By: Daniel Nardini
Every now and then (or rather, these days, too frequently), a bad piece of legislation is introduced that was ill conceived in the first place and should never have been introduced. This is the case of House Bill (HB)1505. HB1505 will allow U.S. customs and the U.S. Border Patrol to access every part of America’s national parks—even those off-limits to people and so remote that there are no roads and no real access. HB1505 would allow the U.S. Border Patrol to build roads and create all kinds of infrastructure in even the remotest areas of America’s national parks in “pursuit of illegals, terrorists, and illegal drugs.”
This is a lousy idea to say the least. First, the primary casualty will be the very environment America has been trying to protect for over 120 years. Second, the expenditure will be astronomical. The U.S. government does not have the money now to rebuild America’s highways, bridges and decaying city infrastructure. How will this country have the money to build roads, fences, surveillance equipment, airstrips and other modern infrastructure in remote, pristine wilderness areas? Can one imagine anything like this in wilderness areas like Glacier National Park? Big Bend National Park? The Great Lakes and Boundary Waters Wilderness?
Just as equally crazy will be the fact that this one piece of legislation will give the U.S. Border Patrol and U.S. customs carte blanche to disobey and disregard all environmental laws, all public park laws, and even put the American public in danger over trying to catch a few undocumented or maybe interdict illicit drugs. Is the disruption of the great ecosystem worth just this? When a nation puts security above liberty or just about anything else, we will not have security nor anything else. It is best to let this bill die.
Destroy the Environment!
By: Daniel Nardini
This is a lousy idea to say the least. First, the primary casualty will be the very environment America has been trying to protect for over 120 years. Second, the expenditure will be astronomical. The U.S. government does not have the money now to rebuild America’s highways, bridges and decaying city infrastructure. How will this country have the money to build roads, fences, surveillance equipment, airstrips and other modern infrastructure in remote, pristine wilderness areas? Can one imagine anything like this in wilderness areas like Glacier National Park? Big Bend National Park? The Great Lakes and Boundary Waters Wilderness?
Just as equally crazy will be the fact that this one piece of legislation will give the U.S. Border Patrol and U.S. customs carte blanche to disobey and disregard all environmental laws, all public park laws, and even put the American public in danger over trying to catch a few undocumented or maybe interdict illicit drugs. Is the disruption of the great ecosystem worth just this? When a nation puts security above liberty or just about anything else, we will not have security nor anything else. It is best to let this bill die.