Last November or December, I decided to vote.
After writing in friends for positions such as Sheriff and County Auditor, I came to the presidential election. "OOOOO president This one looks interesting," I thought to myself. With little hesitation, I voted for Bush.
Yeah, he's an idiot, I thought, but I don't wanna be paying my entire income in taxes upon graduation.I was a little worried about what he planned to do with Alaska, but I let economic and other issues overrule my qualms. And at any rate, he seemed ready to take the US into the future with cool devices, like missile defense shields and lasers and stuff.
I guess the whole Alaska issue seemed too far away to really concern me.
Yeah, it's some great country containing some of the greatest mountains in America, but it's Alaska. I'll be lucky to ever go there. And it's big enough that I guess some drilling doesn't really matter, I rationalized to myself.
It is only now that I fully realize my idiocy in voting for Bush, as he now seeks to destroy something that hits much closer to home: Bridger-Teton National Forest in Wyoming.
The Bush administration is seeking to open 370,000 acres of land in the Bridger-Teton National Forest for oil and gas drilling. Bridger-Teton National Forest consists of land directly bordering Grand Teton National Park and Yellowstone National Park.
Although neither of these parks will be open for drilling, the effect of such exploitation on their fragile ecosystem will certainly be detrimental.
This land is home to many spectacular animals, such as the gray wolf, the Canada lynx and the grizzly bear, all of whose existence is extremely vulnerable.
Although I am not from Wyoming, I feel a connection with its mountains.
I'm from Ohio.
The only wildlife we have there consists of dogs, cats, squirrels, cows, pigs and vermin (deer, of course, being included in this last category).
We don't have any real animals, or any real nature for that matter. It's all just suburbia and farmland.
Needless to say, I never developed any connection with this land.
It's a little better up here in New Hampshire. At least there are little mountains, and at least there's supposed to be wildlife, even if you never come across any while in the mountains.
But it's still not the real deal.
Wyoming, on the other hand, is unlike anywhere else I have ever been. I spent last winter skiing in Jackson Hole, which is located in the Teton range, just a couple miles from the Grand.
I have seen a good deal of the West, and nowhere do the mountains compare to the Tetons. They are so majestic, so steep, so recognizeable and so unique, that it would be absurd to do anything to compromise their fragile ecosystem. Not to mention that this ecosystem includes Yellowstone National Park, the oldest and one of the greatest parks in our nation. While skiing the Jackson Hole backcountry, I experienced many things that helped me see firsthand the magic of this land.
Once, I was on top of a mountain peak on a cold and stormy day.
Out of nowhere came a fox. It just stopped and stared at me.
I stared back, and walked a little closer. I managed to get within about 20 feet, and just stood there and watched him.
Eventually he lost his interest and went on his way.
Another time, towards the bottom of a backcountry descent, as I was about to begin my traverse back to the ski area, I looked up.
Not 10 feet above me a moose was urinating in the snow.
I laughed, and embarrassed, the moose moved behind the rock she was standing next to in order to continue her business.
The Grand Teton will not fall over if Bush succeeds in his evil plan.
However, an unnecessary strain will be put on the greater Yellowstone ecosystem and it is this ecosystem that ultimately makes the region what it is.Without the wildlife, it would still be scenic, but it would lack the mystique it now has. Right now it is nature.
If Bush has his way it will just be some nice terrain, stripped of its soul and violated by progress.
