OK, so I'm no tree-hugger, and I know some
(e:strip)pers don't give a damn about the suburbs, but this story in the Buffalo News reminds me of some of the crap I was so happy about leaving behind in New Jersey.
Developer back to cut down foliage
Amherst officials say work appears to be legal
Amherst's foliage is on the chopping block - again.
Chain saws sputtered to life Thursday afternoon, clearing underbrush and felling more than 100 small trees in a Wehrle Drive plot owned by developer William Huntress. But while residents on nearby Bellingham Drive fretted over losing their backyard woodland, town officials assured residents that the developer's men appeared to be within legal bounds.
"We're just taking down all the trees that we are legally able to do," Huntress said.
Hey, why not? They're there, right? Who the fuck needs trees? Useless obstacles to creating a new vacant lot or something. This guy's got some nerve... Oh! But I'm just some sort of wacko environmentalist, right? And this developer is actually just doing what he needs to do to make a living, right? Read on:
Area homeowners were variously incensed and saddened by the renewed clearing.
"This is a spite cut," said Bellingham resident Ann Suchyna. "He [Huntress] will just destroy for the point of destroying."
"If Ann wants a park in her back yard, she should have moved in behind one," Huntress said.
OK, so maybe a little he-said, she-said bickering. They're probably both wrong. But remember the developer's snotty remark, OK? It's important. Now, keep going:
Construction of an office building on the site has long been stalled over a 1983 agreement between the town and the EPA, which forbids wetlands developers from connecting with the town's sewer line. Huntress' company, Acquest Wehrle LLC, which took over the land in 1997, has since sought a waiver from the regulation, but support from the Amherst Town Board has been tough to come by.
"There's no approval to build any kind of building on that property," [Amherst Assistant Building Commissioner F. Robert] Danni emphasized.
So wait... lemme see if I've got this straight... the developer bought the land 14 years AFTER the town's agreement with the EPA to preserve the wetlands area, and NOW he's complaining because the town won't give him a waiver to build an office building in that area? You've got to be kidding me.
I say, hey there asshole, if you wanted to build an office building, you should have bought property that's connectable to the town sewer line!
Ugh. For any of you who is sensitive to foul language or who has a developer in your family, I apologize if I've gone too far. But these bully tactics are total garbage, and no one should level a wooded area just because they're having a temper tantrum because they didn't do their own damn homework!
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAUUUGH
I know this is going to sound hatefull but this is what needs to happen. All of our US troops need to come home from iraq now. All americans need to leave all middle eastern countries. For all I care they can all kill each other and bomb the shit out of each other. The middle east has been a war zone since before we where a country if they want to invade each other fine. If they want to have holy wars fine. We have enough problems in our country and shouldn't worry about what is going on over there. In fact we have made things worse. We put Saddam in power then didn't like him so we pulled him out and iraq fell apart. We Put Bin Laden in power and you see how that worked out. We are buddies with isreal. Don't evern get me started on the Iran Contra trading hostages for weapons. Who are we to stick out nose in where it isn't wanted. I'm not saying anything negative about anyone who you know. But lets get all the americans out of that area.
I'm not so sure Russia has all that much credibility in tsk-tsking Israel for using disproportionate force, given what the Russians have done in Chechnya... but then, that's a whole different ball of wax...
i've been following this story for the past few days and now am getting seriously worried. the whole middle east is on the brink of war, and all our president can talk about is roasted pigs? but seriously, he is standing behind israel on this, saying that they have a right to defend themselves. i however, don’t see why they feel the need to defend themselve, since this started over a kidnapping. russia nailed it right on the head when it stated that israel is using "disproportionate force" in it's attacks. um ya, you think!?!?
Thanks for posting the link to your friend Emily's blog. It is always interesting to read first-hand news, instead of the crap filtered through several layers of spinning filters...
Israel opens 2 fronts; Iraq still burns; bombings in India; there's a lot of killing going on.
I think it's time all San Franciscans got together to hold hands and hug each other (the standard response....)
(e:Zobar), with that much spam, a heart-attack would get you long before any "enemy" did... ;-)
Zobar, thanks for bringing some serious levity to the situation.
As much as I'd like to see a photo of you huddled under your bed with 60 cans of Spam and some AK-47s, I understand that for security reasons you should probably refrain from posting such photos.
Oh, and you'll probably want some recipes for all that canned meat: :::link:::
and don't forget the Spambalaya: :::link:::
Holy fucking shit.
This whole shit's fucked up. You will find that many people will take sides in this conflict and defend them vehemently. I cannot join them, because what it comes down to is that nobody is right, and the only goals war could achieve are political.
My thoughts are with your friend in Damascus. She is smart and can take care of herself. As for me, I have stockpiled Spam and am blogging from under my bed, where I also have several Kalashikov rifles.
- Z