> My perspective was, and is, that a call-in system and repeat users are a
> pure boon. It takes considerable practice and ability to put together a
> Grand trip, and life circumstances change beyond our ability to envision or
> predict. This would mean lots of wasted dates, if there were not people
> who could move on short notice. Repeat users aren't taking anything away
> from those of us with congealed lives; they make use of opportunities we
> don't. Other than envy, what's the problem?
Being able to schedule is a reasonable accomodation. We all do
it every day. Commercial passengers get to schedule their
trips. The existing system sure looks like it was designed to
force as many privates as possible to cancel their trips. I
think it's a miracle only 40% cancel. When you combine the
commercial prices and private system the end result is that
either rich folks or the-river-is-my-life folks get to go. If
you cut out the middle, what happens when someone wants to jam
another big load of motors, or helicopters or whatever up NPS's
ass? Who will be the constituency?
I think a new system should allow reasonable opportunities to
schedule a trip. I don't have a problem with people picking up
unused permits or tagging along, but if those same people want
to advocate a crappy system to preserve a privileged position,
then I'm going to disagree.
At the least, anyone who wants to continue rationing by
inconvenience should advocate extending the crappy system to
the commercial sector.
Ben
-- -------------------------------------------------- -- Ben Harding blh@hydrosphere.com -- -- Hydrosphere Resource Consultants -- -- Hydrosphere Data Products -- -- 1002 Walnut, Suite 200 -- -- Boulder CO 80302 -- -- -- -- 303-443-7839 voice 303-442-0616 fax -- -- -- -- Publishing Natural Resources Data on CD ROM -- -- Consultants in Natural Resources Planning -- -------------------------------------------------- ==================================================================== To subscribe, send email to majordomo@songbird.com, with "subscribe gcboaters" as the only line in the message body. To unsubscribe send "unsubscribe gcboaters". For further information send "info gcboaters", or see http://www.songbird.com/gcboaters ====================================================================