Wilderness Proposal Reception

How important are wide, open spaces to you? A few years ago, country singer Dan Seals sang, "God must be a cowboy at heart. He made wide, open spaces from the start. ..."

I’ve always liked that song ... even more since I moved to Las Cruces.

You are undoubtedly aware of the Citizen’s Proposal for Wilderness which would protect thousands of acres of open space in Dona Ana County from development and destruction. For those ranchers who think it will deny them access, the Wilderness Act of 1964 actually protects their grazing rights.

To date there have been hundreds of businesses, government leaders, educators, and ranchers who have endorsed the Citizen’s Proposal. It has the support of the majority of residents of Dona Ana County. However, there is a small group of ultra-conservative ranchers who are vehemently opposed to the proposal.

Our opponent’s agenda is not about land – wilderness or otherwise. If it were, they’d be happy to sign on since their ranching rights are all but guaranteed.

Our opponent’s agenda is about control. While public lands belong to each and every one of us, this small group seems to think they alone have the right to these public lands and are doing everything they can to stop the Citizen’s Proposal. And they have some big money behind them – namely the ultra-conservative Paragon Foundation. If you have access to the Internet, take a look at the kind of propaganda Paragon is pushing. Take a look, also, at the Baxter Black column I’ve attached. It’s from the April 11 edition of The Las Cruces Bulletin. Notice how much of the information provided is slanted, inaccurate, devoid of facts. These are the same people opposing the Citizen’s Proposal.

Then ... if you favor wilderness areas surrounding Las Cruces, join me.

I am hosting a reception with the New Mexico Wilderness Alliance at the Southwest Environmental Center at Main Street and Las Cruces Avenue, Wednesday, April 23. The reception will begin at 7 p.m. and last about an hour. While we’ll all have a chance to meet and talk with Alliance personnel, the key to this reception is a brief presentation on the status of the Citizen’s Proposal.

If you favor wilderness, you won’t want to miss this. I’ll be there. Please mark your calendar and join me – April 23, 7 p.m., Southwest Environmental Center.

Thanks ... Bud Russo