Posted on 11/28/2007 12:13:13 PM PST by george76
Ted Turner's men didn't flinch...
When the auction was over, they walked away with what they came for: 26,300 acres of prime ranch land, at a cost of nearly $10 million.
"It hasn't taken long to find out he's serious," said Duane Kime, a rancher and Turner neighbor who was outbid by about $100,000 by the CNN founder.
But what exactly is Turner serious about?
The question gnaws at folks here and in other rural areas of the country ...
Turner has amassed 2 million acres over the past two decades to become the largest private landowner in the country. He owns land in at least nine states, with most of his holdings in New Mexico, Nebraska, Montana and South Dakota...
His front men say their boss doesn't have a secret agenda... But each big buy only heightens the anxiety and gives rise to conspiracy theories, the most ominous of which hold that the swashbuckling Atlanta executive is bent on putting Nebraska ranchers and farmers out of business.
Among the theories: Turner is trying to corner the land over the Ogallala Aquifer, the world's largest underground water system, to gain power in the water-starved West.
Or: He is scheming, perhaps with the United Nations, to create a vast wildlife refuge and turn it over to the federal government, removing the land from Nebraska's tax rolls...
Turner's organizations also have been in discussions with the World Wildlife Fund and the World Conservation Union ...
Turner's Vermejo Park Ranch in New Mexico, for example, offers weeklong elk hunting excursions at $12,000 a pop...
Another persistent complaint is that Turner's extraordinary ability to outbid just about anyone is driving up land prices, making it tougher for longtime ranchers to expand and keep their operations afloat.
(Excerpt) Read more at news.yahoo.com ...
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He owns a huge chunk of Patagonia too, unless Jane walked away with it.
"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." - Manuel II Palelologus
Ted Turner is the largest individual landowner in North America.
I’d say the largest would be Michael Moore.
Turner’s Vermejo Park Ranch in New Mexico offers weeklong elk hunting excursions at $12,000 per...
That ain’t bad, out of state hunters routinely drop huge sums to hunt in NM.
Turner lost billions in the AOL/Time Warner disaster. Maybe he sees land as a better bet. He is also a bird hunter.
$380 per acre
Good money for outfitters ?
I think some guy paid almost $200K a couple years back.
For that kinda money, I’d go to Africa and shoot toothy stuff.
“He owns a huge chunk of Patagonia too, unless Jane walked away with it.”
___________________________________________________________
That would be the guy who founded The North Face outdoor clothing company.
Al Qaeda training camps???
If you want on or off the NM Ping list, please FReepmail me.
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Who would have thought Turner was really a capitalist? How dare he purchase an asset and make money with it!
land envy ping
Wow.
For that amount of money, there should be a happy ending ?
I wouldnt be surprised if the anti-American globalist Turner turned the land over to the Unpunished Nazis (UN) as some “heritage park”
Turner promised the UN 1 billion bucks, and still hasnt made good on it. Why not give them land.
Scary that a socio-commie like Turner would own so much land
36 years ago the average price per acre of undeveloped land in Montana was $50. Now it is about $10,000 just as a start because of sob’s like turner.
I'd like to hunt the Valles Vidal. 100 square miles of really untouched land.
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