Stop the Hidden Gems Wilderness

I know some of you are dirtbikes, mountain bikers, or 4 wheelers, please take a moment to let Mr. Polis that public lands are for ALL of the public.

From an email I received this morning:

Quote:

Colorado Representative Polis has placed a short survey on his website to
gauge the opposition/support of the Hidden Gems proposal of residents and
visitors to Summit County Colorado.

http://www.polis.house.gov/forms/form/?id=745

Hidden Gems hopes to close 244,000 acres of land in Summit and Eagle
Counties by having it designated as wilderness. The Hidden Gems promoters
have been gaining support from Polis, the media and other politicians by
saying that they have "overwhelming support" of the proposal by the voters
in Eagle and Summit Counties. I have personally had one of the Summit County
Commissioners tell me that the HG proposal does not include any current off
highway vehicle areas in Summit County. It does! This commissioner was
either misinformed or was lying. Nevertheless the commissioners seem to be
supporting the proposal. Recent polls in local newspapers show more people
are opposed to the "land grab" than are supporting it.

It seems that Representative Polis wants to see what his constituents think
about the proposal himself. He has scheduled several meetings for public
input and has presented this survey to gain feedback. Please visit the
webpage and share your thoughts on the issue. Even if you are a visitor to
the area, Polis wants to know what you think. We have no idea how long the
survey will be on the site, so complete it ASAP and please share this email
with your friends.

Thank you!

Mike

Here is the link again and a schedule of the meetings.

http://www.polis.house.gov/forms/form/?id=745

Hidden Gems Office Hours
*May 18, 2010 -* What: Office Hours for Public Review of Hidden Gems
Wilderness Proposal with Congressional Staff Where: Congressman Polis'
Frisco office - in the main foyer of the building 101 W. Main Street Frisco,
CO 80443 970.668.3240 When: Tuesday, May 18:

Hidden Gems Office Hours
*May 25, 2010 -* What: Office Hours for Public Review of Hidden Gems
Wilderness Proposal with Congressional Staff Where: Congressman Polis'
Frisco office - in the main foyer of the building 101 W. Main Street Frisco,
CO 80443 970.668.3240 When: Tuesday, May 25:

Boulder--Hidden Gems Wilderness Proposal Community Forum
*Jun 1, 2010 -* What: Hidden Gems Wilderness Proposal Public Forum Who:
Congressman Polis and Community Where/When: Tuesday, June 1 5:30-7:00 pm
Boulder Public Library Canyon Theater 1000 Canyon Boulevard Boulder, CO
80302

Edwards--Hidden Gems Wilderness Proposal Public Forum
*Jun 3, 2010 -* What: Hidden Gems Wilderness Proposal Public Forum Who:
Congressman Polis and Community Where/When: Thursday, June 3 5:30-7:00 pm
Battle Mountain High School Auditorium 151 Miller Ranch Road Edwards, CO
81632

Breckenridige -- Hidden Gems Wilderness Proposal Public Forum
*Jun 4, 2010 -* What: Hidden Gems Wilderness Proposal Public Forum Who:
Congressman Polis and Community Where/When: Friday, June 4 12:00-1:30 pm
Colorado Mountain College, Breckenridge Campus Community Auditorium 107
Denison Placer Road Breckenridge, CO 80424

OK, I'm at the site now filling out the form. The way it's worded we don't have a chance. They make it sound like we're not concerned with conservation at all.

"How strongly do you value land conservation in the White River National Forest?"
1 - Strongly
2 - Moderately
3 - To many protections already

Yeah, I sent Mr. Polis a rather strongly worded email about the slant of the poll. [Rant1]

Quote:

Dear Mr. Polis,
I appreciate the effort you are putting forth to determine actual public opinion concerning the proposed Hidden Gems Wilderness area, but I take issue with the manner in which the poll questions are worded, which obviously slants the poll in favor of more restrictions on OHV use in areas traditionally utilized for these activities. At issue is the wording of the question concerning land conservation within the White River National Forest. The only options offered are:

1 Strongly favor protections
2 Moderately favor protections
3 There are too many protections already

I strongly believe that public lands are for ALL of the public, and a 4th poll option of "Adequate protections are already in place" would make the poll more accurately reflect the opinions of both your constituents and those that use the public lands within Summit County.

Thread drift... [apology]

http://polis.house.gov/UploadedFiles..._Biography.pdf

No denying his successes but...too many strikes for me, I'm no fan of this wad-gobbler. Off to complete the survey now...