A ranger stopped & told us we couldn't stand there,
we had to go to the dirt area (no shade, no grass).
When asked why, he said people might not like
the horse poop. My reply was "As opposed to
all the dirty diapers & dog poop lying all over the
ground." He didn't think it was funny. We told him
okay, & then just stood there. He finally left, we
didn't leave, & we still stop there.
This is the kind of thing that gets horses banned from public
campgrounds entirely.
What MY reply would have been (if I didn't just move over into the
dirt....c'mon we are talking about 10 minutes here), "Would it be okay
for me to stay here as long as I clean up if my horse poops so that it
won't be left lying around? I have brought along the means to do that."
And this probably would have achieved exactly the same thing, except for
the part where the ranger leaves in a huff. Although it may have gotten
a share of the ranger's granola bar for my horse (my experience is that
people like to share their food with horses); and then we could have
comiserated together those inconsiderate dog owners and baby minders who
leave their detrius lying about, unlike us conscientous horse owners who
come prepared to clean up after our horses.
Little is gained by pissing off rangers by confronting them and then
ignoring their requests....and there is a lot to be lost. That ranger
is going to carry a negative impression of horse people around with him
for a LOOOOONG time.
Kat, you are absolutely correct. This could have been handled in a much
better manner. While a temporary battle was won, the war may have been
lost since that ranger may push for horses to be eliminated from the
area. He may not be able to accomplish that but he will make horseback
riders fight to keep it and will make their lives miserable in the
mentime.
Does nobody besides me understand the concept of what it means to be
outnumbered in a democracy (democracy is another word for tyranny of the
majority)?
In the crudest form democracy is in fact the "tyranny of the majority"
and we horsemen are not in the majority. The courts are there to keep
the tyranny of the majority from abridging the rights of the minority,
but how many of us have the resources or desire to fight in the courts.
Better to work within the system than fight it, eh?
