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Losing Our Heritage, Our Land
CNSNews.com ^ | 7/8/02 | Tom DeWeese

Posted on 07/08/2002 10:18:11 AM PDT by Jean S

Congress is gearing up to vote on a very dangerous bill.

The National Heritage Areas Act (HR 2388), sponsored by liberal Republican Rep. Joel Hefley (Colo.) and liberal Democrat Rep. Nick Rahall (W.Va.), would do for land grabs what the assembly line did for automobiles. It would speed up the process to a point where private property would be the equivalent of the horse and buggy.

The Heritage Areas Act proposes to extend federal control over local land use in exchange for federal grant money going to local communities. Politicians see it as a pork-barrel spending program to benefit their districts.

However, with the federal money comes federal land-use requirements, duplicity and land seizure, as is happening right now in several counties in West Virginia.

There is NO notification to landowners when their property comes within the boundaries of a Heritage Area. You just find out when you try to get a road fixed, install a swimming pool, re-gravel your driveway or repair your fences.

HR 2388 claims to be a program for local communities to encourage the promotion of economic development and tourism. However, communities are in for a rude surprise, because here is what is NOT in the Heritage Areas Act: the words "economic development" or "tourism."

Here is an example of how the National Park Service hides its intentions from local landowners, uses them to gain funds and then dumps them when it no longer needs them. All in the name of a National Heritage Area, of course.

The people of Hinton, West Virginia wanted funds to repair a local road. They lobbied their legislators for several years, and finally gained funding.

After they got the federal funds, the National Park Service announced that, because it was a Heritage Area, the money would be used to create a Scenic Parkway, and dozens of people's properties would be condemned and they would be forced out of their homes! These are the very same people who lobbied for the road repairs in the first place!

This bill creates a "Heritage Area" program that will be run by the National Park Service. This is the same agency that, among other things:

1. allows forest fires to run wild;
2. condemns private property whenever possible; and
3. claims huge areas as endangered species habitat so it can eliminate commercial and recreational use of public lands, prohibiting everything from off-road vehicles to mining and logging.

The National Park Service also has a five billion dollar maintenance backlog, everything from potholes in roads to overflowing sewer systems fouling the rivers. Yet this agency is constantly grabbing for new land and power, when it plainly cannot handle the empire it already controls.

Here are four reasons to oppose HR 2388:
1. It is federal land use zoning;
2. It is run by the anti-property-owner National Park Service;
3. It will damage economic development; and
4. It doesn't let people know what is going on, until it is too late!

The Heritage Areas Act was passed by the House Resources Committee in May 2002. It will likely come up for a vote before the entire House sometime in July. There is no time to lose in letting your Representative know you oppose it.

(Tom DeWeese is the publisher/editor of The DeWeese Report and president of the Virginia-based American Policy Center.)


TOPICS: Government; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: congress; federallandgrab; landgrab; usforestservice
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1 posted on 07/08/2002 10:18:11 AM PDT by Jean S
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To: JeanS
This sounds like a UN-sponsored program.
2 posted on 07/08/2002 10:20:45 AM PDT by RightWhale
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To: JeanS
Politicians see it as a pork-barrel spending program to benefit their districts.

In other words, the problem is not the National Park Service or the Federal Government in general, but a third-rate politician who is willing to trade the rights of the people he represents in exchange for some Federal cash.

The answer to this is simple: Vote the bastard out of office. And if you can't do that, then your most serious concern is not your government but your next-door neighbor.

3 posted on 07/08/2002 10:25:49 AM PDT by Alberta's Child
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To: *landgrab; madfly
Index Bump and fyi
4 posted on 07/08/2002 11:12:21 AM PDT by Free the USA
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To: JeanS; RightWhale
This bill creates a "Heritage Area" program that will be run by the National Park Service.

Anything with the word "Heritage" is a UN Program! All National Parks are under the control of the UN! Slick bastards aren't they?

5 posted on 07/08/2002 11:12:52 AM PDT by B4Ranch
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To: B4Ranch
Anything with the word "Heritage" is a UN Program

If you say this to some otherwise normal people, they begin to redden and call you names. No! Impossible!

Nevertheless, it is true.

6 posted on 07/08/2002 11:34:22 AM PDT by RightWhale
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To: RightWhale
I haven't been accused of being normal for a long, long time. Anyone who hates the UN as much as I do will never have to worry about those charges.
7 posted on 07/08/2002 11:49:05 AM PDT by B4Ranch
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To: Ernest_at_the_Beach; Libertarianize the GOP; Stand Watch Listen; freefly; expose; ...
ping
8 posted on 07/09/2002 7:29:55 AM PDT by madfly
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To: madfly
BTTT!!!!
9 posted on 07/09/2002 7:44:48 AM PDT by E.G.C.
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To: BOBTHENAILER; floriduh voter
BUMP!
10 posted on 07/09/2002 7:47:59 AM PDT by EternalVigilance
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To: madfly
Rats! I just finished the last mass email, now I need to start another one about this...
11 posted on 07/09/2002 7:59:10 AM PDT by backhoe
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To: backhoe
bttt
12 posted on 07/09/2002 8:02:03 AM PDT by Travis McGee
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To: madfly
This does sound dangerous- better tell my congrescritter not to vote for it though I bet he will.
13 posted on 07/09/2002 8:34:01 AM PDT by mafree
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To: JeanS
Thanks for the ping! As you probably know, I am one of those folks from Hinton, WV. Believe me when I tell you this is an incredible mess and folks everywhere need to understand what we did not back then, you WILL lose your homes, YOUR heritages, and your way of life if this bill passes! Please to you and all, please stop this bill now!
14 posted on 07/09/2002 8:47:31 AM PDT by countrydummy
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To: newriverSister; Grampa Dave; dixiechick2000; sauropod; AuntB; Carry_Okie; Jeff Head; folklore
bump!
15 posted on 07/09/2002 8:51:02 AM PDT by countrydummy
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To: countrydummy
Bump
16 posted on 07/09/2002 9:23:44 AM PDT by folklore
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To: JeanS
Thanks for posting this.
17 posted on 07/09/2002 9:24:50 AM PDT by folklore
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To: Alberta's Child
Nick Joe Rahall (D,WV) is in for life, maybe longer!
18 posted on 07/09/2002 9:31:07 AM PDT by folklore
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To: Alberta's Child; countrydummy; newriverSister
In the case of Hinton, it's both.
19 posted on 07/09/2002 9:51:42 AM PDT by sauropod
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To: JeanS; countrydummy
WOW! Thanks for a most enlightening article, JeanS.
Right now I'm wading through the Oregon Natural Heritage Plan. It's going to take a bit of time to peruse, but it's well worth it.
I found it during a google search...I can't believe how many pages of "heritage areas" there are.
This is worldwide...I now believe this is part of a UN plan.

countrydummy, thanks so much for the ping. I may have never known about it otherwise. I am so sorry for the troubles the people of Hinton are having. Please, can you explain more about how the gov't is going about this in your area?

20 posted on 07/09/2002 9:55:57 AM PDT by dixiechick2000
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