Railroads, Fences and the ‘Big Empty’: West Reads for March 5-9
“We will emphasize those issues that have for too long gone under-studied by scholars and under-reported in the mainstream media. And we hope to begin conversations that will lead to some salutary results.”
– David M. Kennedy, Historian and faculty co-director of the Bill Lane Center for the American West
Bill Lane Center
for the American West,
Stanford University
.
“Could Congress pass a farm bill this year? It’s still a tough haul, but it’s starting to seem more likely,” National Journal reports. (Photo: Let Ideas Compete/Flickr)
In this sixth edition of West Reads, we round up what our community is reading about the rural American west. Please share your favorite pieces by using the Twitter hashtag #westreads or stopping by the center’s Facebook page.
From Stanford and the Bill Lane Center for the American West
“Writing the Rails: Scholar Richard White Gives Dimension to the History of the Railroad," March 3: “White, the Margaret Byrne Professor of American History at Stanford University, spoke to Huntington Frontiers magazine about the way he balanced his own unique brand of storytelling with an equally creative use of historical data through something called the Spatial History Project, a collaborative community of scholars who use visual analysis and digital technology to identify patterns and anomalies in their research.”
Elsewhere on the Web
“The Country Just Over the Fence” by Paul Theroux, New York Times, Feb. 23: “ ‘Don’t you go over now and then?’ ‘Never been there,’ he said. ‘It’s 10 feet away!’ ”
“Into the Big Empty” by Michelle Nijhuis, High Country News, March 2: “The red rocks, the blue sky, the dry, quiet air, the weather building on the horizon — why had no one told me this place existed?”
“The Western Bucket List,” American Cowboy: “Every cowboy has dreams that he’d like to live out before he kicks the bucket.”
“North Dakota's Moment in the Spotlight Isn't a Pretty One” by Eric Kelderman, Chronicle of Higher Education, March 4: “Since the beginning of the economic downturn, public colleges in North Dakota have been in what would seem to be an enviable position, thanks to robust tax revenues generated by the state's supply of oil, coal, and corn used in making ethanol. … But money hasn't bought peace for the state's public colleges in the Peace Garden State.”
“Saving desert tortoises is a costly hurdle for solar projects” by Julie Cart, Los Angeles Times, March 4: “Ivanpah Valley, Calif.— Stubborn does not come close to describing the desert tortoise, a species that did its evolving more than 220 million years ago and has since remained resolutely prehistoric.”
“Hope on the Farm” by Jerry Hagstrom, National Journal, March 5: “Could Congress pass a farm bill this year? It’s still a tough haul, but it’s starting to seem more likely.”
“In California, Open Season on Trophy Hunting” by Felicity Barringer, editorial adviser for the Rural West Initiative, New York Times, March 6: “The theft of my grandfather’s guns from the cousin who inherited them is neither discussed nor particularly mourned.”
“Water Project Math: $6.7 Million, Seven Hookups” by John Fleck, contributing editor for the Rural West Initiative, Albuquerque Journal, Feb. 27: “CARNUEL — State and federal taxpayers are paying $6.7 million to extend water lines to carry clean water to the tiny community of Carnuel, in Tijeras Canyon east of Albuquerque. But most of the residents eligible to connect don’t seem to want the water.”
“Some see California water settlement as bad sign for Nevada” by Karoun Demirjian, Las Vegas Sun, March 2: “What happens in California holds sway over many of Nevada’s most important industries: Californians populate the state’s casinos, they are the state’s best would-be buyers of renewable energy, and now, they may be setting a standard for how Nevada’s scarce water resources will be allocated in the future. Or at least that is what Nevada, along with a host of other Western states, fears will happen if a federal bill to restructure California’s system for sharing water among urbanites, farmers and conservation projects passes Congress.”
Last modified Fri, 9 Mar, 2012 at 12:33