When was the last time anyone tallied up the annual wildlife road kills around town and proposed restricting access to our highways? What was the most recent cost analysis of hiking accidents versus wrongful death lawsuits at the county jail or the sheriff’s multi-million dollar panga boat collection?

The same people whining about noise on the hilltops at night wake us up in the morning with their leaf blowing crews. The same woman complaining about destruction to the environment allocated thousands to Ian Parkinson and his “Keystone Kops” to go thrashing through the hillsides without being able to differentiate between deer bones and human. The same people locking the public off of the Cuesta Grade are the same folks giving the keys to countless private telecom corporations to maintain their satellite dishes.

The truth is, law enforcement is always trying to criminalize access to the commons, and politicians are always erecting plaques with their names on them to detract from their collusion with wealthy developers. We all leave footprints whether we are early birds or night owls. We all have taxes withheld from our paychecks to maintain our parks and open spaces, and we all damn well ought to be able to enjoy them without curfew restrictions.

-- Jack Artusio - San Luis Obispo