[OR_Archaeology] archaeology under attack

[Leland Gilsen]

Interesting article under this title in the current issue of AMERICAN 
ARCHAEOLOGY (quarterly publication of the Archaeological Conservancy) 
that is worth a read... and more, worth some hard consideration for 
coordinated and active outreach to the public community. When I was 
doing public outreach with my traveling museum I received many many 
comments from people who had a past (romantic) wish they had been 
archaeologists. Probably mostly due to motion pictures or TV (mostly 
unfortunately bad shows) but the sort of romantic exotic idea still part 
of their psyche. I only had positive comments when I was out there.

Anyway, if archaeologists want to keep their careers in the long run, it 
is looking like they need to sell themselves in the short run.  The 
elimination of laws and rules that slow down or modify unlimited 
development is the short term strategy of the current political 
environment should have been a predicted outcome of the simple fact that 
this country with at one time about 20% of the world population was 
getting 80% of the world raw resources.  In the push to develop the rest 
of the world, and with population growth,  their economies now need 
those raw resources so this country is steadily getting lower 
percentages of the world pie. The short term strategy: remove any local 
restrictions an increase exploitation of what we do have, at the cost of 
environmental (physical, biotic and cultural) resources.

You need to salvage what you can by a proactive strategy pushing benefits.

End of my soap box.