Welcome to the Grand Canyon, Brought to You by … Dave

My local paper ran this FrontPage headline Friday, "And now here's the Grand Canyon, thanks to…" The article was subtitled "National parks seeking corporate sponsorship." No doubt supporters believe they are just looking to honor those they refer to affectionately as 'corporate partners.'

But many, including me, think this is yet-another nightmare brought to us by those who have no vision of or desire for 'public use.' This is the same bunch who have no idea of the good that comes from holding some public space apart from the constant drumbeat of corporatism—pounded incessantly into our heads by TV, radio, and newer forms of web advertising. Darker thoughts loom over possibilities that this is also linked to neoCon notions of 'Starve the Beast' (whittling down the federal government by whatever means—to the size if can be drowned in a bathtub) highlighted well in Paul Krugman's The Great Unraveling.

Imagine, if you will a future with Minnie and Mickey Mouse greeting you at Old Faithful Lodge. Imagine Budweiser or Coors or ??? being the 'official beer' of the Grand Canyon (or of all the national parks). Imagine … whatever you can imagine that reeks of corporatized, commodified Nature.

See also:

TidePool: Jeff Ruch's Nov 23, Panhandling in our National Parks
Dissident Voice: Bill Berkowitz's Nov 30, Villains Honoring Villains
Albuquerque Tribune: Lisa Hoffman's Nov 30, National Parks Seeking Corporate Partnerships
Environmental News Service: Sunny Lewis' Dec. 5, Private, Corporate Donations Sought to Fund U.S. National Parks