Sale of national forests has opposition

The Bush administration has proposed selling off more than 300,000 acres of national forest and other government lands -- the biggest auction of public forest in decades. The idea is that the $800 million that is expected to raised from the sale will be used to better the roads and schools in the rural areas.

Both The (Louisville, KY) Courier-Journal and The Bristol (TN) Herald Courier recently ran opinions opposed the plan.

From The Courier-Journal's op-ed:

The... proposal is supposed to raise $800 million for rural schools and roads, nationally, over the next five years, but such Forest Service payments, especially in the East, often end up inconsequential: $8,000 for Lee County this fiscal year.

When these and other local specifics of the sell-off are brought to light, the public should make its objections heard.

And, from The Bristol Herald Courier's op-ed:

The national forests are a treasure worth preserving for future generations, not an asset to be sold for quick cash....Schools and roads are important, but selling public lands isn’t a sound way to pay for them. Congress should pronounce this proposal dead on arrival....[T]he proportionally small size of this initial sale doesn’t make it a good idea. Similarly, the money’s purpose doesn’t justify the means proposed to raise it. Once the nation starts down the path of satisfying short-term financial needs by selling public land, where will it end? Can this Pandora’s box be closed?