It constantly amazes me how much misinformation is fed the public by opponents of wilderness designation in Utah.
Utah's own Congressman Wayne Owens was the original author of America's Red Rock Wilderness Act. Rep. Maurice Hinchey from New York took it on when Utahns were unable to convince any other Utah representatives to follow through.
The bill is hardly an "Eastern" land grab. Only Congress can designate wilderness. The idea that the Bureau of Land Management is conspiring with the Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance to do so administratively is ludicrous.
The management of the BLM in Utah has been hostile to wilderness values for years.
Finally, it will be impossible to drill our way to energy independence.
Is a short-term oil gain worth destroying a landscape that so many people in Utah, America and around the world treasure?
Michael J. Painter
Californians for Western Wilderness
San Francisco, Calif.
