants to see or read about your political opinions. Its a $*)Q!#@$ hunting forum. Bring your shit to facebook.

 

[Nick87]

Yeah. Some members need to move along. All they are here for is the perpetual BS they stir up. mtmuley

One or two in particular.

 

[BourbonSnowCone]

Let this political, shit thread die... Jesus.

No one is forcing you to click on it.

 

[Finnman]

So its OK to make a joke out of what the administration is doing to veterans, but not OK to call them out on it.

I see.

Move your crap to FB.

 

[BourbonSnowCone]

Move your crap to FB.

Ah yes, Facebook, the bastion of civil political discourse.

 

[Benfromalbuquerque]

Out in Santa Fe National Forest nordic trails today. I told ‘em we’d find snow if we looked on the north side. My son didn’t ask “what now?” for a log across the trail. No, he asked how I would cut it, not if, because I’m raising kids like that. Make better than how you found it, especially public land.
There was a constant flow of out-of-state plates. Going up the ski valley route. Most notably from states lacking huge tracts of public lands. After we got down off the trail, we stopped at a picnic area. I noticed a lot of those out of state visitors stopping off there too because of the great sledding and short hikes right there. These people didn’t just come for Santa Fe Ski, but THE WHOLE forest.
They love it all and I thought you know, this land transfer fight isn’t just between residents within the states and certain legislators/commercial interests. No, this fight is for everyone who wants more than just ski slopes. Everyone who though they may live in downtown LA or Houston, they want to get the whole experience when they vacation at that resort. Though BLM isn’t generally as scenic, it’s still right there as cherished Federal land for everyone to enjoy.

 

[hank4elk]

Out in Santa Fe National Forest nordic trails today. I told ‘em we’d find snow if we looked on the north side. My son didn’t ask “what now?” for a log across the trail. No, he asked how I would cut it, not if, because I’m raising kids like that. Make better than how you found it, especially public land.
There was a constant flow of out-of-state plates. Going up the ski valley route. Most notably from states lacking huge tracts of public lands. After we got down off the trail, we stopped at a picnic area. I noticed a lot of those out of state visitors stopping off there too because of the great sledding and short hikes right there. These people didn’t just come for Santa Fe Ski, but THE WHOLE forest.
They love it all and I thought you know, this land transfer fight isn’t just between residents within the states and certain legislators/commercial interests. No, this fight is for everyone who wants more than just ski slopes. Everyone who though they may live in downtown LA or Houston, they want to get the whole experience when they vacation at that resort. Though BLM isn’t generally as scenic, it’s still right there as cherished Federal land for everyone to enjoy.View attachment 364921View attachment 364922View attachment 364923

Little whomans! Seems they were just blanket bundles...

 

[The_Jim]

Now remember that like 80% of the US population lives east of the 100th meridian. The majority them don't give a shit. They just don't.

^^^^This^^^^ I think a lot of you guys overestimating your power to persuade a bunch of people that absolutely do not care about public land and outdoor recreation.

 

[Bonasababy]

^^^^This^^^^ I think a lot of you guys overestimating your power to persuade a bunch of people that absolutely do not care about public land and outdoor recreation.

While admitting I don't have any data to back it up, my recollection is that when polled americans routinely value their public lands highly. We aren't far east but I see this often with our extensive state park system. They are HEAVILY used and loved, and anyone proposing to degrade them or sell them best be prepared for a serious backlash. I do wish our wildlife areas and state and national forests got as much love but we aren't quite at the same level...but the potential is there with repeated messages of value...which includes monetizing their value, something that we do too little of.