Anti-Neocons Forum

Support HR 718

Everyone here are all the North Carolina Reps. However it really doesn't matter where you are from. Call your Representatives and tell them to support HR 718 to re-open Cape Hatteras's beaches.

Senator Richard Burr (R- NC) 202-224-3154 Fax 202-228-2981

Senator Kay Hagan (D- NC) 202-224-6342 Fax 202-228-2563 [email protected]

Representative G. K. Butterfield, Jr. (D - 01) 202-225-3101 Fax 202-225-3354 http://butterfield.house.gov/contactinfo.asp

Representative Bobby Etheridge (D - 02) 202-225-4531 Fax 202-225-5662 http://etheridge.house.gov/Contact/

Representative Walter B. Jones, Jr. (R - 03) 202-225-3415 Fax 202-225-3286 http://jones.house.gov/contact_form_email.cfm. JONE INTRODUCED THE BILL SO THANK HIM.

Representative David E. Price (D - 04) 202-225-1784 Fax 202-225-2014 http://price.house.gov/contact/contact_form.shtml

Representative Virginia Foxx (R - 05) 202-225-2071 Fax 202-225-2995 http://www.house.gov/formfoxx/IMA/issue_subscribe.htm

Representative Howard Coble (R - 06) 202-225-3065 Fax 202-225-8611 [email protected]

Representative Mike McIntyre (D - 07) 202-225-2731 Fax 202-225-5773 http://www.house.gov/mcintyre/issue.shtml

Representative Larry Kissell (D - 08) 202-225-3715 Fax 202-225-4036 https://forms.house.gov/kissell/contact-form.shtml

Representative Sue Myrick (R - 09) 202-225-1976 Fax 202-225-3389 http://myrick.house.gov/zipauth.shtml

Representative Patrick McHenry (R - 10) 202-225-2576 Fax 202-225-0316 http://mchenry.house.gov/zipauth.htm

Representative Heath Shuler (D - 11) 202-225-6401 Fax 202-226-6422 http://shuler.house.gov/zipauth.htm

Representative Melvin L. Watt (D - 12) 202-225-1510 Fax 202-225-1512 http://watt.house.gov/IQform.asp

Representative Brad Miller (D - 13) 202-225-3032 Fax 202-225-0181 http://bradmiller.house.gov/?sectionid= ... ontree=917


I did an interview with Island Free Press today. So be on the lookout for that article. Everyone now is the time to call up people you know and get them on board with this phone blitz. It's time to take our Island back! America doesn't need a miniature Iceland on its hands and that is where it is headed if this bill doesn't pass.

<object classid="clsid:d27cdb6e-ae6d-11cf-96b8-444553540000" width="400" height="330"><param name="movie" value="http://pics.smotri.com/scrubber_custom8 ... kin_ng.xml" /><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><param name="bgcolor" value="#ffffff" /><embed src="http://pics.smotri.com/scrubber_custom8 ... kin_ng.xml" quality="high" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" wmode="window" width="400" height="330" type="application/x-shockwave-flash"></embed></object><br /><strong><a href="http://smotri.com/video/view/?id=v83085314c1" target="_blank">Cape Hatteras is dying for the sake of some bird nuts</a></strong>

I own a small motel in Buxton that has been in operation since 1962. Last Spring when the point and inlets were closed we lost $70,000 dollars from people who had reservations and canceled due to the closures. This Winter we are closed because we cannot afford to reopen and, we may have to hang it up if the beaches are closed again. For every person who cancled, we had two or three who came down, but they said they only did so because they did not know the point was closed. They said if it was closed again they would not return. All of the businesses here suffered greatly from these closures. There were signs all over town to support free and open beaches and bumper stickers everywhere on every car with the same message. In April, there was a peaceful protest where over 1,200 people went to the point and spelled out "please help us" with vehicles for an ariel photograph that went into the newspaper. It has had a profound affect on us and we cannot afford for the Park Service to go back on their Promise to keep the area recreational.

My Grandmother, who is in her 80's remembers the meetings and the promises. Part of her mother's land was taken by emanate domain and she never received a penny for it. This happened to many residents as we were a very remote community then and unable to fight the Federal government.

That is water under the bridge though. All we ask/beg for now is that the area remain recreational. It is unfair to the people who live here to have it taken away as it is our economic lifeline. It is also unfair to the hundreds of thousands of people who visit each year who have come to love the island.

What is most unfair is the murder of thousands of geese and hundreds of raccoons, foxes, minks, otters, even ghost crabs by the Park Service in order to protect a bird that is not endangered and not indigenous to the island. Life is life and to murder all the other wildlife on the island for a bird is insane.

The word raccoon is a Hatteras/Croatoan Indian word that means to scratch. The first time the English ever saw one and added the word raccoon to English was on Hatteras Island then called Croatoan. Now, in a few years we won't even have them. They used to be on my porch every night eating cat food or left over fish. I have not seen one in months now.

This Fall I took my 3 year old Daughter to look at ghost crabs with a flashlight on the beach. What she and I saw were Park Rangers smashing the crabs with wooden poles that had a nail on the end. My Daughter asked me why they were doing that and I had no answer.

Please for the love of God put an end to this nonsense. They are killing our island's economy and indigenous wildlife for a bird. Miles of forest were cut down and burned to make a bird sanctuary by the Park Service, which destroyed the homes of deer and other animals and caused flooding by killing the tree root system that held the island together. That also is water under the bridge.

Perhaps I should say over the bridge as our only link to the mainland is a bridge that is rated a 2 out of 100 in safety. We have no hospital on the island and are an hour away from one with the bridge. The reason it has not been replaced is because of fish and wildlife.

Try to understand that people have live on Hatteras Island since 400ad. (Native Americans like myself). This is not just our home it is our homeland. We have suffered decades of abuse from the Park Service: Our land stolen, our forests cut down and now our animals are murdered and our beaches get closed.

It is up to good Congressmen and women to protect the people from special interest groups like the Audobon. We are hurting and hurting bad.

I plan to tell my story to the press and make public who voted for what. I think one of the major problems with this issue is that the island's side of the story is not being told.

We have no local news, radio or even a newspaper. The closest one is over an hour away. Most are not aware of the things I just told you.

The Point in Buxton was once called Panawocii, which means two oceans collide. It does appear so as the Labrador Current and Gulf Stream run headlong into eachother there. Every Fall the Croatoan/Hatteras Indians held a ceremony at Panawocii leading up to the bluefish blitz, where tens of thousands of fish came ashore. It was seen as a gift from God and fed the entire community. People purged there bodies with yaupon tea to get ready for the feast and a day of forgiveness took place. It may sound corny but I think about those things when I am out there. It is a very special and historically and culturaly important place to me and many other Natives. We have a right to go to the place of our ancestors worship.

Even in modern times on Sundays it is common once church ends for everyone to gather at the point and have a village feast and let the children play together. It is a revered place and means far more to us than just the economic impact and draw it has for tourists.
This is not a Repulican vs Democrat issue. Last time the committee vote went straight down party lines. I ask that you get over politics and do what you know is right.

We are in the news
http://islandfreepress.org/2009Archives ... ccess.html


"Hatteras and Ocracoke are Islands off the coast of mainland North Carolina. The Environmental kooks have effectively stolen the land and closed the beaches to the public. They have changed a Legally recreational area into a wild life refuge through an activist judge, judge Bolye, a man investigators discovered ruled on at least 9 different cases where he had financial investments in the parties involved. This is a judge who broke ethics laws at least once a year for six years in a row."

Brezenki said that the new way to steal and manipulate land was going to be on environmental pretexts. The global warming hysteria is just one symptom of this attack on our liberties. It may start in Hatteras but it could be area next. They prey on small town in the beginning and then they expand. The want to destroy out door recreation, fishing, hunting, surfing, boating, and all the wonderful things we do that foster a connection to nature are being cut off. They aim simply to destroy economies and force people to move so that they can control value land to turn over to privatization in the future.

We need everyone to call and support HR 718 and return the beaches to the people of Hatteras and not the birds. Stop these kooks here and now before they expand.

From James

RE: Bill HR 718

I'm writing in regards to the sensitive issues which both residents & visitors of Cape Hatteras National Seashore face. Overzealous environmental groups such as: Audubon Society, Defenders Of Wildlife, & Southern Environmental Law are threatening our family values & our right of "Freedom of Choice", "Freedom of Economic Prosperity", & our "Pursuit of Happiness" guaranteed by the Constitution of the United States. This is a very complicated issue with a plethora of misinformation hiding the real facts of the situation. These groups that I've just mentioned, sued the National Park Service, which is part of the Federal government. Also, they paid an independent company to come down here & do a biased study of the area. This study called, "Vogelsong Study", is flawed & did not consider any of the myriad issues which affect shore birds here, such as wind & tide. Also, it's economic analysis left a lot to be desired. It stated that the Piping Plover population was down considerably over the last several years. This is also very misleading because according to U.S. Fish & Wildlife, the Piping Plover numbers were actually up: "Atlantic coast the Piping Plover numbers have increased from 790 pairs in 1986 to 1,386 pairs in 1999"(U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service). Also according to this document: http://fresc.usgs.gov/products/ppl/ "Overall winter numbers were very high..." & "Breeding season numbers also appear higher than 2001 in general." As a result of the suit brought forth by environmental groups, the appointed Federal Judge, Terrance Boyle, who has violated "conflict of interest" laws 6 years in a row, voted in favor of the special interest groups & signed the "Consent Decree" which was very misleading. A lot of people were under the impression that the "Consent Decree" settled this lawsuit, however, it only complicated issues more, as it restricted & closed the most popular areas of the island during a time of the year when we receive visitors from all over the country. Furthermore, unless you live here, you're most likely not aware that the NPS has killed: 76 red fox, 33 grey fox, 234 raccoons, 103 opossums, 64 feral cats, 23 nutria, 1 muskrat, 1 river otter, 1 mink, and 1 dog. The park service reported the dog as feral but it was obvious to the person who was going to put it down that it was not feral, but domesticated. It had been wearing a collar, housebroken, and social. Killing other animals, in order to preserve another species, is counter productive to any conservation efforts.
This has had a very negative effect on our seasonal economy, which relies on tourism as our main source of income. Many local businesses lost money due to cancellations, which resulted from angry visitors who couldn't access their favorite areas of the beach. To me, this goes way beyond beach access. This is rural gentrification. Our jobs here all revolve around the beach. If they restrict beach activities, this will effect our jobs, because people come here to enjoy the beach. If they can't go on the beach, they aren't going to want to rent a house for a week, or eat in our restaurants or shop in our stores. If we can't work & support ourselves, then we can't live here. This is all leading into privatization. These special interest groups want to privatize Cape Hatteras, which has always been open to the public. They're funded by big corporations like Toyota, who recently gave Audubon $20 million. These groups are hiding behind environmental "green" issues, which are popular right now & they're using these issues to confuse people & to legally shut down our island. This undermines the fundamental freedoms that our country is based on. Please keep in mind that this is a bi-partisan issue that effects everyone that lives here, as well as our visitors. Cape Hatteras generates a lot of tax revenue for North Carolina, & our leaders should be aware of these issues as they will have undoubtably have a negative effect on our state in this time of growing economic hardships. I urge you to please support legislation now, regarding this issue with Congressman Walter Jones & Senator Burr. The bill introduced by them is: H.R. 718. Timely action on the part of our elected officials could restore balance to our community & save us from further economic hardship in the coming season. Thank you for all your efforts on our behalf.

Sincerely,

James C. Balfe

That bit on Boyle is something I dug up -Ry

OK be sure to forward this to friends.
Here is a link providing the text of the bill and the committees. We have two committees to contact, in the HOUSE not That's House Judiciary and House Natural Resources.

What we need people to do is not just request support for the bill but to explain the situation to whoever is on the phone because they simply don't understand it and have nothing they will read about it. So I stress to hit the members of these committees with faxes. Pour it all out on paper. Let them know the effects on the economy, tourism, enjoyment, other animals, etc and also let them know that it is our LEGAL right to have a RECREATIONAL park which should not have been ordained suddenly as a wild life refuge by an activist judge with an unethical history. The government made promises to us and indirectly to all our visitors, that the beaches in question would remain recreational parks.

No one is allowed to build or develop inside the national park, because it's purpose is to be and remain a PUBLIC Recreational area. It is not meant to be restricted from the public completely only from privatization and development. And what we have here is a historically public recreational area which is interwoven into the economic and cultural evolution of the Island. We have a dependency on beach access for recreational use and as an attraction for vital, seasonal, business in our tourist economy.

To remove our economic life line and historic way of life is akin to the US intentionally shooting buffalo in order to destroy life line of economic subsistence and the cultural way of life for Western American Indians, as a means of acquiring land and driving the native inhabitants off of it. People in Hatteras are already being forced to commute or move to find work elsewhere, and staple businesses are closing down or downsizing to the point minimal employment.

Congress has to know what is happening. Don't let thieves, hide behind the mask of environmentalism. We are human beings and we are more important than the hobbies of an interest group infatuated with birds.

-Ryan

Committee/Subcommittee: Activity:
House Natural Resources Referral, In Committee
House Judiciary Referral, In Committee

http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z ... 00718:@@@C -all the details.

Sloganeering is powerful. It's about all congress people listen to these days.

Recreation not Segregation. We should be interacting with nature not be separated from it. This is a powerful way to communicate our position in a way that environmentalists will keep their ears open to long enough to hear us out.

I'd like to see signs pop up the way they do for No OLF.
Recreation not Segregation
Open the Beach
Creating a slogan will help us use the lemming effect in our favor. The more people see public displays, the larger our movement looks and the larger our voice will become.

Pictures can then be taken and faxed to our representatives. It's juicy for the news sound bites. And it allows our representatives to slap something down on the table and say hey look at what is going on down there.

If we can get the opposition to listen then we win. Because we have every legal, rational, economic, historic, and personal right to go to our own beach. All they have is propaganda. We just have to get our foot in the door and make the Democrats and a few Republicans listen to us.

-Ryan