Info On Land Swap and How to Protest It

[bluerail]

In his email he urged as many people to write as possible. So maybe ..everyone ? There's alot of people on this board.

Thanks for all you're doing Cynthia

[Norris]

I sent emails to my US Representative and to Mr. Gonzalez. I think a petition to gather signatures would be a good idea. Should be able to get lots of signatures approaching people at the upper tram station and in Long Valley.

[bluerail]

yea thats probably a good idea Norris. Sorry to miss you in Idylwild sunday, how'd
it go?not sure what time you got down but we were in town around 4

[Wildhorse]

My understanding is that personal letters generally carry more political clout than petitions with members of Congress. I would be worth checking on that with Gonzalez. Meanwhile, the more people who send letters to Gonzalez, the better.

A petition may apply pressure on the Tribe and the BLM through bad PR for them. It alerts more people to the shady deal and it shows a gathering storm of protest. It would be good to delver the protest to politicians, such as the mayor, the governor, the congressman, and the senators, as well as the BLM and the Tribe - in front of cameras.

For the record, the BLM has said petitions will not dissuade them from completing the exchange. What that means is that they don't care about the public interest. Of course, that is something all of us already know. If the BLM and the Tribe believe they can get away with this politically, the exchange will happen even if the public hates it.

[Norris]

yea thats probably a good idea Norris. Sorry to miss you in Idylwild sunday, how'd
it go?not sure what time you got down but we were in town around 4

Hi Steve, good hike, I got down kind of late, around 4. Kind of felt I had bothered you guys enough after waking you up at 6:45 (sorry about that ) so I headed home. I'll catch you next time!

[Norris]

I sent an email to Mr Gonzalez and got an immediate, very courteous reply. I also contacted my US Representative, and sent an email to the AguaCalienteExchange@blm.gov address. Hopefully I got my facts right:

I am writing to register my opposition to the proposed exchange of land between the BLM and the Agua Caliente tribe near Palm Springs.
In particular, parcels 16 and 36 must be removed from the proposed exchange. Although parcel 36 gets most of the attention, parcel 16 is of the greatest concern to me since it includes an historic and irreplaceable trail which runs from downtown Palm Springs to the summit of San Jacinto.

The tribe’s argument that they have been good stewards of other areas which include hiking trails does not matter, the fact is that once the land deal is consummated the tribe can do whatever they want, including development of the land and/or charging fees to hikers and/or restricting access.

The entire premise for the exchange is bogus. There is no pressing need to do anything. The idea that an exchange needs to happen because there is a “patchwork” of land ownership is nonsense. No public interest is served by this exchange. It is a shady, crooked deal which benefits the indian tribe only.

[Wildhorse]

Norris:

Your facts are right. It is a powerful, wonderful letter.

[Ellen]

Howdy All

Count me in -- STOP the SWAP

I just a sent letter to Mr. Gonzalez and copied the National Monument Manager. Also forwarded a copy to Cynthia.

I wrote my initial letter to the BLM in the fall of 2010. Thank you to Wildhorse, Cynthia, Steve and others on this forum for keeping us on our toes regarding this unscrupulous backroom deal.

Do we want to start an on-line petition as I did with the locked gate at the Vivian Creek TH?

Miles of smiles,
Ellen

[Norris]

Hi Ellen, I would say yes, the more angles we come at them from and the more people we sign up, the better.

[Ellen]

Howdy All

I received a very nice and fast response (posted below) from Mr. Octavio Gonzalez.

Ms. Coleman,

Thank you for your detailed message expressing your thoughts on the proposed BLM land swap. I’ve added your email to my file for review.

I appreciate that you took the time to express your point of view. I will ensure that Dr. Ruiz received your—and everyone who writes in—message.

Continue to encourage others to do the same.

Many thanks again for your note,

Octavio

Octavio González

District Policy Director | Rep. Raul Ruiz (CA-36)

Octavio.Gonzalez@mail.house.gov

Office:760-424-8888

Cell: 760-218-9015

Fax: 760-424-8993