Just to expand on my comments you took issues with:
By "uninformed" I was referring to the fact many critics of the project merely see pretty trees and may not be aware that most are of a species not native to the area and were selected as a more valuable timber species than the native pines. They were planted with the intention of one day being harvested, and in far greater numbers than just the ones immediately surrounding the tower.
The "short-sighted" comment was addressing the fact that trees are a renewable resource, just as any agricultural crop is. The concern that it takes longer for trees to mature than a cornfield does just shows that many tend to worry more about such things from their own perspective on time than what occurs in the natural world. Virtually the entire pine barrens was cleared for timber, charcoal production and agriculture at various times in its history and much of that land is now "pretty" mature forest once again. I save the term "destruction" that many use for forest clearing for cases of commercial and residential development that are a far greater threat to the barrens.
As far as technology goes, towers may one day soon be obsolete, but we are not at that point yet. The staff who man them have intricate knowledge of the forest and roads around them and can often pinpoint the location of a fire in its earliest stages without even triangulating bearings from another tower. This all takes place very quickly, as time-proven methods often do, and brush trucks or aircraft can then be dispatched while the fire is in its earliest and most controllable stage. Smoke from a fire in its earliest stage is not as likely to be detected by satellite as it is from the vantage point of the tower attendant. For every larger fire that makes its way to the media, many more smaller ones are dealt with in this manner. Contrary to the opinion of some, those who do not do this work for a living do not better know how to do it than those who do.
As far as connecting this specific issue with illegals and business subsidies........well, that's where the "noise" comes in, even if I may agree with you on parts of it.
I highly doubt that 80 years ago, CCC planted these trees with the sole intention of them being cut down by a private lumberjack with no financial gain due. The window of opportunity to harvest the trees for $ has unfortunately passed. But to argue that this situation was the original intent is false and only now becomes a convenient argument for proponents of the tree cutting.
As far as the grove not being native to the Pines, is a cop out. Were coyotes populous here in the past? Or, were in fact all the people who live here now, who in fact the fire towers are meant to protect, so abundant as in the past. Almost all of the homes in the Pines are non-native. Would you suggest that they be sacrificed in order to save some money? Because lets face it, the control of fire is not needed to protect the forest, nature does a good job of taking care of her own.
But finally. You know, I have the same access to books, web site, articles, etc. that you have my friend. So to "assume" that a persons view is misinformed, or noise, because it is in opposition to yours, is insulting. So then, in the future, if you post any comments that I find not in my liking, can I then label them as "uneducated dribble?" Or maybe the term "ignorant banter." Or perhaps just....."plain ********"
No, I can't see how that would be helpful.
