"Home on the range where the deer and the antelope play." Well, that’s still sometimes true, but unfortunately not very often anymore. Today, a great number of America’s ranches are within fifty miles of a well developed urban area. So, many old family ranches are finding themselves within the reach of the “land grabbers”.
Who are the "land grabbers?" They’re made up of any number of special interest groups. But, in my view, they’re primarily environmental and endangered species organizations. The environmentalists say they want to stop urban sprawl. And of course the endangered species people claim they want to save wildlife threatened with extinction. How does all this add up to land grabbing, and how exactly does this affect old family ranches?
Here’s how …. Environmentalists want land on the edge of many cities and towns rezoned or its use otherwise changed to stop development. The endangered species people look for signs of endangered species so they can pretty much do the same thing. So, who owns that land or has been using it for sometimes hundreds of years? Old family ranchers, that’s who; and then if they want to sell the land in order to retire, it’s worthless! Or if they want to stay in business and keep using the land, they can’t! That’s land grabbing.
These radical activist groups are putting a whole different spin on the phrase "head ’em up and move ’em out." We must keep a suspicious eye open for the rezoning of rural land in our respective areas. Let me know what you think. You can email me by simply going to my web site at farmviewradio.com. That’s it for now. Until next time, always remember… no farms, no food! So long.
Let me know what you think. You can email me by simply going to my web site at farmviewradio.com. That's it for now. Until next time, always remember…no farms, no food! So long.
Joe Scott’s opinions are his own, and not necessarily those of this web site