Cherish Them From Afar

April 5, 2019

Bayard Taylor wrote, “And far and wide, in a scarlet tide, the poppy’s bonfire spread.” He could have been describing the famous poppy fields in Lake Elsinore, California. They cover the hillsides so colorfully that they are a popular destination for picnickers and shutterbugs. They also provide a seasonal economic boom for the town, but […]

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The Answer is Blowin’ in the Wind

March 29, 2019

If we switched all our electric generation to wind energy, how much brighter would our future be? We have been warned about the effects of climate change for years, and a fairly strong majority of Americans believe there is cause for concern. The most extreme alarmists think we might need to colonize other planets, because […]

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The “Can-and-will” Doctrine

March 19, 2019

Let’s say we’re neighbors. You have a beautiful and valuable car, and you decide to sell it. But I like looking at it in your driveway, so I might offer you even more than it’s worth – not to sell it. I don’t want to take it away or drive it. I just enjoy looking […]

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Winning Elections and Keeping Promises

March 15, 2019

One of the most frustrating aspects of American politics is the failure of elected officials to do what they promised. We resent politicians who campaign on an issue – say repealing Obamacare – and seem to forget it after the election. I know firsthand the rigorous demands of a campaign. One demand faced by conservatives […]

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How Green Will My Valley Be?

March 8, 2019

The proposed “Green New Deal” has attracted enormous attention in the past few weeks, mostly negative. In fact, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell’s promise of an early vote on the measure is widely seen as a stunt, designed only to embarrass democrats. Some democratic senators are scrambling to create an alternative to substitute before the […]

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Ode to a Butterfly

March 1, 2019

Observing a monarch butterfly in the 1850s, Emily Dickinson wrote about its apparently aimless flitting, “Repairing everywhere, without design that I could trace, except to stray abroad on miscellaneous enterprise, the clovers understood.” She knew butterflies were somewhat mysterious. They still are. Someone monitoring populations decided that monarch butterflies are in grave danger, requiring immediate […]

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What Exactly is a Species?

February 22, 2019

For 50 years, Americans have spent untold resources worrying, arguing, regulating, and litigating, over “endangered species.” You might think by now we have a clear understanding of those two simple words. We do not. Experts often disagree on whether something is “endangered,” as some plants and animals have always been rare. Even more perplexing, though, […]

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Where The Buffalo Don’t Roam

February 15, 2019

A talented Oregon blogger named Andy Kerr recently posted an eloquent piece called “Where the Buffalo Roam,” extoling the virtues of the “American Prairie Reserve,” a giant conservation project underway in Montana. He mentions the folk song, “Home on the Range,” with an interesting observation. It recalls a nostalgic view of ranching life on the […]

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Compared to What?

February 8, 2019

If I said my eyes have an optical power of more than 50 dioptres, would you say that is impossible? Or perfectly normal? Or like most people, would you ask, “What in the world is a dioptre?” Context matters. In today’s often-contentious debates on environmental issues, context is essential. Without understanding the various measurements that […]

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Re-Wilding the National Parks

January 25, 2019

We may have discovered, accidentally, a way to give the most radical environmental advocates what they want. We simply shut down the government, or at least part of it (the National Park Service). The most elitist, anti-people concept is the “rewilding movement.” Put simply, it proposes to discontinue active management of public lands, so humans […]

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