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Lakota Gather Peacefully at Mount Rushmore National Memorial, But Still Insist that the Black Hills Belong to Them

Sep 5th - 20:48pm | naturally

After coming back a few days later to read the other comments and opinions posted, I find it so tiresome that there is an academic argument taking place about semantics, and although it is important to prove points, I think it is beneficial to stretch beyond academia (and I am an academic) in order to find a new way of thinking about an issue.

Sep 5th - 19:39pm | Barky

Sorry for putting it so bluntly, but anyone who thinks American Indians didn't suffer from genocide is ignorant or lying. I can't even imaging that anyone in this day and age can believe such nonsense. That one poster has so infuriated me, I find myself incapable of reasonably discussing the topic at hand. I will have to return later to do so.

Sep 5th - 19:16pm | jsmacdonald

Frank, we will have to agree to disagree for now - because I think there is plenty of evidence to suggest that everything that happened does meet the accepted definition(s) of the word.

Sep 5th - 18:08pm | jsmacdonald

Disease v. genocide is a false distinction for a lot of reasons; I'd argue that disease is actually an argument for genocide, not against it. And, I'm not talking about smallpox blankets, which was certainly a minor part of it.

Sep 5th - 12:58pm | jsmacdonald

It certainly was (is) a form of genocide. Frank, by your definition, the Holocaust wasn't genocide because only 2/3 of all Jews in Europe were killed (and an equal proportion of Roma). In North America, over several hundred years, native populations were wiped out by the most conservative estimates by 85% of people and by the least conservative by as much as 98% from pre-Colombian totals.

Sep 5th - 12:22pm | Anonymous

Frank C, you do bring up interesting points but off the topic a bit...wasn't the "Trail of Tears" a form of slow genocide? In my opinion it was!

Sep 5th - 12:13pm | Bugsyshallfall

Keep in mind, this park is not the only one with this type of problem.

Sep 5th - 10:30am | Anonymous

Hello: This is the only comment on this board that I totally agree with. We cannot change what happened in the past; we can only go on from today. There has to be some means of accommodation that shows respect for the Lakota sacred gounds as well as share the beauty of the land. I know that I would support such action. Thanks again for your comment.

Sep 5th - 08:50am | Kelly

It hasn't made the news much yet, but the energy industry and the U.S. government are gearing up for a new mining boom in the Black Hills, this time for not for gold but instead for uranium. Defenders of the Black Hills is trying to get the word out to people: http://www.defendblackhills.org/.

Sep 5th - 08:47am | Ted Clayton

Anonymous; Thank you. Nothing I could say would more-clearly & convincingly expose the core problem we face ... it's not the Indians, it's ourselves.

Sep 4th - 23:57pm | Anonymous

Perhaps we oughta tear up the treaty and re-commission the Calvary. Then finish the job.

Sep 4th - 23:20pm | Ted Clayton

The U.S. doesn't really have to give the Indians anything. This has been proven historically, to everyone's satisfaction. It does not have to accord them human rights, and it does not have to honor treaties it signed with them. It has violated both, and gotten away with it.

Sep 4th - 22:02pm | Anonymous

Damn right the Black Hills belong to the great Lakota Nation...without a doubt! Plus, Custer had it coming with those giant mosquito sticks. My dear white mother was born in the Dakota's in the early 1900's and testifies about the horrible brutality that the Lakota's suffered under. Slow cruel systematic genocide mark with grave indifference by many Americans during that period.

Sep 4th - 20:09pm | Grey_Lensman312

I have been to the Black Hills a number of times, and I cherish it's beauty. We have it as a result of a grave injustice. That is the truth of it. Is there not some way to share administration / responsibility for that area to acknowledge the Lakotas spiritual heritage and hold that land in trust as the treasure that it is. Restrictions on some areas or holy times.

Sep 4th - 16:10pm | Julia

Recommended reading: Bury my Heart at Wounded Knee, by Dee Brown. Very moving and well written book.

Sep 4th - 16:06pm | Naturally

When are we going to finally come to terms with the reality of US history? This constant denial of the aggressive history inflicted on Native Americans, which includes early attempts at biological warfare, genocide, stealing, lying, cheating and rape of a once pristine land; impedes our progress and relations more than any other single factor, in my opinion. This country is stuck.

Sep 4th - 15:16pm | Anonymous

I recommend that we give the land back -- to whoever the Indians took it from.

Sep 4th - 14:35pm | Lone Hiker

You'll be hard pressed to find one treaty that the US goverment has honored in the past 200 years with ANY Native American tribe, regardless of content and motivation. This country was "settled" by homesteaders in the name of Eminent Domain, with little or actually no regard for peoples already in place across the land.

Hanna Forcing Evacuations, Closures at Cape Hatteras, Cape Lookout National Seashores

Sep 5th - 19:37pm | dapster

I just left Frisco NC at 9:30 AM 9/5/08, with Hannah on my heels. She turned a 9 day vacation into a 7 day event. Conditions were rapidly deteriorating. Beach closures for storms, while apparently a new idea, is a good one. Periods over overwash at times of high tide can take the unexperienced by surprise, and can actually strand pedestrians and drivers both until the tide drops.

Sep 5th - 05:41am | Bob Janiskee

While you follow the progress of the relatively wimpy Hannah, you might want to keep your eye on the hurricane that's following it in the Atlantic. Here's what my unimpeachable source said about Hurricane Ike yesterday morning (September 4):

Big Bend National Park: Is It Ready For A Mountain Bike Trail?

Sep 5th - 19:07pm | Kurt Repanshek

Barky, Too big of a leap? See Yellowstone and snowmobiles, Pictured Rocks and Cape Lookout and PWCs, Big Cypress and off-road vehicles. I'm sure there are other examples, but that's a pretty good start.

Sep 5th - 18:41pm | Barky

First, to Kurt's comments:

Sep 5th - 09:35am | Ted Clayton

Mike; It's a pleasure to read your excellent comment! Bicycles & biking are a great thing, no doubt about it. That's not to say the venue is without problems & complications ... but 'considering some of the alternatives', bikes are wholesome & earth-friendly. Kurt's post mentions ...

Sep 5th - 00:18am | Mike

I stumbled across this site while researching a trip to Texas for some mountain biking that we want to take in the fall. I appreciate the thoughtful approach the poster and commenters have taken to what is generally a contentious issue. My wife and I (mid-30's) are avid mountain bikers in the DC area.

Sep 4th - 09:52am | Anonymous

Good questions, Kurt. All NPs offer opportunities for some activities; that doesn't mean all/some NPs should accommodate all activities.

Sep 4th - 09:16am | Kurt Repanshek

Mark raises an intriguing question (although it's one that's been touched on previously). It revolves around his statement that adding mountain biking trails "holds the promise of bringing many new NPS supporters into the fold."

Sep 3rd - 22:25pm | Mark E

As an unabashed fan of adding more shared-use trails to national parks, I have to thank "Barky" for a well-considered message. Trail design and construction do more to determine the impacts of recreation than whether the traffic comes from foot travel, bicycles or equestrian use.

Sep 3rd - 20:41pm | Barky

First, I haven't been to Big Bend yet, so please take that into account for the following comment:

Brucellosis Solution: Kill All Elk and Bison in Yellowstone National Park

Sep 5th - 18:46pm | jsmacdonald

Good timing on this - there's an extremely thorough analysis of the brucellosis issue by Patrick Klemz in the Missoula Independent. Having not been a fan of Patrick's last effort on this earlier this year, I think this piece is a far more balanced view on the controversy and all the ins and outs of it from a wide variety of perspectives.

Sep 5th - 18:25pm | jsmacdonald

I've been away on vacation camping in Grand Teton and Yellowstone; this is the first chance I've commented on this.

Sep 4th - 14:57pm | Sandi Hansen

I know everyone has probably seen the article by now. But those wo haven't.... http://www.normantranscript.com/archivesearch/local_story_246001307

Sep 4th - 13:59pm | Lone Hiker

Kurt- It might work, but we'll have to do a blind taste-test for the invitees. I'll tell 'em its diet-lean ground round initially so nobody's the wiser. When everybody has their gullet filled and the truth comes out, clear the path to the vomitorium..........

Sep 4th - 13:09pm | Kurt Repanshek

Lone Hiker, if you're proposing a bison and elk roast, just name the date and location!

Sep 4th - 13:05pm | Lone Hiker

Before anybody gets their shorts in a knot over this rare bacterial infection, consider the following:

Sep 3rd - 22:01pm | Ted Clayton

Bogator; While writing an earlier response I considered including reference to "Cervid Wasting Disease", CWD. Looking at web-references about this, I saw mention of:

Sep 3rd - 21:52pm | Bogator

Lets do this in reverse; kill all of the cattle and raise buffalo and elk. I understand that their meat is better for us anyway. Ted Turner has been trying to convince us of this for years.

Sep 3rd - 21:34pm | Ted Clayton

Random Walker; Yes! Thank you for the links! YTY - the Yellowstone to Yukon Conservation Initiative is an example mentioned by Kurt (he thought languishing). Their website looks nicely developed, with current news. I think there is extra potential for enlarged (and better) habitat preservation in the more-northern regions.

Sep 3rd - 20:44pm | Random Walker

Are you folks thinking like Y2Y, The North American Wildlands Network,

Yellowstone National Park Reporting Bullish Visitation

Sep 5th - 18:11pm | jsmacdonald

One possible explanation is the weak dollar and the high number of foreign tourists. That seems to be the most likely explanation. However, no matter who seems to be visiting, we were simply shocked last week by the huge, huge numbers of SUVs driving through Yellowstone, presumably a great number being rental cars.

Rainbow Falls, Great Smoky Mountains National Park

Sep 5th - 17:21pm | John Britt - "c...

Wow - what a treat to see my YouTube video posted here. If you're interested, I have a number of stills of the Smokies at my Great Smoky Mountains National Park album, link as follows: http://travel.webshots.com/album/127349229ScwxaN There's also another album that focuses primarily on the wildflowers of the park.

Lost to Hurricanes, the Flamingo Lodge at Everglades National Park Will be Hard to Replace

Sep 5th - 08:23am | Dick

We have stayed at Flamingo Lodge on two occasions in the past. Both times were in the early spring and we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. Sorry to hear about the lodge's destruction but perhaps a newer, better place will be the result. Best of luck to them.

Backcountry Volunteer Survives 100 Foot Fall While Canyoneering at Zion National Park

Sep 5th - 08:20am | Donnie B.

Anyone wishing to send their support (cmon' and send her some love!) to Kaitlyn can do so at: www.caringbridge.org/visit/KaitlynBohlin

Interior Officials Want to Allow Concealed Carry in the National Parks

Sep 4th - 19:06pm | TC

People are already carrying concealed weapons, getting rid of this rediculous law just makes it legal. 2nd ammendment Duh!

Having Suffered Severe Storm Damage, a Witness Tree at Gettysburg National Military Park is Unlikely to Survive

Sep 4th - 15:59pm | Anonymous

Are you sure onetreehillbuzz.com is the right link? That's what pops up when I click on "this site" on your August 11 posting. [Ed. Sorry. I deleted the link to the "after" site because the relevant story about the damaged tree is no longer available at the site.]

Is Technology Compatible With The National Park Wilderness Experience?

Sep 4th - 14:31pm | Nathan

So lets leave our cameras behind while we are at it, down with flash lights and plastic cookware! and thermarest mattresses

Find Me, Spot. Staying Found in The National Parks

Sep 4th - 13:21pm | Anonymous

the problem is not the existance of the device but rather the publics preception as to what a emergency is. This is a great tool and will save many lives.

Park Police Arrest Men Who Brought a Loaded Submachine Gun to a Playground in National Capital Parks-East

Sep 4th - 08:30am | New Here

How come the NPS arrests people like this (which they should) and allows things like what goes on a Fire Island National Seashore (see below). Aren't these actions crimes? Should the NPS be looking the other way and letting this happen in view of visitors, including kids, in a national park?

The Wilderness Act At Age 44

Sep 4th - 03:34am | tahoma

Nice essay, Kurt. Can anyone imagine such a visionary piece of legislation being passed in today's political climate? Me memory's fadin', but I seem to recall from '60s Sierra Club Bulletins that top NPS brass lobbied against inclusion as the Wilderness Act was being passed? An "increasing population", with it's

Paying To Understand U.S. History in the National Park System

Sep 3rd - 21:07pm | RoadRanger

I think Beamis's comments 9/2 sum up this thread's journey rather well. The upcoming commission is about to examine an organization with an extraordinary mission. In the world of E. O.Wilson, we have a leader and thinker to match the complexity of that mission. I'm looking forward to meaningful results.

A View from Abroad: Don't Let Tourism Overwhelm Our National Parks

Sep 3rd - 20:35pm | Barky

I really like this article from Australia. I especially like this part: National parks offer a special tourist experience, but not the full range of tourist experiences. The extra bits of a tourist's time in an area - the accommodation, the fun parks, evening entertainment, restaurants and takeaway joints - belong in the neighbouring towns.

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