One of the worst things an outdoor lover will ever face is the selling of public land. Being denied the ability to enjoy a favorite piece of this great country because its no longer open to the public is downright cruel. So when there’s a bill proposed that will sell 3.3 million acres of public land, there’s a strong chance it will be vehemently opposed by anyone and everyone who would be affected.
Bill HR 621 was just such a bill that was introduced by Congressman Jason Chaffetz on January 24. As soon as he made his proposal, thousands upon thousands of outdoorsmen and women flooded his social media accounts with comments and messages. They shared their disapproval of the bill and what it would do to the land they loved, using the hashtags #keepitpublic and #publiclandowner as they begged for him to reconsider his stance.
The bill would have seen massive chunks of federally owned lands in Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah and Wyoming be sold to large corporations, most likely natural gas companies.
Posts from sources like MeatEater and Joe Rogan saw thousands upon thousands of shares denouncing the bill. Thankfully it looks like Chaffetz listened, posting to Instagram how he heard us and that he is withdrawing the bill, saying he’s a proud gun owner, hunter and loves our public lands.
“Short sighted politicians are proposing selling off our public lands. Don’t let it happen,” Rogan posted to Facebook on Jan. 30.
It’s awesome that he withdrew the bill, but seeing as he’s the one who introduced it last week, it’s a little ridiculous he threw Pres. Clinton under the bus for it being first introduced several years ago. The fact is that, it’s no secret the name Clinton gives many people a bad taste in their mouth, but regardless of what Clinton did, Chaffetz chose to bring the bill back up and introduce it again. It’s no ones fault he did that but his own, he should at least fully own that fact.
