Land of Opportunity

What does the Grand Canyon, the Hualapai and a businessman from Las Vegas have in common?

They have Big Opportunity.
They have the very-soon-to-be-open-to-the-public 4000 feet up from the canyon floor, glass and steel beamed Skywalk.

Quite an architectural undertaking.
Pretty exciting.
A glass bottom boat experience, to be sure.

But at what cost?
Integrity of the landscape?
Centuries old spirituality of the sacred Native American site?

This venture on tribal land at Grand Canyon West has been contested by those who claim it only serves to exploit the landscape for profit.

Doh!

There is truth to this statement, of course - as monies from increased tourism to the area due to the skywalk will indeed profit - not only the project developers (greed?), but the tribes (economic survival?) who OK'd the project and who reside on the area reservations.
Reservations that still need to improve on basic sewer and water needs...

At this time, I'm watching another Ken Burns documentary: 'Lewis & Clark'.
So - understand my impatience with any arguments over whose right it is to raze the countryside - claiming ownership to, developing on, marring the natural beauty of and exhausting the resources of - land which up to now has remained relatively undeveloped...

Who isn't for preservation of the beauty of untouched natural landscape?
But get real.