A two-part essay on the process of New West gentrification and the future of San Juan County, Utah after the designation of Bears Ears National Monument. Part one will provide historical context and define certain conceptual terms in order to…
Fight or Flight Some years back, I moved from my reasonable confines of Salt Lake City to Los Angeles. At the time, to say the least, I needed a new chapter and had found one with a woman I now…
I have been publishing The Zephyr for 29 years; this isn’t one of those landmark anniversaries, like the fast-approaching Big 30, but everything seems so volatile lately, so uncertain, and more than anything—so nasty–that I thought maybe I’d do a…
In December, Jonathan Thompson, the roving contributor and former editor for ‘High Country News,’ offered his latest musings on the Bears Ears controversy from his home in Bulgaria. Responding to an op ed in ‘The Deseret News’ by Utah’s Governor…
NOTE: For the purposes of this story I refer to the area of Grand Gulch and Cedar Mesa as “Bears Ears.” But please note that in the forty-seven years I’ve known and wandered southeast Utah, literally NOBODY ever referred to…
Note: Yesterday, the Deseret News ran a shorter version of this summary. This 1400 word essay provides a more detailed analysis of the Monument debate, which is sure to continue after yesterday’s announcement by President Trump that the Monument will…
EDITOR’S NOTE; The Bears Ears NM controversy continues to occupy the attention of both supporters and opponents of the proclamation. And articles continue to be published, unchallenged, in many mainstream media venues that distort or misrepresent the facts. And tourists…
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Back in 2008, the day after Obama’s landslide election, Moab progressive/ environmentalist Dave Erley sent out a mass celebratory email. In part he wrote: “The progressive, green, candidates won all three contested County Council seats and the progressives now have…
For months advocates and opponents of a proposed Bears Ears National Monument debated the pros and cons of such a designation. It appeared all but certain that President Obama’s administration would embrace the plan and monument proponents appeared to have…