A few years ago, out of the ashes of the Sagebrush Rebellion, the Wise Use movement came into existence. With well crafted words and sentiment, millions of Americans have been led to follow a cry of outrage at a government that places restrictions on our actions from a distance.

Riding this momentum an anti-liberal movement has risen to power, and changes these last years in Washington are obvious. Less seen is the effect that this movement has had on those of us who may not agree with all that is being said, and yet sense that something in the soul of the country is shifting.

There has been a war of symbols to capture the hearts and minds of Americans, and I think it has partly won us over. There is an imageÐthe Hollywood cowboy and Star Wars freedom fighter, the all American guy and galÐthat has been crafted to fit the set of values we are now expected to hold. Out of all this we are somehow asked to feel warm and fuzzy, and I admit I sometimes do, when we hear the message that individual rights are sacred.

Somehow in this sentiment though, I think we may lose something important.

There is no question that both the individual and an individual's rights are important. Through centuries of civilization we have seen the worst of what happens when individual rights are discounted. I am concerned though that in our zeal to wear the fashion of individual rights we are elevating them above other rights, especially the rights of the community. We are almost afraid it seems to discuss what is best for the community. It seems we are somehow afraid that this diminishes the rights of the individual. I would like to suggest that it doesn't.

Civilization is a balancing act between the rights of an individual and the rights of the community. It is very easy to lose sight of either. There are significant problems and human suffering when an individual's rights are diminished. It may be harder to see at first, but there are equal problems and suffering when the rights of the community are diminished. The very existence of our individual rights relies on community support of those rights and limits on those rights. Otherwise, only the most advantaged or violent individuals in society have rights. It is this outcome I fear we are moving toward as we accept the trend that elevates individual rights above the rights of the community. The trend I see is expressed in homes that are too large, underprivileged people being disempowered or pushed out of sight, and nature being destroyed, in order to support the rights of the individual.

As we move into very important discussions of town design, hillside and natural resource protection, and even education, I would ask that we become aware of the trend that asks us to have a powerful emotional attachment to private property and other expressions of individual rights so that we can be more level headed. I ask that we accept that it takes laws, codes, and other expressions of community rights in order to create a community that can contain and support the wondrous beings that we are as individuals.

Lastly, in the face of today's demands and burn-out, I ask that we please keep up the good, challenging work. As long as we care about our community, this work and the community are not going to go away.