Something's happening here

(Today we have a guest poster... Miss Tata from Poor Impulse Control, Running Scared and Blanton's and Ashton's fame. She's got my attention about an important issue; she should have yours too, and she's told it better than I have, so I stole her post. Oh, also, it's a post from Tuesday that I just got around to stealing today- so when she says 30 days, I mean 28.)

There are many things I don't understand, and that's okay. I work in a university library, where I am surrounded by smart people with graduate degrees in Finding Stuff. Two weeks ago, we at B & A found the Bush Administration has johnnied up a plan to sell off a huge and unprecedented number of tracts of national forest lands to partially finance 2007 budget shortfalls in a rural school finance program. We the public are invited to place comments where responsible parties - stop laughing! - read them but until today, instructions for commenting were unavailable. I didn't grasp what the process involved in commenting was so I asked one of those degreed people for assistance. By the time our librarian friend finished helping me she was composing a letter in her head.

Step by step, then:
National Forest ServicePresident’s FY 2007 Budget Proposal for the Forest Service - Secure Rural Schools and Community Self-Determination Act Extension

Today's News Release

Today's listing in the Federal Register

Cutting to the chase, where we find a very important paragraph I'm sure you'll agree is now weeks overdue:

DATES: You should submit your comments by March 30, 2006 to be assured of
consideration. Comments received after that date will be considered only to the
extent practicable.ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by e-mail to
SRS_Land_Sales@fs.fed.us, by facsimile to (202) 205–1604, or by mail to USDA
Forest Service, SRS Comments, Lands 4S, 1400 Independence Ave., SW., Mailstop
1124, Washington, DC 20250–0003. Electronic submission is preferred. If you
submit your comments by e-mail or fax, you do not need to send a paper copy by
mail.

The reason to comment loud and long is this appalling list of lands potentially for sale.We have thirty days to raise a ruckus. Write to the comments address. Call your congresscritters. Demand they take positions on this matter. The sale of these lands is ridiculous and irresponsible. They don't really belong to us. We care for them now for future Americans, our children and their children. We can't sell them to finance our failures, or we fail our future twice over.

A few phone calls. A few emails. We have thirty days, starting now.