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Ep. 072: American Wilderness

Published: 2017-07-13 18:32:00
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Steven Rinella talks with Dr. Karl Malcolm, Bjorn Fredrickson, and Jerry Monzingo of the U.S. Forest Service, along with Janis Putelis of the MeatEater crew. 

Subjects Discussed: The National Wild and Scenic Rivers Systems; the Cascades as a nexus for the climbing world; Karl's unlikely cure for not drawing an elk tag; the many homes of Aldo Leopold; Curt Meine's Aldo Leopold: His Life and Work; Howard Zahniser and the Wilderness Act; the societal challenges of Wilderness; dudes who just love a good conspiracy theory; Wilderness as a part of the American identity; Frederick Jackson Turner; Frontier Anxiety; helicopters in Wilderness and the "Minimum Requirements Necessary" concept; does Wilderness need to justify itself financially?; Ben Lilly and other rogue wildmen of the Southwest; and more.

 

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Referenced Books

A Sand County Almanac
by Aldo Leopold
Carl discusses Leopold's seminal work, describing it as poetry that was collected and published after Leopold's death. The book was written at Leopold's property in Wisconsin and is described as essential reading for hunters, anglers, and conservationists. Multiple references throughout the conversation discuss specific essays from this book, including one titled 'Escudilla.'
Referenced at 00:00:08
Aldo Leopold: His Life and Work
by Curt Meine
Carl recommends this as 'the indisputed Ultimate Leopold Biography' for anyone who wants to know the detailed history of Aldo Leopold. He describes Meine's treatment as 'phenomenal as a biography.'
Referenced at 00:00:08
Slouching Towards Bethlehem
by Joan Didion
Steve mentions this book in the context of discussing people who live in an 'intellectual fantasy land.' He notes it was written in the pre-Internet age and discusses Didion's observations about information overload and how people retreat from the effort of truly informing themselves about issues.
Referenced at 00:00:08
The White Album
by Joan Didion
Mentioned alongside 'Slouching Towards Bethlehem' as one of Joan Didion's two books about the sixties, though Steve indicates he thinks the quote he's referencing is from Slouching Towards Bethlehem rather than this one.
Referenced at 00:00:08