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Opinion Trump orders swathes of US forests to be cut down for timber

Moore surprisingly wasn't fired by Trump (and nothing to do with DEI), but he was upset about the workforce cuts. He voluntarily resigned and had already been eyeing a well-deserved retirement after 45 years with the USFS. The replacement is most certainly a huge downgrade, at best. In a twist of irony, it has really been the progressive environmentalists and legal organizations who represent those interests that have stood in the way of Moore (and the Forest Service at large) from being able to effectively do his job.

Everyone is well aware of the conservative capitalist's role as an arch enemy: All they care about is the privatization of public lands and turning profits from exploiting natural resources -- nevermind that we've only seen a one-way exponential increase in the amount of protected, publicly owned American wilderness over decades. On the other side of the coin is the progressive environmentalist standing in opposition to foresters, fire chiefs, and ecologists by obstructing necessary mechanized thinning and prescribed burning to remove overgrown vegetation and dry understory that has turned our forests into over-fueled tinderboxes for catastrophic wildfires.

It makes little sense, especially when those particular tools also help to mitigate disease and invasive species. So, the Republicans ever so ironically to the rescue? Nope, especially not when considering how labor intensive and expensive the aforementioned things are to do over any sizeable amount of acreage, and that's on top of the incredibly challenging terrain of the forests located in the Mountain West.
About the bold: well, you can't fix stupid, and sadly they're everywhere these days.

Regarding your earlier post above, if conservatives in the west understand the climate change is a big concern, then why vote for the "Drill, Baby Drill, climate change is a hoax" guy? I'm not asking you to answer that; it's just baffling to me. I'm primarily (lol) referring to choosing the Republican nominee, mind you. I understand the calculus is different when you have only the 2 party nominees to choose from in the general.
 
If the staffing cuts aren't reversed (and fast), I fully expect a record setting year in 2025 for deaths and missing persons as well, on top of the typical Darwin candidates that are practically asking for it.



They can't even hide the frustration.


Over 250 people are rescued from the canyon each year. The difference between a great adventure in Grand Canyon and a trip to the hospital (or worse) is up to YOU. DO NOT attempt to hike from the rim to the river and back in one day, especially during the months of May to September.

Many options are available for day hikers. Both the South Rim and the North Rim offer rim trail hikes that have spectacular views of the inner canyon, some on paved trails. Or you can choose to day hike into the canyon. Permits are not required for non-commercial day hikes. Day hiking can be a safer and more enjoyable choice than an overnight trip into a difficult area that is beyond the capabilities of any single member of your group.

WARNING: There are no easy trails into or out of the Grand Canyon!
Cuts at NOAA are going to make for some shitty weather forecasts in the coming months too.

 
Responsible logging is not harmful. It's actually very helpful, and certain species NEED it.

Key word there is "Responsible"
It's more the possibility of old growth coming within the cross hairs that has my attention. Apparently the protections on them is pretty air tight. But still going to keep an eye on the situation.
 
About the bold: well, you can't fix stupid, and sadly they're everywhere these days.

Regarding your earlier post above, if conservatives in the west understand the climate change is a big concern, then why vote for the "Drill, Baby Drill, climate change is a hoax" guy? I'm not asking you to answer that; it's just baffling to me. I'm primarily (lol) referring to choosing the Republican nominee, mind you. I understand the calculus is different when you have only the 2 party nominees to choose from in the general.

Cognitive Dissonance, lol.
 
They will look to fell trees, they will cut regulations, they will shrink national monuments, and you can bet on that.

Promises Made, Promises Kept.

Or Not? In any case, the problem with national monuments is that they fall into Category III and are predominantly created by unilateral presidential proclamation. Not through an executive order but via the Antiquities Act, which is a power that was granted to the executive by Congress. POTUS Create, POTUS Abolish?


President Donald Trump plans to eliminate Chuckwalla and Sáttítla Highlands National Monuments in California, according to reporting from the Washington Post and the New York Times. Both monuments were designated in January by President Joe Biden at the request of Native American Tribes.

The reporting came amidst a weekend of confusion around the Trump administration’s plans to slash national monuments. At 11:30PM ET on Friday, a White House fact sheet said Trump had signed an executive order “terminating proclamations declaring nearly a million acres constitute new national monuments that lock up vast amounts of land from economic development and energy production.”

But the action wasn’t included in the Executive Actions and Orders posted that same night, and by Saturday afternoon, the national monument language in the fact sheet had been removed.

“It’s telling that the president made this announcement in the middle of the night, in hopes that Americans might not notice,” said Center for Western Priorities Deputy Director Aaron Weiss in a statement. “There is already a huge backlash in the West against his cuts to national park and forest staffing. If he moves ahead with these attacks, it will only add fuel to the fire and increase the president’s unpopularity in the West.”

Recent polling shows that Westerners are strongly supportive of national monuments. Eighty-eight percent of Westerners, including 81 percent of self-identified MAGA supporters, think national monument designations made over the past decade should remain in place. Only 9 percent think they should be removed.
 
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