Recreation fees and managing public lands
Re: “The truth on rec fees,” Aug. 7 guest commentary.
Robert Funkhouser stated that the central issue in the debate over public land user fees is whether “Americans should be charged” for driving, hiking, parking, picnicking and otherwise enjoying themselves on federal lands (national forests and Bureau of Land Management lands in particular).
To people who wouldn’t use the public lands even with free access, the concept of a user fee probably seems fair. Others believe that free access should be supported by all taxpayers as a public benefit. But it’s not that simple.
The issue of rec fees cannot, and should not, be separated from the larger issue of how to manage our public lands. Which uses should pay their own way and which should be subsidized? Logging? Oil exploration? Recreation? Fire protection for adjacent property owners? Recreation fees cannot address this larger issue by themselves. Recent public land policies seem to be set by whichever group has the government’s ear at the moment. Meanwhile, invasive species continue to increase, unauthorized off-road vehicle use continues, unnaturally large wildfires burn, and pressure to grant more access for logging, oil and minerals is always present.
In context, rec fees are a relatively small part of the larger picture. A comprehensive approach is needed. After all, free access to wilderness won’t matter if there is no more wilderness to access.
Greg Wimpey, Denver
Death of 4-year-old on all-terrain vehicle
Re: “Searchers find body of boy, 4” Aug. 8 news story.
I was shocked and saddened at the article describing 4-year-old Sam Cockroft’s untimely death on an ATV. I read The Post’s editorial saying that laws need to be stricter (“Kids on ATVs spell unnecessary danger,” Aug. 10), but not many laws can protect small children from the ignorance and negligence of parents. I would not let my 4-year-old son ride on a tricycle on the street unsupervised, much less a motor-powered vehicle in the backwoods alone. Colorado legislation is not to blame for this child’s death; his parents are to blame, and no one else. I am disappointed that any parents would allow such a young child to go off on his own in the woods, regardless of what he was riding. Parents, for the sake of your children and their need of guidance, start paying attention!
Stephanie Warfel, Denver
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Re: “Body of missing ranger is found,” Aug. 7 news story.
Have we lost all sense of training for survival? We send a park ranger alone into the vast Rocky Mountains “on patrol.” Regardless of how well-trained he is, or how much experience he has, this is against all common sense or reason. To think back only a short while, we can easily recall another experienced hiker who had to cut off his arm because he was alone in the mountains.
Then we share the agony of parents as they suffer the loss of their 4-year-old son, who at that age is not yet gifted with any sense of reasoning. How much training can he have absorbed that he can safely travel alone on an ATV capable of speeds of 15 mph, let alone near a waterway?
What better can we expect in either case? Let’s shape up, people, and take care of each other – and be there to cover your buddy’s back.
Ben Piller, Strasburg
Anguish of families of American soldiers
Re: “Rice: Insurgents lack clout,” Aug. 8 news story.
Condoleezza Rice suggests we look beyond all that “violence and those suicide bombings” to the “quiet political progress” going on in Iraq. So easy for her to recommend we overlook the thousands of emotionally and physically wounded troops, past the nearly 2,000 dead sons, daughters, mothers and fathers of American citizens to the big picture of “success” in Iraqi politics. If the anguish brought by the insurgents in Iraq does not constitute “clout,” what additional measure do we need to meet that definition?
Will American children who never got to know their moms or dads think a fragile constitution for Iraqi citizens, kept intact only by the continual military presence of foreign troops, worth the price? Will those who grieve now eventually come to relish that big picture, or will they forever mourn the loss of small moments shared with a dad on the ball field, a mom helping her daughter to dress for the prom, a husband bringing home a bouquet for no reason other than “I love you”?
Sally Kennett, Salida
Stem-cell research
Re: “Comparing Nazi research to stem-cell debate,” Aug. 10 Open Forum.
Dr. James Dobson’s rhetoric comparing present-day embryonic stem-cell scientists with Nazi doctors is obviously over the top. But Focus on the Family vice president Paul Hetrick’s letter to the editor defending Dr. Dobson, in which he refers to the “cannibalizing of the human embryos,” is really a stretch. His rhetoric even beats Dobson’s.
Consider the image of a group of white-coated scientists, knives and forks a-gleaming, about to feast on embryos harvested for no other reason but to satisfy their perverted palates, and you have right-wing hypberbole at its finest.
Many opponents of embryonic stem-cell research don’t seem to be worried about the destruction of these embryos at all. We all know they are going to be destroyed anyhow. Dobson and company don’t want them used first for medical research. Go figure.
Mel Singer, Denver
Alcohol in city parks
Re: “More alcohol for parks? City considers expanding use to 21 locations,” Aug. 10 news story.
At the same time that the police are wondering if the proliferation of alcohol is contributing to increased acts of violence in LoDo (duh!), the city is considering extending alcohol consumption to more city parks. It seems to me that it is ludicrous to expect that “putting down a damage deposit and providing proof of liability insurance,” as The Post describes the permit process, will ensure peaceful picnics in the parks.
How reasonable is it to expect people who are addicted to alcohol to be content with just “a toast” at a wedding, family picnic or employees picnic?
Betty Gifford, Denver
Irish Republican Army
Re: “Disarmament of the Irish Republican Army,” Aug. 9 Open Forum.
Letter-writer Andrew Somers’ depiction of the “troubles” in Ireland as a solely “civil and human rights struggle” glosses over atrocities committed by both sides, resulting in scores of innocent casualties. While the British shoulder a large share of the blame and responsibility, the IRA has blood on its hands (upwards of 1,800 dead, by some accounts).
British prime minister Tony Blair has publicly welcomed the IRA’s disarmament, stating that “this may be the day when finally after all the false dawns and dashed hopes, peace replaces war, politics replaces terror on the island of Ireland.”
Not exactly the British “sowing dissent.”
Steve McCann, Denver
Source of terrorism not just Muslims
Re: “Muslims and terrorism,” Aug. 3 Open Forum.
Like letter-writer Kelly Moberly, my heart, too, goes out to the millions of innocent Muslims who have been stereotyped because of our war on terror. Thank goodness Moberly has the sense to denounce Rep. Tom Tancredo’s suggestion to bomb holy cities as being “absurd.” Her argument, though, to shut down mosques around the globe because she believes they have “served as recruiting grounds and safe havens fore terrorists” seems to miss the point that terrorists come in all shapes and sizes and are of all types of religious backgrounds.
If we were to build on Moberly’s suggestion, perhaps we should look at the fact that some (many?) churches around the United States have “served as recruiting grounds and safe havens for terrorists.” Timothy McVeigh and Eric Rudolph certainly came to my mind immediately as I read her letter. Maybe by shutting down churches in the U.S. we can avoid further acts of terror such as the ones witnessed in Oklahoma City and Atlanta.
Paul R. Ost, Aurora
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