Colorful Sunset on Our Public Lands – Red Rock lakes NWR
This 4th of July weekend thousands upon thousands of people have made their way to our publicly owned and maintained lands to celebrate the signing of the Declaration of Independence and the birth of our nation.
Some have made their way to our public lands to camp, to feel closer to nature, have family reunions, view wildlife, to hike, bike, run, mountaineer, see wildflowers, watch birds, swim, float down rivers, fish or to photograph the wonders found on our public lands.
Today our public lands are under attack by the current administration and are at risk of being sold off and destroyed all for the sake of “growth” which is really a way of saying that rich corporations will get richer.
“Growth for the sake of growth is the ideology of the cancer cell.”
― Edward Abbey
The people who will lose are the people who love the lands, value it and know our public lands are a legacy for all.
“Here is your country. Cherish these natural wonders, cherish the natural resources, cherish the history and romance as a sacred heritage, for your children and your children’s children. Do not let selfish men or greedy interests skin your country of its beauty, its riches or its romance.”
― Theodore Roosevelt
Mia
Thank you for posting on the disturbing trend of this administration to destroy OUR public lands. Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke is beginning the decline by recommending that the boundaries of the Bears Ears National Monument in Utah be shrunk. For a starter, according to the Wilderness Society, the President and his cronies are attacking 27 of our National Monuments. We can’t let this happen. Please write your congressmen or call them to let them know you are against anything that will diminish our public lands or return them to state control.
Wholehearted agreement from here too.
Thomas Jefferson first mentioned the need for open spaces and sent Lewis & Clark on their journey to catalog nature in the western states. Many of our past Presidents have a legacy of preserving our public lands. Now we have to worry that our beautiful lands may be open to desecration for money. Not everyone agrees with the Sierra Club, but I have joined them in their efforts to communicate my wishes to my Representatives in Washington. We have to fight for our legacy of preserving our public lands. So each of us needs to keep this in the public’s attention so we pass the land to future generations.
I’ll step off my Soapbox and tell you how much I appreciate your work and the beautiful Sunset.
Amen, Mia! And your choice of quotes is right on target! I LOVE Edward Abbey and mourn the loss of his words/perspectives mightily. Thankfully, he wrote them down in books. Despite his flaws (and we ALL have them), Teddy Roosevelt is one of my favorite presidents. I wish he were around today, too. Odd that I now live on Teddy Roosevelt Road isn’t it? LOL!
Thank you for posting this. I agree with everything you and your followers have said. This fourth, I feel sick–with dread. I am terrified of what this ignorant, greedy, juvenile, psychologically twisted administration may cause us to lose forever, defiled, destroyed, never to be regained.
I like your choice of quotes and resonate with the feelings you express in this post.
I so agree.. it is an anxious 4th and even more so an unnerving time for those of us who love the land and all of its life.
Growing up in always *knew* the national parks and monuments were my vacation; they would be there, in all their immense beauty, for me when I retired. Hoping they will be there, undiminished, forever!
Thank you for reminding us of what really matters…
Wish you a pleasant 4th of July.
Mia, your current administration has even us Canadians sitting on the edge of our seats wondering what is going to happen or not happen. Very uncertain times. Regardless, Happy 4th of July.