Posted on 02/23/2009 4:38:30 PM PST by Joiseydude
WASHINGTON A land management bill that swept through the U.S. Senate last month and is headed for a House vote this week punishes rock collectors and paleontologists with arrest and expropriation of their cars and other equipment for even unknowingly disturbing fossils on public land, say critics.
In the Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 2009, a "forfeiture" provision would let the government confiscate "all vehicles and equipment of any person" who digs up or removes a rock or a bone from federal land that meets the bill's broad definition of "paleontological resource," says a report by Jon Berlau of the Competitive Enterprise Institute.
(Excerpt) Read more at wnd.com ...
Rock collecting is more fun and exciting when it is illegal.
K ... me bad :(
Until you have to walk by an arrowhead, or can’t pick up a pretty rock on the ground. Mining, excavation, etc,,i can see. But no exception for a few stones here and there?
Their goal is to always be “in your face”. They want you to always be forced to stop and think, about them and their rules.
I think that is part of this bill. Go to goldprospectors.org and sign up for the GPAA forum there. It's free to sign up and post. There is a lot of posting about this or something similar. The proposed changes came when Bush was in office but aren't being put into law until now.
Sounds like part of the bailout for the auto companies.
I believe that we have a trend starting here.
Im gonna enjoy the next revolution. (gonna was deliberately mispelt.)
Good point but the sheeple are much too complacent to revolt.
It has been illegal to remove rocks/fossils/artifacts from federal lands for many years due to mass marketing and disruption/destruction of possible archaeological sites...the stakes have just gone up, that’s all.And the feds do control too much land, particularly out west...now might be a good time to resurrect the sagebrush rebellion.
Nothing new? You mean you think they have been confiscating peoples cars for years because they pick up a rock? I suppose you are ok with the government being able to seize your property whenever they get the whim. They are passing more and more confiscation laws. The drug laws were a foot in the door and now they want to confiscate everything we own and won't stop until they can do it for a traffic violation.
The Greeks have similar laws around the Parthenon and some of their other treasures. To protect these sites they have a crew that “salts” the area around them with small stones every week. God be praised, no one has successfully taken a 2 ton granite block yet and the thieves are overjoyed to have a 1 inch chunk of rock to show the idiots back in Iowa. Somehow we have been blessed with too many idiots in our park service lately.
You nor I can pick up a rock but the federal government can sell the timber and mineral rights to companies and reap the rewards. We own these parks what’s our cut of the timber and mineral profits made from our land which we still have to pay to step foot on? Did you ever get a check in the mail? I know I never have.
The New World Order is Old World Socialism in drag.
Justice...
From the grievences from the Declaration of Indepence. In another 2 years I figure we’ll have 80% of them back on the table.
“He has erected a multitude of New Offices, and sent hither swarms of Officers to harass our people and eat out their substance...”
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.