[ivanhoe]

> they've either been without that road for 40 years, or moved there knowing the situation.

It's a really weird argument, you're basically saying that people shouldn't be allowed to upgrade their infrastructure ever? Imagine saying that for some poor country: "Oh, well, they either had no running water before, or they knew the situation before moving there, so screw them, they can just continue walking 5 miles every day to bring water from the spring".

Also they've been without that road a lot longer than 40 years, King Cove exists since at least 1930s. Population is dropping so I doubt many people have been moving there, most of people live there their whole life....and if they get sick or injured and planes can't land, they're screwed without that road.

[WalterBright]

> people shouldn't be allowed to upgrade their infrastructure ever?

In a wilderness area? No.

[ivanhoe]

Whole US were a wilderness once... you're basically punishing them for not destroying their nature earlier on, like the rest of us did...

[WalterBright]

We have to stop the destruction of the wilderness at some point, or we'll all die.

[ivanhoe]

Absolutely, WE should do exactly that (and there's a plenty of things that we can do to protect nature around ourselves) - instead of living in hyper-urbanized cities and pissing online on people who actually live for a century or more in a real untouched wilderness and haven't destroyed it in all that time, and now want one stupid gravel road through that unimaginably wast area. It's a raindrop in the ocean, but people love to focus their energy on isolated, far-away problems, rather than tackling real problems and the wider image.

[asdfk-12]

Please consider visiting rural Alaska. It might be more vast than you imagine. Please consider there are people in this community who need access to a critical resource that you likely take for granted. This particular example isn't a good 'hill to die on'.

[WalterBright]

I would love to visit Alaska. I've wanted to ever since I read "On the Edge of Nowhere" as a boy.

I'm sure there are plenty of wonderful places to live in Alaska that have access to a hospital. If one chooses to live in a wilderness area with no road service, one accepts no road service.

It isn't unusual for elderly people to move to a place that is easier to maintain and is in close proximity to a hospital.

[macinjosh]

Wow, you should see a therapist.

[WalterBright]

BTW, if I was President, you'd see a lot more land become federally protected wilderness in the lower 48. Marine areas, too. National parks would get much bigger. If you want to see that, write me in on your 2024 ballot!

[drekipus]

You make it sound like not being allowed a chocolate bar is a form of punishment