#monumentalmistake

[saraheisart]

 “Monuments” available in Shop

https://society6.com/saraheisenlohr

[bengebo]

Stolen Land 6 of 9. bengebo.com/stolen When hiking through be bush along the Escalante River four long miles in, I walked up a little hill that touched the base of a canyon wall. As I noticed some cracks and gouges in the rock, I stumbled upon these petroglyphs. 🔸 This is the moment when things became real and realized what we were preserving. This land is sacred. The wall art is a very old historical document that is a bold reminder that nature is not our enemy to be raped and conquered. Nature is ourselves to be cherished and explored. 🔸 I am posting this series to help bring awareness to this important issue. This national monument will be getting reduced in size by 45%. Nearby Bears Ears is getting reduced by 85%. @patagonia @grandcanyontrust @grandstaircasepartn @goldbuttenv @keepalaskawild @wildsalmoncenter @accessfund and other environmental groups are leading the fight to protect this land. To help, visit: bearsears.patagonia.com/take-action #monumentalmistake (at Grand Staircase-Escalante)

[evelienfeelslikedancin]

I took these pictures a year ago, when this area was still protected by law. On 4 December 2017, president Trump drastically scaled back this area along with another national monument. Help save Utah's national monuments! CALLING ALL NATURE & OUTDOOR ENTHUSIASTS! The time has come and we need to stand up as global citizens to protect and preserve what’s left of the Great Outdoors before it’s too late! . Nature is powerful, yet fragile. Removing protection from public lands destroys old ecosystems, wildlife, and the native people who live there. Once the damage is done, it’s very unlikely to ever be restored. It does not matter which country you live in, eventually these issues impact all of us. . The big problem we’re facing right now is the beginning of stripping away these precious landscapes and natural resources in Utah. A staggering 85% (1.1 MILLION ACRES) of Bears Ears National Monument and 45% of Grand Staircase (800,000 ACRES) is up for grabs for exploitation. The words of the current administration: “We will usher in a bright future of wonder and wealth.” . This land (and the fragile life that depends on it) will be subject to mining operations, drilling, and the exploitation of other natural resources. We are nothing without nature, and we are not separate from it! If we let this happen without a fight, it opens the door to mass annihilation of these landscapes across the world. . But… we are not helpless! With your help, we can collectively pressure the current administration to stop the diminishment of National Monuments now before it’s too late. #standwithbearears #protectourlands #monumentalmistake #wildernesspod (bij Bryce Canyon National Park)

[bengebo]

The first full day of the trip. Leaving Las Vegas, we headed to the Valley of Fire State Park. Going from a bombardment of jarring lights, sounds, smells and advertisements to ethereal tranquility in a tough yet delicate landscape was a transition that took time to adjust to. 🔸 After wandering through arches and making friends with a mountain goat, this little hike was a perfect way to finish chapter one. 🔸 This is an example of some of the landscape that will be getting sold to industrialization. Patagonia is leading the charge against the illegal move at selling off the Grand Staircase-Escalante and Bears Ears national parks. It is the largest elimination of protected land in American history. Follow @patagonia to see how you can help. @patagoniaboston @patagonia_climb #monumentalmistake (at Valley of Fire State Park)

[davidbuckleyborden]

Landscape Futures Scenario F45-120617; Black Friday 2020! #monumentalmistake

[bengebo]

This is an actual landscape along the Escalante River that our president is planning to take away from us for his own corporate interests. 🔸 The Escalante River is one of the main water ways in the south of Utah and has high risk of being polluted once it’s sold for oil and gas development. I photographed this one of a kind trail that was barely a trail. Most of it was the bush and we could only find our way by staying in between the river and the canyon walls. 🔸 Just a few miles in, there are two beautiful natural arches, stunning landscapes and many awe-inspiring petroglyphs from who knows when. I don’t think I’ve ever spoken so little during a hike because I was overwhelmed with the beauty. 🔸 This was the most unique hike I’ve ever done. We saw such a diverse range of wildlife and no other people. It’s like we stepped into another time. A few miles in, we carefully walked over a fallen tree that crossed the river, which is where we found the arches and petroglyphs. Thank you, @patagonia for taking the lead on helping #fight against the exploitation of this sacred land. #monumentalmistake #patagonia #utah #bearsears #usa (at Escalante River)

[davidbobzien]

#ZinkesNotReel

I'm looking at this photo again from the recent Outside Magazine profile on our Interior Secretary... and, it occurs to me, the FIRST decision you need to make when picking up a fly rod is with which hand you’re going to reel. 

From the article: 

“As Zinke and I casted over the ice-cold water, I noticed something funny about his setup. He kept struggling to strip line out of the bottom of the reel. For a while, I thought he was simply having trouble concentrating on our conversation while casting. No, there was something wrong, and when I asked him to stand for a portrait, I finally saw what the problem was. He had rigged his reel backward, so that the line was coming out of the top of the reel. Every so often when he went to strip line out, he would grasp air where the line should’ve been.“

If he's a lefty (and reels right), than the reel in the photo is mounted "correctly," except for that, in accordance with what Outside Magazine described above as “grasp[ing] air where the line should’ve been,” perhaps the the reel is spooled incorrectly (such that the line exits to the back toward the rod butt.)

This sort of mistake you could chalk up to whomever prepped him with the rod for this brief interlude on the water in the course of his busy day. In other words, if someone else prepped his outfit, they made the reasonable guess that he'd "reel left" (done by the vast majority of anglers as it’s estimated 90% of the world population is right-handed), but when presented with the rod and reel for assembly in the field, Zinke attached the rod to the reel as he always does- with the reel handle on the right... only to learn that the spool was NOT set up for a right-handed reel. Now, he could have easily fixed this by just flipping the reel and reattaching. He'd have to reel left for the day- but at least he'd be ready to let line off to play a big fish.

More likely, Secretary Zinke is right-handed, casts with his right arm, and reels with his left (and just happened to transfer the rod here to his left hand for purposes of posing for the shot.) Thus, his "grasp[ing] air where the line should’ve been" was the result of mistakenly attaching the reel backwards to the rod. Which is an even dumber move for anyone who's spent more than one day on the water with a fly rod.

For myself, while I’ve been a fly angler for close to a quarter century (first picked up a rod the summer I lived in the Treasure State in ‘93... so “post movie”...), I’m hardly an expert- more an enthusiast who, in a good year, gets at most maybe 10 days on the water. And while “expert fly caster” would make a great line on any nominee’s resume seeking a Senate-confirmed Interior position, I don’t expect the Secretary to have skills on par with a Clark Fork fishing guide.

What bugs me big time though is this apparent fakery. Look, I get it, you were born in Montana, so yeah, it’s like a state requirement to know how to handle a fly rod. But hey, you were busy being a Navy Seal, defending our country, in your formative years, so we can all cut you some slack. Just own it.

It’s also important to point out that there are some who cast and reel with the same hand (as noted in this short article.) Hey that’s cool too- but here again, something ain’t right: “Every so often when he went to strip line out, he would grasp air where the line should’ve been.”

Finally, if the photo on his DOI bio is a correct reference, indeed he casts right, and reels left, so the “air where the line should’ve been” is likely explained by him having simply mounted the reel with the wrong side.

Oh and then there’s this on Zinke’s lack of image authenticity (and that’s from a blog source who seems totally cool with Secretary Zinke’s unprecedented attacks on our public lands.)

Update: Confirmation from author Elliott Woods.

[jimberkeley]

The President stole your land. #monumentalmistake #resist