Polemic

Polemic: Industrial Tourism and the National Parks

                The argument made by Edward Abbey in his work, Polemic: Industrial Tourism and the National Parks is that national parks are being developed more than preserved. More specifically, Abbey argues that our country’s parks are becoming rich with gasoline and pollution from motorized boats, cars made specifically to ride off-road, and other things. He writes, “Industrial Tourism is a big business…It includes restaurants…contractors…all-power automotive industry” (page 388). In this quote, Abbey is suggesting that nothing is natural of preserved anymore. Nature is being bombarded with equipments of all sorts to accommodate people with their fancy city gadgets that are meant to be kept in the city—not on earth’s natural beauties.

                In my view, Abbey is correct. He’s right because nature’s wonders are being tampered with, and it’s not right. I believe that there’s a time and a place for your high-powered, all-wheel drive toys; and there’s a time when all you need are your feet and a good pair of hiking shoes. A quote that I thought that Abbey made his point with is, “Is there any spot on earth that men have not proved accessible by the simplest means—feet and legs and heart” (page 388)? The key worked in that passage is accessible. People are beginning to believe that we’re only accessible with cars and other means of transportation. Honestly, I think we’re just getting lazier as the new gadgets come spewing out of our well-oiled factories. For example, in the movie, Wall-E, all the people are sent on a special space ship (or whatever you want to call it) where they don’t have to work or labor anymore. It’s like a high-tech paradise.  All they do is eat, sleep, watch TV, and sit in their futuristic lounging chairs that do everything and anything for them at their command. As a result, they’re all morbidly obese people. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u9s7afoYI-M I fear that that is what society is going to become, although, it pretty much is already getting there. I maintain that Abbey is right, and that out national parks are becoming destroyed with heavy machinery. Therefore, I conclude that we need to change our way of thinking. We need to keep out big kid toys away from nature, and use out bodies to explore national parks, forests, etc.