“What You Gonna Pass Down”

Two stories caught my attention this week. One was in Texas and the other in my home state of Minnesota.

Maybe you have heard about, or seen videos of, the start of construction in the Big Bend National Park in Texas. This was originally going to be part of Trump’s border wall, but was scaled back due to opposition to the damage this would cause to the natural environment of the park.

It was heartening to see bi-partisan opposition to this construction by the Trump administration. I hope that it is halted completely. As many people have pointed out, this area does not see a large influx of immigrants. It is a rather hostile place to try to cross, making it a waste of taxpayer dollars to construct barriers there.

The other story is regarding the Boundary Waters Canoe area in Minnesota. A few months ago Congress lifted the ban on mining in the Boundary Waters. This is a beautiful, natural area which has been touched by man as little as possible.

To allow mining would destroy this natural wonder. This week Governor Tim Walz signed an executive order banning mining near the Boundary Waters Canoe Area in the Rainy River Headwaters Watershed. One of the mining company’s directly affected by this ban, Twin Metals Minnesota, is a subsidiary of a Chilean company. I am not sure how giving a foreign company control over our precious metals helps our country.

What will we leave our children?