It's Tanna Time

Two old friends called the other day and reconnected (always a good thing). They use to live in Flagstaff just a few streets over from the Flagstaff Post residence. The husband, Dan Dagget, has published his second book that is generating lots of debate in the conservation arena. It is called "Gardeners of Eden: Rediscovering Our Importance to Nature."

Dan argues that "we have become aliens on our own planet. Once upon a time, he argues, humans enjoyed a mutualistic relationship with nature. In much the way that bees depend on flowers, beavers on creeks, and wolves on elk, ecosystems evolved in the presence of humans and began to depend on them, over time, to set fires, apply hunting pressure, and cultivate the soil. We were gardeners in Eden – natives living with, and using, nature symbiotically. No more."

Once upon a time (when I first met him in the 70s) Dan was an extreme environmental activist-a member of Earth First. He has changed his tune- not a complete reversal, but definitely a paradigm shift. Environmentalists are having fits over the message in this book. Worth a look at the article below if you interested in this topic.

www.headwatersnews.org/WhiteDagget101705.html