Wow!

Outside Magazine continues to rule.

One of the largest problems of the environmental movement is the way we have marginalized ourselves and polarized the environmental issue. We marginalize ourselves through our extremist and elitist attitudes (especially towards the hunting community, who have the same interests in saving ecosystems as we) and we marginalize ourselves through our seemingly esoteric arguments. Let’s face it, the public’s and therefore the congressional attention is fixed firmly in their wallets. When Big Business holds up jobs and revenue in front our “the dying frog population will throw the entire ecosystem out of whack, eventually affecting us”, the choice in the public’s mind is pretty damn clear.

But it’s not so clear. This months Outside has an article containing information that could revolutionize the environmental movement, making it much more successful than it has ever been in the past. In “As a Matter of Fact, Money Does Grow on Trees” author Bruce Barcott reveals that economic studies have been done that show the preserved wildernesses & eco-tourism can not only exceed the revenue and incomes provided by logging or drilling for oil or natural gas, but the benefit provided by the natural air and water filtration leave clear cutting and derricks in the dust.

"They answered it by extrapolating from real-world examples. In 1989, for instance, EPA officials ordered the City of New York to build a water-filtration plant that would cost $8 billion to construct and $300 million a year to operate. Instead, the city spent $2 billion to restore and protect its Catskill Mountains watershed, letting a healthy 2,000-square-mile forest do the work of an $8 billion industrial plant. Estimated value of water filtration provided by the watershed: $6 billion and counting."

And on the employment side…

“Rasker compared data from the four years prior to the (Grand Staircase–Escalante National) monument's (Kane Co, Utah) creation (1992–1996) with data from the four years after. During the latter period, the unemployment rate in Kane County dropped by more than half, while labor income rose faster than it had in the pre-monument period. Per-job earnings, which fell 7 percent before the monument, rose 13 percent after it was created. Property values rose significantly, too. "People in Kane County worried that all they'd get were low-wage tourism jobs," Rasker told me. "In fact, the average wage per job went up."

What accounted for the turnaround? "Word got out," says Rasker. "People read about Grand Staircase–Escalante. Some started visiting; others moved their businesses to Kanab or decided to retire in Kane County."

Those new retirees spurred growth in health-care jobs. Recreation boomed. Since the monument was created, hotel-room revenue has increased on average about 20 percent.”

I chose these quotes from the article because they are illustrative examples, but the economic studies around the country show that they are not isolated developments. A community does not give up family and civic income in order to keep their countryside. In short, yes, you can eat the view. The article speaks for itself. A MUST READ!

The trick at this stage, and it’s spoken of in the Magazine, is for the environmentalists not to beat their opponents over the head with this. This is not a “we’re right, you’re wrong” argument, but a completely new way of looking at the issue that creates a path to a common ground for both sides to create a truly viable economic policy that will benefit this country’s flora, fauna and families.

WhooHoo!

I will be filling out my college application *yeek* and reading “Black Elk Speaks” (and my misnomer there for a few hours just goes to show what sleep deprivation will do for ya...sorry) for my History of Religion class this weekend. I was kinda disappointed that my History of the Middle East course only covers the modern era after WWI, but I am compensated by the fact that the instructor is a Persian woman. We should be getting some very interesting perspectives (I just hope she gets herself a little better organized). I’ve had my History of Modern Civ professor before for U.S. History, and we’re starting by covering the Renaissance, so I’m cool there.

I have really been enjoying getting more “involved” in the fandom of NASCAR. As a historian and academic, I am committed to viewing all evidence and coming to my conclusions objectively. I’m a Leo with a Pieces Moon, so this does not come naturally. My Aquarian Ascendant and Virgo Mercury are working on overdrive. *chuckle* But in sports I can be biased as I wanna be! I still don’t want to jump to false conclusions and I don’t have anything personal against drivers like Jimmy Johnson and Kevin Harvick but I just found out that Mark Martin lost his primary Daytona car in yesterday’s JJ/Happy imbroglio. Grrr! I don’t give a rats ass who’s fault it was, now I’m pissed and would very much like to clunk both their prima dona heads together. >:D

Daytona 500 is this weekend (I’ll be at a Pizza Party with a bunch of Robbie Gordon fans in mourning) and a couple more dramatis personae that will come up in conversation:

Elliott Sadler
Drives #38 yellow M&M car.
Elliott’s on the verge of really shining, not to mention just being a nwice gwuy, so I’ve got my eye on him.

Dale Jarrett (DJ)
Drives the white & brown 88 UPS car.
Dale is one of those talented veterans who gets out there and kicks some ass. In a sport that beginning to get focused solely on the Young and the Marketable, wily veterans like DJ will soon be a thing of the past. Appreciate it while you got it.

Michael Waltrip (Mikey, Schillmiester)
Drives #15 blue Napa car.
I like Mikey, he’s so adorable. In an earlier age, he would have been a carny barker or an MC for a burlesque show but I admit I’m charmed. I just wanna squeeze the stuffin’ out of him whenever I see him. And his charity efforts are near legend (shameless self promotion helps. ;) ) Mikey is a good cup driver, but hasn’t had great performances the last couple years so this might be his last season with DEI. Keeping my fingers crossed for him. However his troubled relationship with his teammate Dale Jr. sometimes gives me a teeny-tiny hint of what a child of divorce must feel like. "Please don't fight, I like you both..."

Brian France
The France family created and molded NASCAR into what you see today. They own NASCAR, their “other” company International Speedway Corp. owns over half the tracks. Are you scared yet? Be even more frightened, here is solid proof that as in all monarchies you can never avoid the idiot heir….

Bill France = John D. Rockfeller
Bill France Jr. = Henry Ford
Current President Brain France = Urkel & Satan’s love child.*

The problem with Brian is that he’s an "idea man" who doesn’t know when to quit. Last year NASCAR changed major sponsors, realigned it’s race schedule cutting out historic tracks, changed how the championship points were tallied and changed some of the major racing rules. No businessman in his right mind would not have pissed of his customer base by tackling all those changes in one year and Brain continues to tinker with things, losing what support in the fanbase he had for some of the decisions that may have actually been good.

I’ll give my opinion on the other drivers/teams as we encounter them throughout the year, but in the meantime:

Best of Luck to Dale Jr. and Mark this Sunday!!! And everyone have a great, safe race!

And have a great holiday weekend everyone!

*Preception highly influenced by Douglas Ladd's protrayal on ThePitsOnline.com