Wes Siler
@wessiler.bsky.social
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Your guide to leading a more exciting life outdoors.
RIP America's Most Popular Wildernesshttps://open.substack.com/pub/wessiler/p/republicans-vote-to-destroy-boundary?utm_source=share&utm_medium=android&r=36iot
4 days ago
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reposted by
Wes Siler
AltWatcher
11 days ago
AltNPS has been focused on the threat to the US Forest Service this week, and even launched a website in an effort to pressure brands to speak out. And that's great! There's just one problem. They plagiarized the whole thing.
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Wes Siler
Melinda šŗšøšØš¦šŗš¦š½
20 days ago
They just keep topping themselves with new evilā¼ļø Article by
@wessiler.bsky.social
open.substack.com/pub/wessiler...
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Doug Burgum Plans To Kill National Park Visitors This Summer
National Parks are being set up to fail-by-design, in order to justify their sale
https://open.substack.com/pub/wessiler/p/doug-burgum-plans-to-kill-national?r=2g811&utm_medium=ios
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BREAKING: The Trump administration is removing Toni Morrison's "A Bench by the Road" project from South Carolina. The installation is based on the novel "Beloved" and serves as "historical markers that help remember the lives of Africans who were enslaved."
wessiler.substack.com/p/heres-ever...
about 2 months ago
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The administration is removing thousands of displays from national parks, covering everything from slavery to climate science.
wessiler.substack.com/p/heres-ever...
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Here's Every Instance Of Thoughtcrime Being Removed From National Parks
Huge database of material covers everything from founding fathers to slavery to climate science
https://wessiler.substack.com/p/heres-every-instance-of-thoughtcrime
about 2 months ago
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reposted by
Wes Siler
Lyn Heideman
about 2 months ago
Why are Trump and congressional Republicans destroying Boundary WatersāAmericaās most popular Wilderness areaāwith a copper mine that will leach sulfuric acid into its pristine waters?
@wessiler.bsky.social
follows the money:
wessiler.substack.com/p/who-wins-i...
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Who Wins If Republicans Destroy The Boundary Waters? China
Why destroy Americaās most popular Wilderness? Foreign profits, obviously.
https://wessiler.substack.com/p/who-wins-if-republicans-destroy-the?utm_source=post-email-title&publication_id=232406&post_id=189409147&utm_campaign=email-post-title&isFreemail=false&r=abrh3&triedRedirect=true&utm_medium=email
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reposted by
Wes Siler
raheem_diogenes_rostek
2 months ago
substack.com/@wessiler/no...
a very interesting conversation about shared values and human rights
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Wes Siler (@wessiler)
Feeling depressed about the state of our country? It might come from an unexpected source, but hereās the pickmeup you need.
https://substack.com/@wessiler/note/c-210926520?utm_source=notes-share-action&r=ief1
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We can beat them.
wessiler.substack.com/p/the-plan-f...
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The Plan For Defeating ICE
Understanding what Trumpās secret paramilitary force is and what itās trying to achieve defines a clear path to victory for the American people
https://wessiler.substack.com/p/the-plan-for-defeating-ice
3 months ago
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reposted by
Wes Siler
Ryne Moen
3 months ago
Look what just dropped in my inbox. More common sense from those of us who understand what's going on.
@wessiler.bsky.social
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We're about to lose the most popular Wilderness in the country to sulfuric acid pollution because two hunting bros won't hold their buddy accountable for his lies and corruption:
wessiler.substack.com/p/boundary-w...
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Boundary Waters Mine Vote Highlights Ryan Zinkeās Hypocrisy On Public Lands
Montana Congressperson whipping votes in support of toxic mine that threatens nationās most popular Wilderness
https://wessiler.substack.com/p/boundary-waters-mine-vote-highlights
3 months ago
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2026 is going to be a hard year for public lands. The staff cuts from last year are starting to add up, even as Republican lawmakers prepare new threats. And the lawless administration looms over everything.
open.substack.com/pub/wessiler...
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Where Public Lands Stand As We Enter 2026
A mass sell off? More lay offs? Privatized national parks? This isnāt about predicting the future, itās the facts about where the war on Americaās public lands stands right now.
https://open.substack.com/pub/wessiler/p/where-public-lands-stand-as-we-enter?r=36iot&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true
3 months ago
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reposted by
Wes Siler
Michael Parks
4 months ago
Worth mentioning that this political moment already resulted in an unprecedented cancellation of a proposed Refuge expansion that had been developed over a few admins
www.texasmonthly.com/travel/texas...
add a skeleton here at some point
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Over the holidays, the administration quietly initiated a review of all Wildlife Refuges, something that could preface yet another attempt to steal your land:
open.substack.com/pub/wessiler...
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Theyāre Coming For Your Wildlife Refuges
The Fish and Wildlife Serviceās over-holiday review, and what it means for 850 million acres of public land and water
https://open.substack.com/pub/wessiler/p/theyre-coming-for-your-wildlife-refuges?r=36iot&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true
4 months ago
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This is step 5 on the Republican's 7 step plan to destroy National Parks:
wessiler.substack.com/p/new-mike-l...
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New Mike Lee Amendment Could āEnd The National Park Serviceā
Utah Senator at it again with new budget amendment
https://wessiler.substack.com/p/new-mike-lee-amendment-could-end
4 months ago
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Republicans in western states are pinning their hopes for reelection on worsened wildfires, ruined tourism, and defunded communities:
wessiler.substack.com/p/trump-admi...
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Trump Administrationās Public Lands Leadership Begins To Crumble
How an absent interior secretary, incompetence at the Forest Service, and proposed corruption for the BLM are colliding with low gas prices to throw public land management into chaos
https://wessiler.substack.com/p/trump-administrations-public-lands
5 months ago
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Some random guy on Substack should never be in a position to challenge essentially every fact presented on a 60 Minutes segment, and yet here we are...
wessiler.substack.com/p/fact-check...
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Fact Checking The 60 Minutes Public Lands Episode
Can TV journalism survive a rightwing takeover?
https://wessiler.substack.com/p/fact-checking-the-60-minutes-public
5 months ago
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reposted by
Wes Siler
Joseph Britt
5 months ago
Department of Everything is Related to Everything Else:
@wessiler.bsky.social
has some interesting thoughts about how some dumb Trump policies (like tariffs and cheap oil) may mitigate the damage from other dumb Trump policies (trying to gut the Clean Water & Endangered Species Acts).
add a skeleton here at some point
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Or: How the invasion of Venezuela will save America's wetlands.
wessiler.substack.com/p/what-moham...
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What Mohammed Bin Salmanās White House Visit Means For The Endangered Species Act
Unintended consequences of completely predictable outcomes created by gross incompetence
https://wessiler.substack.com/p/what-mohammed-bin-salmans-white-house
5 months ago
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Congress invoking CRA to declare public lands management plans "rules" it must approve happened due to Republican incompetence, and has far reaching implications that might render most current and future commercial operations on BLM and USFS land illegal.
wessiler.substack.com/p/congress-b...
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Congress Broke Public Lands. Itās About To Create Legal Chaos
Over 5,000 oil and gas leases across 4 million acres of BLM land are about to be challenged in court
https://wessiler.substack.com/p/congress-broke-public-lands-its-about
5 months ago
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In a rare instance of genuinely good news, there's a promising new plan to render Citizens United moot. Here's why you shouldn't be surprised it comes from Montana:
open.substack.com/pub/wessiler...
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Citizens United Broke American Politics. This New Plan From Montana Aims To Fix That
By removing dark money from politics, The Montana Plan could restore American democracy
https://open.substack.com/pub/wessiler/p/citizens-united-broke-american-politics?utm_source=share&utm_medium=android&r=36iot
5 months ago
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Short term damage during the shutdown doesn't look that bad, but the result accelerates the timeline for Trump's plan to sell off national parks:
open.substack.com/pub/wessiler...
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The Shutdown May Be Over, But Its Damage To National Parks Is Just Beginning
How much harm was caused by open, but understaffed parks?
https://open.substack.com/pub/wessiler/p/the-shutdown-may-be-over-but-its?utm_source=share&utm_medium=android&r=36iot
5 months ago
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The Fix Our Forests Act is being billed as a bipartisan solution to our wildfire crisis. I hate to rain on everyone's parade, but it'll only make fires worse. Here's why:
wessiler.substack.com/p/why-the-fi...
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Why The Fix Our Forests Act Wonāt Fix Our Forests
A bipartisan group of lawmakers realize they need something to show voters in the mid-terms. The resulting bill achieves nothing beyond careless harm to our national forests.
https://wessiler.substack.com/p/why-the-fix-our-forests-act-wont
6 months ago
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Lee claims Homeland Security would only takeover Wilderness Areas with 100 miles of a border, but Conservation orgs are sounding the alarm that this could open all 112 million acres protected by the Wilderness Act to logging, road building and militarization.
wessiler.substack.com/p/mike-lee-i...
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Mike Lee Is Coming For Your Wilderness
Following his failed attempt to sell off public land, Utah Senator turns to militarizing it instead
https://wessiler.substack.com/p/mike-lee-is-coming-for-your-wilderness
6 months ago
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You've probably read a bunch of doom and gloom about the Trump admin re-re- opening ANWR to drilling. In reality, it's the best chance we have to start winning America's battle for its natural heritage. Here's why the rebellion will be led by polar bears:
wessiler.substack.com/p/tumps-perm...
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Tumpās Permitting For Alaska National Wildlife Refuge Drilling Is A Test
If Americans can stop this administrationās pillage anywhere, itās going to begin on the north slope
https://wessiler.substack.com/p/tumps-permitting-for-alaska-national
6 months ago
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The timing of this shutdown couldn't be worse for bears. Close the parks.
wessiler.substack.com/p/this-gover...
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This Government Shutdown Is Going To Kill Bears
National Parks are open, Rangers are furloughed, and the bears are hungry
https://wessiler.substack.com/p/this-government-shutdown-is-going
6 months ago
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Interior is eliminating thousands of furloughed employees, despite a court order intended to halt such. Includes National Park Service, BLM, USFWS and more:
wessiler.substack.com/p/interior-t...
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Interior To RIF 2,050 Employees During Shutdown
Furloughed employees suffer permanent termination as shutdown enters 20th day
https://wessiler.substack.com/p/interior-to-rif-2050-employees-during
6 months ago
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The Senate just voted to invalidate every permit written on public land since 1996.
wessiler.substack.com/p/the-senate...
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The Senate Just Voted To Break Public Lands
Every permit written on public lands since 1996 may have be rendered invalid
https://wessiler.substack.com/p/the-senate-just-voted-to-break-public
6 months ago
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Here's everything you need to know about the impacts the government shutdown will have on National Parks:
wessiler.substack.com/p/a-comprehe...
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A Comprehensive Guide To National Parks During The Government Shutdown
Official insights from the updated NPS contingency plan, and the analysis you need to understand it
https://wessiler.substack.com/p/a-comprehensive-guide-to-national
7 months ago
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reposted by
Wes Siler
Lindsey Botts
7 months ago
āThis is very close to being a worst case scenario. Parks will remain open with only a skeleton crew of only āexceptedā staff,ā by
@wessiler.bsky.social
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National Parks Will Remain Open During Shutdown
Memo from acting NPS Director orders parks open
https://open.substack.com/pub/wessiler/p/national-parks-will-remain-open-during?r=jlom1&utm_medium=ios
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Just scooped this news. Stay tuned for updates and analysis:
wessiler.substack.com/p/national-p...
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National Parks Will Remain Open During Shutdown
Memo from acting NPS Director orders parks open
https://wessiler.substack.com/p/national-parks-will-remain-open-during
7 months ago
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How bad the shutdown might be for national parks will depend on two factors: its duration, and whether or not the parks remain accessible to the public:
wessiler.substack.com/p/if-the-gov...
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If The Government Shuts Down, Will National Parks Close?
Two documents provide conflicting guidance, leaving NPS staff in limbo
https://wessiler.substack.com/p/if-the-government-shuts-down-will
7 months ago
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Past shutdowns have resulted in $36 million/day of damage to park infrastructure alone. This one could be worse:
open.substack.com/pub/wessiler...
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How Bad Will A Shutdown Be For National Parks?
Rural communities could lose hundreds of millions of dollars a day, and thatās before mass layoffs
https://open.substack.com/pub/wessiler/p/how-bad-will-a-shutdown-be-for-national?r=36iot&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true
7 months ago
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Welcome to the resistance, oil executives...
open.substack.com/pub/wessiler...
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Oil And Gas Begins To Push Back Against Trump Chaos
Incompetence is bad for everyone, especially businesses trying to make a buck on public lands and waters
https://open.substack.com/pub/wessiler/p/oil-and-gas-begins-to-push-back-against?r=36iot&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true
7 months ago
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"Pretty much all" National Park employees could be RIF'd as part of Russell Vought's plan, should the government shutdown on Oct 1.
open.substack.com/pub/wessiler...
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Trump Administration Plans Mass Cuts To National Park Service, Public Land Agencies
āFor the NPS, that means pretty much all employees,ā explains former NPS Director
https://open.substack.com/pub/wessiler/p/trump-administration-plans-mass-cuts?r=36iot&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true
7 months ago
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I wrote a four part series explaining all the ways the pro public lands world fails at communicating policy. Here's the conclusion explaining what we can achieve if we learn to do better:
wessiler.substack.com/p/we-need-to...
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We Need To Talk About How We Can Effectively Advocate For Better Public Lands Policy
Why the pro-public lands worldās inability to communicate accurately is such a problem, and the steps we can all take to do it better
https://wessiler.substack.com/p/we-need-to-talk-about-how-we-can
7 months ago
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In personal news, the right's persecution of free speech has come to outdoor media too:
wessiler.substack.com/p/outside-ju...
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Outside Just Fired Me Because Of My Politics
I'm hardly Jimmy Kimmel, but that's also a reason this should worry you
https://wessiler.substack.com/p/outside-just-fired-me-because-of
7 months ago
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reposted by
Wes Siler
John Voelcker
7 months ago
(2 of 2)
@wessiler.bsky.social
remains forever memorable 'cause I've pointed numerous friends (+ 1 relation) to his brutally honest article about the dangers of motorcycle riding w/out proper gear. Incl. X-rays of multiply broken bones AND a pic of his very, very abraded ass. Did I mention honesty?
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Why Wearing Jeans On A Motorcycle Is A Really Bad Idea
Wes Siler crash photos and story behind his RSV4 motorcycle crash while wearing jeans and the injuries that resulted.
https://www.rideapart.com/news/254514/why-wearing-jeans-on-a-motorcycle-is-a-really-bad-idea/
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Everything you've ever read about the Public Lands Rule is wrong. And that's a great example of one of the problems that's created this current moment:
wessiler.substack.com/p/we-need-to...
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We Need To Talk About The Public Lands Rule
Itās being repealed, in large part, because no one understands it
https://wessiler.substack.com/p/we-need-to-talk-about-the-public
7 months ago
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reposted by
Wes Siler
Bryan Wood
8 months ago
Weird Car Twitter
#weirdcarBS
one of us (though he doesn't know it)
@wessiler.bsky.social
is running for state senate in Montana. Wes gave me my first byline back when he ran RideApart, which he started as Hell For Leather, which was the Jalop of motorcycles.
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Republicans may not have the support necessary to sell off publicl lands, so they're just going to break their operations and force privatization instead.
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Congress Just Voted To Break Public Lands
Republicans flirt with chaos as they move forward with plan to destroy non-partisan, multi-decade plans for land management
https://wessiler.substack.com/p/congress-just-voted-to-break-public
8 months ago
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I needed to write a biography for an upcoming project I'll announce next month. Figured it'd be fun to share that:
wessiler.substack.com/p/who-is-wes...
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Who Is Wes Siler?
My biography
https://wessiler.substack.com/p/who-is-wes-siler
8 months ago
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Trump's NPS is now inventing justifications to fire trans rangers.
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National Park Service Fires Ranger For Pride Celebration
Yosemiteās wildlife data scientist terminated after exercising right to free speech
https://wessiler.substack.com/p/national-park-service-fires-ranger
8 months ago
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Public lands might be out of the mainstream headlines, but they're very much front and center in the Trump admins attempts to enrich themselves:
wessiler.substack.com/p/where-nati...
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Where National Parks And Public Lands Stand Now, As Trump Administration Prepares To Privatize
All signs point to a mass sell-off, as park service begins to fail and private equity circles
https://wessiler.substack.com/p/where-national-parks-and-public-lands
8 months ago
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A likely quixotic attempt to explain to a MAGA influencer why tariffs will cost him his knife company:
wessiler.substack.com/p/an-open-le...
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An Open Letter To Montana Knife Company About Tariffs
This may not be what you voted for, but it is an opportunity to fix it. Hereās how.
https://wessiler.substack.com/p/an-open-letter-to-montana-knife-company
9 months ago
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Will park rangers be sent to Alligator Auschwitz for teaching history?
wessiler.substack.com/p/how-far-ca...
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How Far Can The National Parks Thoughtcrime Order Go?
Signage policing truth in national parks has started to score victims
https://wessiler.substack.com/p/how-far-can-the-national-parks-thoughtcrime
9 months ago
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Among the provisions in the Big Beautiful Bill are giveaways for coal extraction on public lands, plus a re entrenchment of oil and gas at the expense of renewables across 200 million acres.
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An Easy Guide To Why The GOPās Public Land Policies Are Fucking Stupid
Prioritizing extraction over all else just breaks things, without actually creating more extraction
https://wessiler.substack.com/p/an-easy-guide-to-why-the-gops-public
9 months ago
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Wondering why Lisa Murkowski voted yes on the awful budget reconciliation package? It's because the White House bought her off with a promise to let her destroy America's largest rainforest, and use taxpayer subsidies to sell its old growth timber to China on the cheap:
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Roadless Rule Recision Buys Off Murkowski With Taxpayer-Funded Lumber Giveaway To China
But all it will achieve is to further break the forest service
https://wessiler.substack.com/p/roadless-rule-recision-buys-off-murkowski
10 months ago
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We won.
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Mike Lee Withdraws Public Land Sale From Budget
Huge win for America as extremist concedes defeat
https://wessiler.substack.com/p/mike-lee-withdraws-public-land-sale
10 months ago
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This is the kind of insight I really enjoy bringing to readers. You'll find a lot of news about the roadless rule out there, but no other analysis that actually explains why the decision was made, or what outcomes will result:
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Roadless Rule Recision Buys Off Murkowski With Taxpayer-Funded Lumber Giveaway To China
But all it will achieve is to further break the forest service
https://wessiler.substack.com/p/roadless-rule-recision-buys-off-murkowski
10 months ago
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Mike Lee just doesn't know when to quit.
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Mike Lee Reintroduces Smaller Public Land Sell Off Proposal
Despite broad consensus that heās a douchebag, Mike Lee just wonāt give up
https://wessiler.substack.com/p/mike-lee-reintroduces-smaller-public
10 months ago
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