Editor:
Being a rancher family for over 80 years in Navajo County we have deeded land, which we have been able to buy over the years with a lot of hard work and sweat. We figure in our country you may be able to keep six to eight head of cows on each section (640 acres). That is not a lot. Maybe we can get six or so calves a year to sell. Every year is different – but we are constantly fighting to eke out a small living. We have spent all these years cussing the hot sun and blowing wind – both things that make raising cows difficult. Now, with renewables, we have a chance to use the sun and wind to make a decent living and keep our ranch.
Trust us – we are not really happy to look at our beautiful country and see solar panels. But people need electricity (now more than ever) and we ranchers need a way to sustain our ranches. It boils down to the fact that what we do with our private land (so long as it is lawful) is nobody’s business; and petitions signed at Safeway should not govern the use of our land or how we make ends meet.
We certainly are not trying to tell you what to do with your life and land, please do not try to tell us what to do. Things like this can divide our community if we let it. But change is here and we can either accept it or let it take us down.
Randy Baird,
Joseph City
