Stalking Yosemite

<p><span style=color: rgba(0 0 0 1)>If a man delights in spending days watching little furry wild animals harvest flowers does he have </span><em style=color: rgba(0 0 0 1)>any </em><span style=color: rgba(0 0 0 1)>chance at persuading a United States President who is the proud hunter of 11000 kills?</span></p><p></p><p><span style=color: rgba(0 0 0 1)>What is this man John Muir asking? For the President to protect National Parks-where hunting and killing and exploitation though not allowed are causing massive damage. </span></p><p></p><p><strong style=color: rgba(0 0 0 1)>What's at stake? 536 million acres of American land.</strong></p><p></p><p><span style=color: rgba(0 0 0 1)>President </span><strong style=color: rgba(0 0 0 1)>Theodore Roosevel</strong><span style=color: rgba(0 0 0 1)>t privileged Harvard educated versus </span><strong style=color: rgba(0 0 0 1)>John Muir</strong><span style=color: rgba(0 0 0 1)> emigrant left University of Wisconsin without a degree-to seek an orchid. Not exactly blood brothers.</span></p><p></p><p><span style=color: rgba(0 0 0 1)>But Roosevelt asked John to guide him on a President's first visit to Yosemite because no white man knew the Yosemite as thoroughly as John did. </span></p><p></p><p><span style=color: rgba(0 0 0 1)>Of course John said </span><em style=color: rgba(0 0 0 1)>No!  </em><span style=color: rgba(0 0 0 1)>He wanted to go meet some new trees.</span></p><p></p><p><span style=color: rgba(0 0 0 1)>This story--of the 2</span><sup style=color: rgba(0 0 0 1)>nd</sup><span style=color: rgba(0 0 0 1)> assault on Yosemite National Park in 1903 like the first in 1851--is the story of powerful greedy men circumventing the law to make $100 million dollars.</span></p><p></p><p><span style=color: rgba(0 0 0 1)>What scrawny figure stands in their way? A mannerly passionate survivor of childhood abuse who should have been easily bullied but instead overflowed with courage toward the protection of innocents.</span></p><p></p><p><span style=color: rgba(0 0 0 1)>This is that story-an entitled President and an honorable man whose deep integrity makes him fearless and which makes </span><em style=color: rgba(0 0 0 1)>him </em><span style=color: rgba(0 0 0 1)>the enemy of powerful men who are not bound by law.</span></p><p></p><p><span style=color: rgba(0 0 0 1)>536 million acres</span></p><p><span style=color: rgba(0 0 0 1)>200 rivers</span></p><p><strong style=color: rgba(0 0 0 1)>Nearly a quarter of US lands waiting for protection.</strong><span style=color: rgba(0 0 0 1)> Arising from </span><strong style=color: rgba(0 0 0 1)>one 3-night camping trip</strong><span style=color: rgba(0 0 0 1)> between a manly president hunter and a gentle passionate naturalist.</span></p>