Posted on 12/03/2004 2:07:25 PM PST by woofie
mmmm it seems Bush is evil...where have I heard that before?
The retirees feel that Bush has politicised the NPS?
Geez--the NPS has been that way for a long, long time...
Not too many NPS employees around that are NOT screaming left wing.
bttt
It's political.
"And of course there was President Teddy Roosevelt, the highest regarded Republican environmentalist of them all "
Teddy Roosevelt - the moron who said it's our patriotic duty to question the gov't and its actions.
There's the real agenda. "My ox is being gored now, rather than the Pentagon's, so, it's really evil to cancel the sinecures at the park service.
How has the Bush administration reacted to the scientific data?
Since when is it the job of unelected scientists to make policy? Do the DemocRATS have a clue why they lose western states?
Lost me right there.
The legislation passed in 1916 said you have to take care of these places so that the resource values can be preserved unimpaired.
Oh really? The snowmobile ban was put in place by a last minute Clinton executive order not by any law enacted by Congress. Congress definitely would not have passed such legislation. I seriously doubt it was the Congress' intent to create a dictatorship of experts in the 1916 legislation.
With regards to the survey, Mr. Smith is dishonest. His dishonesty concerning the survey is perhaps typical of that in the rest of the article. In the first place, the survey represents 8 (not 10)% of permanent employees. Since the Park Service employs enormous numbers of seasonal workers who return year-after-year who aren't technically permanent, the number of respondents is in fact even less impressive. More to the point, he suggests that because the survey was conducted by a "professional polling organization," the poll is a scientific poll, conducted with carefully constructed questions that would betray no bias. False. It is a self-selected e-mail poll. Therefore, it's guaranteed to reflect the opinions of the most negatively oriented employees, and the author knows this quite well. Go to the link and read some of the questions. I'll let those familiar with the constraints of a truly scientific poll to determine whether these questions are leading or not.
If this survey is representative of the kind of "science" practiced by the Park Service, I'm glad to see they're outsourcing.
Golden Age Passport
This lifetime passport is for U.S. citizens or permanent residents 62 years of age or older. A one-time fee of $10 is charged. The passport must be obtained in person and is available at any federal area where an entrance fee is charged. The passport admits the holder and accompanying passengers in a private, noncommercial vehicle to national parks and provides a 50% discount on camping and some other fees. When entry is not by private vehicle, the passport admits the passholder, spouse, and children. Golden Eagle Passport
This $65 passport is valid for one year from the date of purchase. The passport may be purchased at any federal area where an entrance fee is charged. It allows the permit holder and any accompanying passengers in a private, noncommercial vehicle to enter all federal parks that charge entrance fees. When entry is not by private vehicle, the passport admits the passholder, spouse, and children.
Sometime after it became the job of the CIA to determine American war policy, which was,
sometime after it became the job of the State Department to determine American foreign policy, which was,
sometime after it became the job of the unelected judges to determine general public policy.
My point--and I do have one--is that when those entrusted with the laws become lawless, it becomes a dangerous example for everyone in a position of public trust. That artifact, seldom remarked on, is every bit as consequential as the reckless decisions that they make.
"The retirees feel that Bush has politicised the NPS?
Geez--the NPS has been that way for a long, long time...
Not too many NPS employees around that are NOT screaming left wing."
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My guess is that we are watching the harpooned thrashings of a bureaucratic beast sensing the end of an era. I wish I could know what long-time NPS bete noir Alston Chase ("Playing God in Yellowstone") has to say about Bush's actions vis a vis NPS and I would certainly like to know more about this new director Fran Mainella.
When you get down to specifics, this Rick Smith guy is bitching about the administration's attitude more than their actions. He goes on about how previous presidents deferred to him and his kind and then how the Park Service is getting disrespected by Dubya and his minions who actually seem to think THEY are in charge. He really only complains about the overturning of the snowmobile ban (which has been percolating for over a decade; I had forgotten it was another one of those Clinton executive orders) and the contracting out of some Park Service jobs (what bureaucrat would NOT be outraged by that?).
And since we've mentioned it, let's plug the book. If you're interested in environmental issues, it's a bit dated but still great and well worth a read. Get it used if you're a cheapskate. Playing God in Yellowstone: The Destruction of America's First National Park by Alston Chase.
Fire them all, a bunch of liars that do not have an oz of sense....Friggin bureaucrats all, need to get them gone! They would not know a good policy if it fell on their heads...who the hell are these poseurs?
I think Bush has done well on environmental issues. First, he implemented the "Clean House" Act in Afghanistan and Iraq, and then he implemented the "Clean Yer Clock" Act with John Kerry and the Democrat Party.
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