Social National Parks facing massive crisis

[Scerpi]

We should get rid of white people

Worked out well for Zimbabwe

 

[Scerpi]

This is just ridiculous. Just people getting upset about nothing as usual. It's the wilderness, how do you make it more inclusive? If you want to go there, you can go there.

No one's considering that some people really don't like hiking in the woods...

Now... Try cruising the miles long beach on Bolivar nearby during the heat of the summer.

About as diverse as you can get... everyone is representing

 

[irish_thug]

This is just ridiculous. Just people getting upset about nothing as usual. It's the wilderness, how do you make it more inclusive? If you want to go there, you can go there.

Where I live the provincial park system has (had?) programs for newcomers to Canada where they could borrow equipment and be taught camping fundamentals. Seems stupid on the surface, but you are creating new generations of campers. Someone who didn't grow up here isn't going to have the skills and experiences to pass down to their kids that I have, so why not help them out so they can appreciate the wonders of nature.

That is the most lefty thing you will ever read from me, but I stand by it.

 

[*Z*]

No one's considering that some people really don't like hiking in the woods...

Now... Try cruising the miles long beach on Bolivar nearby during the heat of the summer.

About as diverse as you can get... everyone is representing

Exactly, either you like the wilderness or you don't. It's weird how people think that everyone HAS to be represented in every activity or it's somehow racist. Wait until they find out about hockey.

 

[Deorum]

Depends on what you mean by "whites"

NoDak Genome.

i love the redwoods, man. when you walk among them, with the ocean nearby, it has this primordial feel to it. the same feeling, reconstituted over time now, yesterday, a thousand years before, 10 thousand years before, as long as humans walked beneath them, the same feeling was there.

You're pure class. And yeah, it's awe-inspiring.



Have you been to any of these, @Uncle Cool Dude? You're quite a ways off from the crown jewels. Whatever the Old West doesn't possess in early American history, it makes up some ground on in terms of geological history and natural beauty. I've been to nearly 20 of them now, in part because the two places I've spent my life have been within fun road trip distances.

01. Yellowstone (Wyoming)
02. Death Valley (California)
03. Grand Canyon (Arizona)
04. Redwood (California)
05. Sequoia (California)
06. Grand Teton (Wyoming)
07. Glacier (Montana)
08. Badlands (SoDak)
09. Wind Cave (SoDak)
10. Teddy Roosevelt (NoDak)

To-Do List:

* Yosemite (California)
* Smoky Mountains (Tennessee)
* Everglades (Florida)

There is nothing that can dethrone the OG, but Death Valley was honestly the most fun for me. I live in the hottest city in the country that literally just had the hottest month ever recorded for any US city (of any size) this July, so the heat isn't really a novelty thing for me. But DVNP is on some other shit. 50+C (122F and up) is on some other shit. It is as incredible and legendary as it is excruciating and infamous. We came across some tourist bloke from Wales over there, and my son said it looked like the dude's soul was leaving his body. No doubt he was seeing desert cryptids and paranormal spirits once he got back to his lodgings that night.





There's all sorts of aptly named locations throughout the park: Furnace Creek, Badwater Basin, Stovepipe Wells, Dante's View, Devil's Golf Course (not an actual golf course). It was long, long overdue but finally established as a full fledged natty park on Halloween 1994. It's also the fictional hometown of The Undertaker right, that's cool. The Valley sits at the lowest point of elevation in North America at nearly 300 feet below sea level, and it is The Hottest Place on Earth. It shits on the Saharan and Middle East.

* 54.4° C (130.0°F), 9 July 2021, Death Valley (USA)

* 54.3° C (129.9°F), 16 August 2020, Death Valley (USA)

* 54.1° C (129.4°F), 10 July 2021, Death Valley (USA)

* 54.0° C (129.2°F), 30 June 2013, Death Valley (USA)

* 54.0° C (129.2°F), 21 July 2016, Mitribah (Kuwait)

* 53.9° C (129.0°F), 17 July 1998, Death Valley (USA)

* 53.9° C (129.0°F), 19 July 2005, Death Valley (USA)

* 53.9° C (129.0°F), 6 July 2007, Death Valley (USA)

* 53.9° C (129.0°F), 22 July 2016, Basra (Iraq)

* 53.9° C (129.0°F), 16 July 2023, Death Valley (USA)

USA! USA! USA!

 

[*Z*]

Where I live the provincial park system has (had?) programs for newcomers to Canada where they could borrow equipment and be taught camping fundamentals. Seems stupid on the surface, but you are creating new generations of campers. Someone who didn't grow up here isn't going to have the skills and experiences to pass down to their kids that I have, so why not help them out so they can appreciate the wonders of nature.

That is the most lefty thing you will ever read from me, but I stand by it.

I agree with this. For that to happen though someone would need to show interest and reach out. I'm all for programs like that.

 

[Thrawn33]

NoDak Genome.





You're pure class. And yeah, it's awe-inspiring.



Have you been to any of these, @Uncle Cool Dude? You're quite a ways off from the crown jewels. Whatever the Old West doesn't possess in early American history, it makes up some ground on in terms of geological history and natural beauty. I've been to nearly 20 of them now, in part because the two places I've spent my life have been within fun road trip distances.

01. Yellowstone (Wyoming)
02. Death Valley (California)
03. Grand Canyon (Arizona)
04. Redwood (California)
05. Sequoia (California)
06. Grand Teton (Wyoming)
07. Glacier (Montana)
08. Badlands (SoDak)
09. Wind Cave (SoDak)
10. Teddy Roosevelt (NoDak)

To-Do List:

* Yosemite (California)
* Smoky Mountains (Tennessee)
* Everglades (Florida)

There is nothing that can dethrone the OG, but Death Valley was honestly the most fun for me. I live in the hottest city in the country that literally just had the hottest month ever recorded for any US city (of any size) this July, so the heat isn't really a novelty thing for me. But DVNP is on some other shit. 50+C (122F and up) is on some other shit. It is as incredible and legendary as it is excruciating and infamous. We came across some tourist bloke from Wales over there, and my son said it looked like the dude's soul was leaving his body. No doubt he was seeing desert cryptids and paranormal spirits once he got back to his lodgings that night.





There's all sorts of aptly named locations throughout the park: Furnace Creek, Badwater Basin, Stovepipe Wells, Dante's Peak, Devil's Golf Course (not an actual golf course). It was long, long overdue but finally established as a full fledged natty park on Halloween 1994. It's also the fictional hometown of The Undertaker right, that's cool. The Valley sits at the lowest point of elevation in North America at nearly 300 feet below sea level, and it is The Hottest Place on Earth. It shits on the Saharan and Middle East.

* 54.4° C (130.0°F), 9 July 2021, Death Valley (USA)

* 54.3° C (129.9°F), 16 August 2020, Death Valley (USA)

* 54.1° C (129.4°F), 10 July 2021, Death Valley (USA)

* 54.0° C (129.2°F), 30 June 2013, Death Valley (USA)

* 54.0° C (129.2°F), 21 July 2016, Mitribah (Kuwait)

* 53.9° C (129.0°F), 17 July 1998, Death Valley (USA)

* 53.9° C (129.0°F), 19 July 2005, Death Valley (USA)

* 53.9° C (129.0°F), 6 July 2007, Death Valley (USA)

* 53.9° C (129.0°F), 22 July 2016, Basra (Iraq)

* 53.9° C (129.0°F), 16 July 2023, Death Valley (USA)

USA! USA! USA!

Loved my trip to Death Valley. Went in Jan or Feb IIR, hoodies in the morning, shorts and t-shirts in the afternoon.

 

[Mr Holmes]

No we should not.
There are good white people here and there have always been bad and good white people. For example a lot of good white people put a stop to slavery but had to fight the bad white people to do it.
If you want to know who the evil bad white people are, they now call themselves right wing/republicans but they are from the same strand of parasitical, civilian murdering, evil roaches who have had to be neutralized throughout history. This is what I teach to my youth groups

Lol, you're crazy.

 

[Long Dark Blues]

NoDak Genome.





You're pure class. And yeah, it's awe-inspiring.



Have you been to any of these, @Uncle Cool Dude? You're quite a ways off from the crown jewels. Whatever the Old West doesn't possess in early American history, it makes up some ground on in terms of geological history and natural beauty. I've been to nearly 20 of them now, in part because the two places I've spent my life have been within fun road trip distances.

01. Yellowstone (Wyoming)
02. Death Valley (California)
03. Grand Canyon (Arizona)
04. Redwood (California)
05. Sequoia (California)
06. Grand Teton (Wyoming)
07. Glacier (Montana)
08. Badlands (SoDak)
09. Wind Cave (SoDak)
10. Teddy Roosevelt (NoDak)

To-Do List:

* Yosemite (California)
* Smoky Mountains (Tennessee)
* Everglades (Florida)

There is nothing that can dethrone the OG, but Death Valley was honestly the most fun for me. I live in the hottest city in the country that literally just had the hottest month ever recorded for any US city (of any size) this July, so the heat isn't really a novelty thing for me. But DVNP is on some other shit. 50+C (122F and up) is on some other shit. It is as incredible and legendary as it is excruciating and infamous. We came across some tourist bloke from Wales over there, and my son said it looked like the dude's soul was leaving his body. No doubt he was seeing desert cryptids and paranormal spirits once he got back to his lodgings that night.





There's all sorts of aptly named locations throughout the park: Furnace Creek, Badwater Basin, Stovepipe Wells, Dante's Peak, Devil's Golf Course (not an actual golf course). It was long, long overdue but finally established as a full fledged natty park on Halloween 1994. It's also the fictional hometown of The Undertaker right, that's cool. The Valley sits at the lowest point of elevation in North America at nearly 300 feet below sea level, and it is The Hottest Place on Earth. It shits on the Saharan and Middle East.

* 54.4° C (130.0°F), 9 July 2021, Death Valley (USA)

* 54.3° C (129.9°F), 16 August 2020, Death Valley (USA)

* 54.1° C (129.4°F), 10 July 2021, Death Valley (USA)

* 54.0° C (129.2°F), 30 June 2013, Death Valley (USA)

* 54.0° C (129.2°F), 21 July 2016, Mitribah (Kuwait)

* 53.9° C (129.0°F), 17 July 1998, Death Valley (USA)

* 53.9° C (129.0°F), 19 July 2005, Death Valley (USA)

* 53.9° C (129.0°F), 6 July 2007, Death Valley (USA)

* 53.9° C (129.0°F), 22 July 2016, Basra (Iraq)

* 53.9° C (129.0°F), 16 July 2023, Death Valley (USA)

USA! USA! USA!

Sadly, no, I've not been to one single national park.

State parks all up and down the eastern seaboard, but not one single national park

Unless you count the Delaware Water Gap, my buddies and I do a primitive camping trip/30+ miles on the river every September.

While technically not a national park, it is a national recreation area administered by the National Park Service.

 

[cottagecheesefan]

I didn't realize Hawaii was south of Texas. I guess that is what remains of Mexicali now that we have global warming.

I am actually surprised though by the lack of parks in the mid-Atlantic, north east corridor. I mean they have tons of large state parks.

I have been to the 3 south FL ones
Grand Canyon
Redwood
Sequoia
Glacier
Yosemite
Smoky Mountains
Zion
Petrified Forrest
Shenandoah
Rocky mountain
Mesa Verde

 

[44nutman]

I'm pretty sure the US white population has actually been in outright decline since 2016. I'm unsure of the data for 2021 & 2022 but I highly doubt that the trend saw any sort of reversal the last couple years. It likely grew even larger.

2018: (-97,507)
2019: (-212,957)
2020: (-225,380)

Lots of white people sex going on in the 1980's.

 

[jk7707]

The crisis is actually relatively severe post-COVID overcrowding (regardless of race) combined with understaffing and the park service being forced to operate on a shoestring budget. Congress has also gone on to establish far too many of them IMO and it's kind of worked to take the shine off the title of being one; like some of them are a staight up joke comparatively speaking. A certified National Park should have geological features, natural attractions and visual scenery (or a collection thereof) that can be found virtually nowhere else in the country, if not the western hemisphere of the world or even the entire planet.



All this political nonsense aside: However unlikely it is that you return to the United States, the national parks are where you should go (fuck the cities). It's sort of weird but America actually 'invented' the idea of and was the first country in the world to establish national parks. I find this something to be proud of and one of those things that "Make America Great", @panem-et-circenses. It started with the all-time OG Yellowstone in 1872.

Now, that's a fucking legit National Park. Likewise, Grand Canyon NP, Legit. Death Valley NP, Legit (yup, 100%). Sequoia NP, Legit. Redwood NP, Legit. These are truly unique places that are worth seeing and experiencing, IMO. I've never been to Yosemite myself, opted for Sequioa instead (which has five of the top ten largest trees by volume to be found on earth, including #1); Redwood up in Northern Cali has the tallest.

I work for the park service and I've worked at a couple of the favorites on your list. And the biggest problem by FAR is the budget. Even the huge parks like Yellowstone and Yosemite are extremely underfunded. To the point that now that there aren't enough applicants to fill the jobs that are available because the pay for seasonal work is literally less than fast food joints in the surrounding towns.

The ironic thing is that it's one of the few federal agencies that is actually well like by the public and yet there seems to be no political will to increase the budget. Hell, in the house Republican proposal for the 2024 budget they included a 12% budget cut.

 

[Deorum]

Loved my trip to Death Valley. Went in Jan or Feb IIR, hoodies in the morning, shorts and t-shirts in the afternoon.

The landscape is so tortured, it's absolutely gorgeous.

Sadly, no, I've not been to one single national park.

State parks all up and down the eastern seaboard, but not one single national park

Unless you count the Delaware Water Gap, my buddies and I do a primitive camping trip/30+ miles on the river every September.

While technically not a national park, it is a national recreation area administered by the National Park Service.

I had guessed as much. Damn, not a single national park despite being exactly the type of person to appreciate them and what they represent. I imagine this is down to location, logistics, and general life circumstances more so than a lack of interest? I have the means to just simply leave and travel to wherever the hell I want, but I usually don't because I dislike the lack of control that comes with it.

I prefer to have my own mode of transport and all my gear with me to deal with anything that arises. I can drive to iconic heavy hitters like the Grand Canyon, Death Valley, and Sequioa natty parks in less than 3, 7, and 9 hours, respectively. I told my oldest that I was taking him to Disneyland last Summer and got the most blank, uninterested and mildly disappointed look in reaction; then said "just kidding, we're going to Death Valley" and his face lit up. <45>

I work for the park service and I've worked at a couple of the favorites on your list. And the biggest problem by FAR is the budget. Even the huge parks like Yellowstone and Yosemite are extremely underfunded. To the point that now that there aren't enough applicants to fill the jobs that are available because the pay for seasonal work is literally less than fast food joints in the surrounding towns.

The ironic thing is that it's one of the few federal agencies that is actually well like by the public and yet there seems to be no political will to increase the budget. Hell, in the house Republican proposal for the 2024 budget they included a 12% budget cut.

I've never had a single bad interaction with a national park service employee or ranger, and I genuinely wish I had the power to double your earnings. I'm admittedly not a big fan of most federal agencies, but I do like the NPS. And you're correct that a lot of Americans do, but there's not been much in the form of tangible political will to make changes to the current predicament.

The crisis is actually relatively severe post-COVID overcrowding (regardless of race) combined with understaffing and the park service being forced to operate on a shoestring budget.

 

[Long Dark Blues]

The landscape is so tortured, it's absolutely gorgeous.



I had guessed as much. Damn, not a single national park despite being exactly the type of person to appreciate them and what they represent. I imagine this is down to location, logistics, and general life circumstances more so than a lack of interest? I have the means to just simply leave and travel to wherever the hell I want, but I usually don't because I dislike the lack of control that comes with it.

I prefer to have my own mode of transport and all my gear with me to deal with anything that arises. I can drive to iconic heavy hitters like the Grand Canyon, Death Valley, and Sequioa natty parks in less than 3, 7, and 9 hours, respectively. I told my oldest that I was taking him to Disneyland last Summer and got the most blank, uninterested and mildly disappointed look in reaction; then said "just kidding, we're going to Death Valley" and his face lit up. <45>



I've never had a single bad interaction with a national park service employee or ranger, and I genuinely wish I had the power to double your earnings. I'm admittedly not a big fan of most federal agencies, but I do like the NPS. And you're correct that a lot of Americans do, but there's not been much in the form of tangible political will to make changes to the current predicament.

Oh, for sure. I have many on my list. Logistics and timing have been the issue. My youngest turns 18 in 4 years and I won't even be 45 yet. Fo'sho will be hittin' 'em all in an RV/campervan once I'm kid-free.

By the way, seeing 50 Cent and Busta Rhymes play tomorrow night. Haven't been to a rap show in a minute.

 

[emefer]

The crisis is actually relatively severe post-COVID overcrowding (regardless of race) combined with understaffing and the park service being forced to operate on a shoestring budget. Congress has also gone on to establish far too many of them IMO and it's kind of worked to take the shine off the title of being one; like some of them are a staight up joke comparatively speaking. A certified National Park should have geological features, natural attractions and visual scenery (or a collection thereof) that can be found virtually nowhere else in the country, if not the western hemisphere of the world or even the entire planet.



All this political nonsense aside: However unlikely it is that you return to the United States, the national parks are where you should go (fuck the cities). It's sort of weird but America actually 'invented' the idea of and was the first country in the world to establish national parks. I find this something to be proud of and one of those things that "Make America Great", @panem-et-circenses. It started with the all-time OG Yellowstone in 1872.

Now, that's a fucking legit National Park. Likewise, Grand Canyon NP, Legit. Death Valley NP, Legit (yup, 100%). Sequoia NP, Legit. Redwood NP, Legit. These are truly unique places that are worth seeing and experiencing, IMO. I've never been to Yosemite myself, opted for Sequioa instead (which has five of the top ten largest trees by volume to be found on earth, including #1); Redwood up in Northern Cali has the tallest.

I’ve been to both Sequoia and Yosemite and you made the right choice. Those trees are amazing.
Did you make the climb to the top of the Yosemite in Sequoia?

 

[Deorum]

Oh, for sure. I have many on my list. Logistics and timing have been the issue. My youngest turns 18 in 4 years and I won't even be 45 yet. Fo'sho will be hittin' 'em all in an RV/campervan once I'm kid-free.

Your youngest is around same age as my oldest. You should take him with you, bro. Or is it not his sort of thing? Boys today aren't like 80s babies and 90s kids like us. The amount of time spent outdoors and being physically active has been drastically reduced on the whole.

I also understand that the circumstances and environment is drastically different for mine though, they've grown up in the city all their lives and the majority of my childhood was rural. I've had to deliberately introduce and instill things that just came as an inherent and natural part of my own upbringing.

I think it kind of helps that I distinctly remember being their age like it was yesterday, which makes me a really cool Motherfucker. But then there are times he has to realize that I'm not his friend, like I'm your father and going to hold you accountable for shit. Get over it.

By the way, seeing 50 Cent and Busta Rhymes play tomorrow night. Haven't been to a rap show in a minute.

Not since Wu-Tang in '06 for me, lol.

 

[Day Drinking]

This article is hilarious.

The military pulled this shit with Special Forces and Officer ranks. "Hey guys, there aren't enough non-whites becoming SEALs! Not enough POC's in the Officer ranks either. It MUST be fixed!"

Um, yeah. Not many POC are full 20/20 vision PT studs that pre-screen for BUD/S, pass the screening, go to BUD/S and complete it, pass weapons phase, go through probation and team up, and eventually becoming fully pinned and deployable assets. The school has an average 75 - 80% dropout rate. Not many whites make it either. Oh noes the horror!

Some people look for problems where none exist. There are plenty of POC who grew up hunting and fishing, might have Veteran's preference in hiring, and would be great Park Rangers or staff. But, they have to want to work within that system and have to apply. Let me know how many are applying for jobs, what their resumes looks like, and if they were hired or denied. Then I'll figure out if the outrage is warranted.

Well that and 33% of black males have a felony conviction, so.... that will make getting a clearance hard.

 

[Day Drinking]

Who denies the reality that black people faced oppressive conditions and racism in the US? Ive literally never met or talked to a single person who asserted that in my entire life, including on here.

When I was a kid, I used to go to a community pool in nyc that was absolutely dominated by black people. Red Hook pool, Brooklyn. Rough neighborhood, low income. There was still access.

Currently in the US, nobody is standing in the way of black people making a good life for themselves, other than those that want to tell them that somebody is, and themselves if they listen to it.

Faced 70 years ago? Sure. In my lifetime? I deny it.

 

[Deorum]

That is the most lefty thing you will ever read from me, but I stand by it.

I dunno about left, right, liberal, conservative, you're just a quality human being in general. The old Lounge thread got closed and I didn't save the quote in time, but that song sample was A7X's "Cosmic" released in June this year, and they really outdid themselves. A mildly inauspicious opening followed by an absolute masterclass guitar solo and abrupt transition which are two of the most beautiful things I've heard all damn year; just really multi-layered and mature songwriting. It'd actually be a great track to blast in a certified dark sky zone at a national park once the stars, view of the galaxy, and distant universes come into view.



Dancing in the wind, as roses born again
(there you'll find me)
Before the dawn of man, in castles made of sand
(there you'll find me)
Writing in the caves, as fire lights the way
(there you'll find me)
Mask of royal glow, don in pharaoh's clothes
(there you'll find me)
Rings of dust and ice, weightless in the night
(there you'll find me)
Let It Goooooo

Word, Life.

 

[jrams]

Big Bend, Glacier, and Shenandoah are probably my top National Parks. Although Shenandoah I kinda blend together with George Washington/Jefferson National Forest, so probably collectively has the best hikes.