Christmas Mountains Still In Danger

A few years ago, the Richard King Mellon Foundation and the Conservation Fund bought a large tract of land in the Christmas Mountains (bordering Big Bend National Park) and gave the land to the state of Texas. Their only stipulations for the gift was to leave the land in its natural environmental state and assure that the land could be open to use by all the citizens of Texas.

The state made a solemn promise to abide by those stipulations, but now Land Commissioner Jerry Patterson wants to break that promise. He tried to sell the land about a year ago to a private interest, but was stopped by citizen outrage. It was thought he would relent and give the land to the National Park System (which would obey the gift's stipulations), but now he's changed his mind and once again wants to sell this valuable gift to the people of Texas.

Why is he doing this? Because he's a gun nut, and the Big Bend National Park doesn't allow firearms or hunting in the park. Patterson told a conservation group, "No guns, no hunting, no deal." He figures if he sells to a private person, then hunting leases could be granted.

The problem is that selling to a private interest means all the citizens of Texas will not have access. It also means there is no assurance the land will be kept in its natural state (as the state promised). Selling this public land to a private interest is really a bad idea, and the state would get very little from it. The previous high bid was $650,000 -- just a drop in the bucket that would do nothing to solve Texas' financial problems.

Fortunately, Patterson has a Democratic opponent who wants to honor the promises made by the state. His name is Hector Uribe (pictured), and he is the only hope to avoid the sale of this land to private interests. If Patterson is re-elected, the land will be sold. Here is what Uribe says:

"From generation to generation, Texans take pride in keeping their word. Back when Ann Richards was governor and Garry Mauro was Land Commissioner, the Mellon Foundation and the Conservation Fund gave more than 9,000 acres outside Big Bend National Park to the State of Texas. It is known as the Christmas Mountains Ranch, and the views from Christmas Mountain are spectacular.

The General Land Office accepted the gift with the understanding that strict conservation restrictions had been placed on it. Selling the land to private parties would be a violation of our fiduciary duty to the donors and to their beneficiaries, the people of Texas.

Accordingly, I will preserve and protect our scenic Christmas Mountains in West Texas. I’ll urge the passage of legislation to transfer their management to the National Park Service and their inclusion in our Big Bend National Park."

Please save this land for the people of Texas (and the United States). However you vote on the rest of the ballot, it is important to vote for Hector Uribe and save the Christmas Mountains. This is not a liberal or conservative issue. It is just a vote for the people of Texas and a vote for the state to honor its promises.

Patterson Will Stay At TCU

I am very relieved to hear this. After leading Texas Christian University (TCU) to its first undefeated season since 1938 (and five 11-win seasons since 2003), Coach Patterson was ripe to be picked up by another major college in the hope he could do the same at their school.

It was especially worrying when Notre Dame fired Coach Weis and began looking for a replacement a few days ago. Notre Dame has a lot of classic football history, but have been unable to find a winning coach in the last few years. And the rumors had already started that Patterson was a prime candidate for that job.

But the officials at TCU are not stupid. Today they will announce in a press conference that they have signed Coach Patterson to a new long-term contract extension. It looks like Patterson likes it in Fort Worth, and will be TCU's coach for many years to come (Coach Patterson is in the black shirt on the right in the above picture).

Next Sunday TCU will find out which BCS bowl they will be invited to (and if Texas loses to Nebraska, it could be the national championship game).

Patterson Still Wants To Sell Our Public Lands

Years ago, a private foundation gave the Christmas Mountains to the state of Texas. The only thing they asked in return was a promise from the state that the land would not be sold to private interests. Texas made that promise.

But then the Republicans took over in Austin, and Jerry Patterson became the Texas Land Commissioner. Promises made by the state are suddenly no longer important -- not when Republicans can help their rich buddies out. Patterson decided he wanted to sell the land to a private entity.

When the people who donated the land objected, Patterson tried to lie to the citizens of Texas. He said his office could no longer afford to care for the land, even though it would cost next to nothing. Then he tried to tell Texans that neither the state Parks and Wildlife Service nor the National Park Service wanted the land.

That was also a lie. The National Park Service quickly said they wanted to add the land to the adjoining Big Bend National Park. This would keep the lands open to the public, and honor the promise made by Texas officials. Several weeks ago, they sent Patterson a proposal to add the land to Big Bend.

But Patterson still wants to sell the land to his buddies. The Land Commission has met three times since the National Park Service made its proposal, and Patterson has failed to put the proposal on their agenda any of those times. It is scheduled to meet again on March 18, and the proposal is still not scheduled to be heard.

When he was asked about it recently in Fort Worth, Patterson repeated that the Park Service didn't want the land. He obviously thinks the people of Texas are stupid, because that is a BLATANT LIE! The proposal is still pending, and waiting for consideration.

What is wrong with this man? Does he stand to make a bundle of money if the land is sold? How can he feel so free to break promises made by our state?

We must keep pressure on Patterson to honor Texas' promises and keep this land in the public domain. We must let him know that his stalling will not make us forget!

Private Bids Rejected For Christmas Mountains

It's beginning to look like the people of Texas may have scored a victory. A couple of months ago, Land Commissioner Jerry Patterson had announced that his office was going to sell a parcel of public land containing the Christmas Mountains to a private buyer. Bids had been received from a couple in Dallas and a businessman in Houston.

This caused a furor across the state. When the land was donated to the state a few years ago, it was on condition that it not be sold to private interests but must remain available for use by the citizens of Texas. The agreement at that time stated the land must be offered to the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department or the National Park Service, if the Land Office was going to get rid of it.

Texas Parks and Wildlife said they did not want the land. They have been critically underfunded by the Republicans in the last few years and probably could not afford to take on a new area. I imagine they also didn't want to upset state Republican leaders at a time when they are still trying to get adequately funded for their current parks and wildlife areas.

But the National Park Service did want the land. It is adjacent to the Big Bend National Park, and would make an excellent addition to the national park.

But Patterson didn't want to give the land to them. He said it was because they wouldn't allow guns in the park. Personally, I think he just wanted to go through with the private sale he had planned. After all, nothing speaks louder to a Republican than money.

However, this is an election year. It looks like the state Republican leadership was afraid the public outrage might translate into lost votes. Because yesterday, the Land Office rejected both of the private bids without comment.

With both private bids rejected, it looks like the Christmas Mountains will soon become a part of the Big Bend National Park. This means it will remain available for use by all the citizens of Texas.

The sad part of this whole affair is that the organization that gave the land to the state was very upset by the attempt to sell it to private interests after promising not to do that. They have stated that they might not give any more gifts to Texas because they aren't sure they can trust the state government to keep its promises.

They just learned a valuable lesson about our Republican leaders -- unless you're a rich corporation, you really can't trust them.

Craddick Actually Does Something Right !

I have never been a supporter of Speaker Craddick. In fact, I've often called for his removal from his position as Speaker of the Texas House of Representatives, and I still think that would be best for the citizens of Texas. But I'll have to give the devil his due.

I definitely approve of Craddick's latest move. Last week, Craddick told the House Committee on Land and Resource Management that it needs to "examine the authority of the General Land Office, the School Land Board, and similar state agencies to engage in various types of real estate transactions, and determine the appropriateness of this authority."

This examination is badly needed. The current Land Commissioner, Jerry Patterson, seems determined to sell off land owned by the state to private interests -- even when the sale is not in the best interests of the citizens of Texas.

Last year, he tried to sell land at Eagle Mountain Lake in Tarrant County to developers. The land had been designated for a public park, and only a public outcry from the people of Texas kept the sale from going through.

This year he is trying to sell land in the Christmas Mountains near Big Bend National Park, even though the land had been donated with the stipulation that it not be sold to private interests. The land was a gift to the people of Texas and was donated for public use -- not sale to a private buyer.

Patterson is not interested in keeping promises made by the state, or in being a good steward over lands owned by the state. He seems to only be interested in making real estate deals and selling off state land. Someone needs to rein him in.

That's why I applaud this move by Craddick. Hopefully, the House Committee will curb Patterson's ability to sell off state land, at least without the approval of the legislature. But there's no guarantee the legislature will do this. Speaker Craddick has surprisingly taken the first step. Now the legislature must follow through.

This is another reason why the 2008 elections are important. We must elect some representatives that will protect Texas' land and environment. The easiest way to do that is to vote Democratic.

Land Commissioner Has Lost His Mind !

I think Texas Land Commissioner Jerry Patterson has lost what little mind he had. He seems determined to sell off some state property in the Christmas Mountains, even though our state government had promised not to sell the land to private interests.

In 1991, the 9,269 acres located next to Big Bend National Park was donated to the people of Texas by the Conservation Fund and the Richard King Mellon Foundation. When the land was donated, there was only one condition. The state could not sell the land to private interests. The land could only be sold or given to the state Parks and Wildlife Department, or to the National Park Service.

Gary Mauro was Land Commissioner at the time, and promised that Texas would honor the request of the donors (who have also given several other tracts of land to the state). Evidently, Republican Patterson feels he doesn't have to honor that promise -- probably because it was made by a Democrat.

Patterson is now trying to sell the land that Texas promised not to sell. He says that Texas cannot afford to fence the land to keep poachers out (although that hasn't seemed to be a problem for the last 16 years). He also told Texans that the National Park Service and the Parks and Wildlife Department did not want the land. He wants us to believe he has no choice but to sell the land to private interests.

But that is just NOT TRUE. The National Park Service does want the land. One would think that would give Patterson a way to get rid of the land he says Texas can't afford, and at the same time, allow Texas to keep its word to the donors. But that's not what Patterson wants. He wants to sell the land to private interests.

Why won't he sell to the National Park Service? Because they wouldn't allow hunting on the land. What!!! The same person who says we need to sell the land because we can't protect it from those who would kill the animals there, now says we can't sell the land to the National Park Service because they would protect it from those who would kill the animals there. He's either totally insane, or he's told so many lies he can't keep them straight anymore.

The sad part is that he's not only making Texas look bad by breaking a promise made by our state government, but he's costing the people of Texas any further gifts. The donors have said if Texas sells the land to private interests, they will never make another donation to the state of Texas. I don't blame them. Why would you give anything to people you can't trust?

It makes me wonder what is in this sale for Patterson and his Republican buddies. Perhaps some large campaign donations?