John Krehbiel
One excuse is as good as another
by John Krehbiel on 5 January 2010
The NIMBY problem is one of the most amazingly versatile excuse-generators ever.
First (at least the first objection I can remember hearing about) the wind turbine towers would interfere with sail-boating in the Sound.
Boo Hoo.
Then they were going to be an eyesore. (but only on remarkably clear days)
Now, Native Americans have spiritual objections.
Apparently, the tribe feels the need for a completely unobstructed view of the sea across the Sound. I can’t really comment on these issues of spiritual purity. After all, homeopaths claim effectiveness at dilutions where it is statistically unlikely that a single molecule of a substance remains. Many, if not most, claims of spiritual values are baffling when you take them to mean what they actually say.
But I wonder about their spirituality when I read this:
The park service decision comes at a time when Mr. Cromwell’s tribe, which won federal recognition in 2007, is hoping to build a casino.
2010-01-05 » John Krehbiel
5 January 2010 @ 1:22 pm
I suspect we have different legal standards for evaluating the requests of Native Americans than we have for, say, the local Rotary Club. So Native Americans can probably make a religious claim in court and get more deference than somebody else.