In response

Regarding Catherine Haug's letter of Sept. 16. I would like to know what cave she has been living in for the last 30 years?

There is not a mile of inhabited land (in this United States or abroad) that has not seen changes in the last 30 years and Bigfork is not alone.

Our natural population is of people coming to this country from all over the world. Every one of these people needs housing, employment, schooling and transportation, etc.! Thus the pollution and "invasive lighting"!

Ms. Haug is not the only person that has lost her "agrarian" views…others have lost theirs (and mine) as well, it just did not take 30 years to realize it.

As for local merchants…try shopping in Kalispell or Bigfork during the week-there is no parking, and most merchandise is simply not available. Try shopping the local merchants on the weekend……they are CLOSED!!!

My advice to Ms. Haug is to take her cave, don a burka, go and live with the Taliban and she will be assured of zero growth and zero progress-the very things that made our country a great one! I will wager, that when she meets up with the Taliban, there will be no "ill-planned lighting" to pollute her "agrarian view" and "invasive night lighting" to let her get from cave to cave!

Ms. Haug, you might just as well get used to it-this is 2004!

Regards,

Ann Strawser

Bigfork