LET’S USE OUR PUBLIC LANDS!

2 PARAGRAPHS 4 LIBERTY: 420

As you know, it is a prominent theme of these columns that the private sector utilizes resources better than governments do. Any argument? (I doubt it.) So when I read that the federal government still owns about a third of the empty lands in our country, I am genuinely disturbed. And you should be as well. And we are not talking about national parks, monuments or military bases, or even some of our national forests, we are talking about land that is not being used. I other words, virtually all of the land overseen by the Bureau of Land Management. Yes, some of the lands have herds of wildlife on them, etc., but whatever is there could be much better utilized by the private sector than by the federal government. And, not only would the sale bring in revenue to the governments and also reduce overhead expenses, but the land could also be taxed (hopefully not over-taxed . . .).

What would/could the private sector do with these lands? Well, obviously, potential purchasers would have some thoughts and plans before they sought to buy them. But the lands could be used for fishing, hunting, grazing, building retreats of solitude, or even entirely new cities or communities. New technology, which would be used by these private sector entities, could and would be used creatively to take advantage of our resources. So, if you think about it, everyone would win except for the (bloated) federal government.

Quotation for the week: “It is much more important to kill a bad bill than to pass a good one.” President Calvin Coolidge