Letter to the editor

It’s difficult to respond to such off-issue, personal attacks and the chest-thumpings of Idaho nationalism as Peterson’s (HCN, 5/25/98) and Medberry’s (HCN, 4/13/98) – weak and flaccid as they are, full of red herrings and other beneath-the-belt cow droppings – but my point remains: Idaho doesn’t work for the poor, for persons of color, or […]

Dear HCN, For the past year I’ve been part of a group including ranchers, environmentalists and scientists exploring ways to find common ground over public-lands policy in Arizona and the West. Early on we found our mantra by paraphrasing James Carville: It’s land fragmentation, stupid! But no matter how much progress we make, we keep […]

Dear HCN, “A treatise on columnist Alexander Cockburn,” (HCN, 5/11/98), seems to be Jon Margolis’ search for a journalistic Viagra. So envious is Margolis that he lashes out the gawky bewailment: “Cockburn has been abusing reality for decades …” That’s bad? I hope someone has, or will, say the same about me. Margolis’ gripes range […]

Dear HCN, I understand why Stephen J. Lyons moved to Washington state. I don’t understand why he didn’t do it sooner (HCN, 3/16/98). Here in Arizona we have the same problem. Many people move here (mostly from California) and discover that they hate it because of our “bad welfare system, conservative politics, low wages, poor […]

Dear HCN: Writer Stephen J. Lyons failed in his attempt to accurately quote the slogan “Idaho is what America was,” just as he also failed in his attempt to accurately portray the state of Idaho (HCN, 3/16/98). I know. I’m the guy who coined the phrase in 1978. I’ve also lived in the state for […]

Dear HCN, I could not believe the naivete of Jeff Burgess when he questioned in his letter why Western towns need to be based on ranching, logging and mining (HCN, 4/13/98). His suggestion that we imagine a “quiet little town where most people spend their work week writing innovative software programs … while their weekends […]

Dear HCN, Your cover story about the Southwest Center for Biological Diversity in the March 30 issue reminded me of a vicarious confrontation I had with a cattle rancher in Arizona. First some background: I’m retired from the Forest Service and was the regional geneticist for Region 3 (Arizona and New Mexico) from 1978 to […]

Dear HCN, I would like to respond to Mike Moxcey’s letter, headed “Ranchettes aren’t all bad” (HCN, 3/16/98). Even with the “best” ranchette development, roads, houses, outlying buildings, power lines, sport utility vehicles and cats, dogs, children and adults can strip a land of its wildlife far quicker than can any mismanaged herd of cattle […]

Dear HCN, I question Greg Hanscom’s statement that the rebuilding of Interstate 15 in Utah “… at the breathtaking cost of $1.6 billion … (is) the biggest public works project under construction anywhere in America” (HCN, 3/16/98). The Central Artery/Third Harbor Tunnel Project here in Boston has a current, and seemingly ever-increasing, price tag of […]

Dear HCN, I read with disgust the story by Electa Draper about the “sheep war” outside Durango, Colo. (HCN, 3/30/98). Prohibiting sheep in southwestern Colorado is like prohibiting toy poodles in Northbrook, Ill. The anti-sheep neighbors had better move back to Northbrook or perhaps try Beverly Hills or Jackson Hole, Wyo. I also raise border […]

Dear HCN, Greg Hanscom did an admirable and objective job describing Utah’s growing pains and the relative contributions from the 2002 Olympics (HCN, 3/16/98). The only component missing was the reality that more than two-thirds of the growth in Utah comes from within the state due to our propensity for large families. With the highest […]

Dear HCN, Ed Marston’s essay, “Show me the science,” leaves me perplexed (HCN, 3/16/98). On the one hand, Ed admits that the typical rural lifestyle near and using public lands has led to environmental degradation. On the other hand, he claims environmentalists are enemies of the rural economies and life. He cannot have it both […]

Dear HCN, Tom Reed’s article about how life is tough in Wyoming (HCN, 4/13/98) spoke in perfect cadence with my own heartbeat. There are not many of us left; the “Westerners,” like the bighorn sheep and the mule man, are singing that sad and forlorn refrain of a vanishing time. Up until a few years […]

Dear HCN, Buried within the text of Peter Aleshire’s informative story on the Southwest Center for Biological Diversity is a quote from Kieran Suckling which describes the country where the Malpai Group works as “not a national forest allotment” and “mostly private land with low-elevation grassland” (HCN, 3/30/98). On his one and (as far as […]

Dear HCN, Thanks for an informative piece on the Southwest Center for Biological Diversity, but to the reader looking for a “real” story (HCN, 4/13/98) here’s one: To focus on Western public lands and not pay attention to the Southwest Center is like studying pop culture in America and ignoring Disney. It is so relevant […]

Dear HCN, Stephen Lyons’ finely crafted bull’s-eye prose on Idaho will no doubt draw the ire of people who love the state (HCN, 3/16/98). His frank assessment of the neighborhood is as welcome as an empty larder to starving children. Keep in mind that all of Mr. Lyons’ examples are quite current. Keep in mind […]

Dear HCN, Stephen Lyons told us in the last issue that he left hate-filled Idaho for the more progressive state of Washington (HCN, 3/16/98). Since I made that same move last autumn, here’s my response to his essay: Dear Stephen, Welcome to Washington! You’ll find excellent coffee, happy diversity and easy access to recycling. Enjoy […]

Dear HCN, Lynne Bama’s wild horse story is an excellent introduction to many of the philosophical and practical problems attendant to management of a large, sacred, feral domestic ungulate on the public lands (HCN, 3/2/98). Although ecologically responsible management of feral horses and burros under current laws and policies is theoretically possible, censuses and removals […]

Dear HCN, Jon Margolis often has interesting insights, but his article titled “The Land and Water Fund waits to be tapped” naively misses the bigger picture (HCN, 2/16/98). It is true that the Land and Water Trust Fund is not managed like a trust fund dedicated to conserving land and water. But the misuse of […]

Dear HCN, This is regarding your “Heard around the West” article about the closure of the Tucson Rod & Gun Club rifle range in Sabino Canyon (HCN, 3/16/98). I am a loyal HCN reader and also an avid hunter and shooter. During the late “70s through the mid-’80s, I spent many hours at the Sabino […]