-- -Time flies like the wind. Fruit flies like a banana. Stranger things have - -happened but none stranger than this. Does your driver's license say Organ -Donor?Black holes are where God divided by zero. Listen to me! We are all- -individuals! What if this weren't a hypothetical question? [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Date: Mon, 25 Nov 2002 21:12:33 -0500 From: Theresa & Bill Merriam <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Subject: [Fwd: We Are Thankful] Thought you might find this Thanksgiving message interesting, and maybe even feel like signing up and sending an occasional email or two. We've been on this list for a couple of years and haven't been spammed yet, so it's a safe one... Happy Turkey Day Bill -------- Original Message -------- Subject: SPECIAL: We Are Thankful Date: Mon, 25 Nov 2002 17:15:56 -0800 (PST) From: WildAlert <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] ****************************** *WildAlert *Monday, November 25, 2002 ****************************** Dear William, Like you, I will gather with my family and friends this week to pause, reflect and be grateful for all that is given us. Among those things for which I am profoundly thankful is the family of WildAlert subscribers, you and 70,000 others. You unselfishly respond when we need your help to preserve, protect or restore elements of our splendid natural world. And what a family you are! We know from your occasional notes that you are spread across the United States, are of every age and ethnic group, that you live in cities and rural areas. We know that you span the political spectrum. This virtual family of ours is diversity defined. But it shares a deeply held value that brings and binds us together: our affection for wild places and wild things and an unyielding commitment to their protection. This community of people rests on a bedrock belief that we are merely today's stewards of this land in all its richness and that our children will judge us harshly if we let it slip away. GROWING NUMBERS, GROWING HOPE We are part of a movement that involves millions of Americans who share the conviction that conservation is a core American value. Among them are The Wilderness Society's sister organizations at the national level, regional and statewide coalitions across the country, policy analysts, legislative and communications experts-all dedicated to meeting the challenges we will face in the next two years. I won't gloss over this: there will be challenges. We expect the Administration and the new Congress to come straight at oil drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, logging roadless areas in the name of forest fire prevention and a host of other things. But I am buoyed by the knowledge that we are better prepared than we ever have been to meet the challenges. The environmental community is better unified than many can remember. I'm able to assess this first hand because I am privileged this year to lead the Green Group, a circle of 32 national conservation organizations. In the weeks ahead, that group will be working on unified strategies to defend our wildest places. In the present climate, we can afford neither gaps nor duplication in our work. INCREASING OUR EFFECTIVENESS We are also looking to the WildAlert community. You have been a remarkable force for conservation. We want to make your willingness to help even more effective, and to that end we will soon be unveiling our brand new action center, which will provide us with new ways to communicate with decision makers and to reach out to more Americans who care about conservation. We will redouble our efforts to bring you the latest news and the best analysis of what it means. We will keep you apprised of the most useful, most strategic actions we can take in defense of wild places. And we will update you on results. SOME QUESTIONS A number of you have written to express dismay at the National Park Service's decision to reverse the ban on snowmobiles in Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks. More than 360,000 Americans commented, and over 80 percent of those asked for a ban. The question from some WildAlert subscribers is whether such comments make a difference. I believe they do enormous good. At the most basic level, we think commenting when we can is, like voting, both right and duty. More practically, there is also more than one use for public comments. If the National Park Service ignored them, our Congressional champions will not. They will use those numbers, and the opinion they reflect, to good effect when National Park management issues come before the Congress. The media will not ignore them either. They've already cited in their reports the glaring disparity between the public's comments and the Park Service's decision on snowmobiling. That is a key element in building public sentiment for sensible management of snowmobiles and other off-road vehicles. Another answer is that it is crucial to keep the pressure on the land management agencies to do the right thing, to let them know repeatedly what we expect of their management of our public estate. Even if land managers ignore them, cumulatively such comments have weight and heft. YOUR OWN THOUGHTS, IN YOUR OWN WORDS Given what we've seen with the Yellowstone decision, we believe it will be more important than ever that our comments be as personalized and as individualized as possible. This will add to the time it takes to respond, we know that. But when you add your own passion, in your own words, to the suggested text we provide, the impact will be considerably greater and that much harder to ignore. We'll remind you of this in future WildAlerts. THINGS YOU CAN DO -Help increase our community by sending this message to seven of your friends or relatives. The more of us there are to express the values we share, the more effective we can be in defense of our parks and our wilderness lands. -Take the decision now to inject more of your own feelings, beliefs and experiences into the comments you send from our WildAlerts. -Find some time during the holiday season ahead to get out into this natural world we are all working so hard to protect. FINALLY, THANK YOU Friends have asked whether I am disheartened or discouraged by the challenges ahead. I am not. The reason is that I am allied with you and millions more like you-Americans passionately committed to defending the best of our public lands, our unique American birthright, the essence of what "homeland" means to many of us. We are people acutely aware that if we don't do the job of protecting our special places, it won't get done. I am hopeful because you give us hope. For that I thank you. Have a wonderful holiday! William H. Meadows President, The Wilderness Society http://www.wilderness.org/abouttws/presmsg.htm ************************************* Read the latest Washington Report at: http://www.wilderness.org/eyewash/index.htm ************************************* "There is just one hope for repulsing the tyrannical ambition of civilization to conquer every niche of the whole earth. That hope is the organization of spirited people who will fight for the freedom of the wilderness." -Bob Marshall http://www.wilderness.org/profiles/marshall.htm ********************************************************************** *************************************************************** For a full list of Action Items, visit http://www.wilderness.org/whatcan/takeaction.htm *************************************************************** An archive of past WildAlerts can be found at http://www.wilderness.org/wildalert/wildalerts.htm *************************************************************** To make a gift online to The Wilderness Society, click here https://secure-net.com/tws/join.asp *************************************************************** WildAlert is an email action alert system brought to you by The Wilderness Society to keep you apprised of threats to our wildlands - in the field and in Washington. WildAlert messages include updates along with clear, concise actions you can take to protect America's last wild places. You are welcome to forward WildAlerts to all those interested in saving America's wildlands. FEEDBACK: If you need to get in contact with the owner of the list, (if you have trouble unsubscribing, or have questions about the list itself) send email to <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>. TO SUBSCRIBE: If you have been forwarded this message and would like to subscribe to the list, visit http://www.wilderness.org/forms/subscribe.htm or send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with 'SUBSCRIBE' in the subject line and your email address in the body of the message. TO UNSUBSCRIBE: Send an email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] from [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word "remove" in the subject line. Or visit the TWS unsubscribe page at: http://www.wilderness.org/unsubscribe.asp?[EMAIL PROTECTED] Founded in 1935, The Wilderness Society works to protect America's wilderness and to develop a nation-wide network of wild lands through public education, scientific analysis and advocacy. Our goal is to ensure that future generations will enjoy the clean air and water, wildlife, beauty and opportunities for recreation and renewal that pristine forests, rivers, deserts and mountains provide. To take action on behalf of wildlands today, visit our website at http://www.wilderness.org
