Should Siskiyou Crest be California's next national monument?

Even though the rich and magical Siskiyou Crest is more than 600 miles away from Los Angeles, this post on the Greenspace blog has garnered quite a bit of conversation -- especially among residents of that area. Apparently, a group of local activists is trying to have the wilderness near the Oregon-California border deemed a national monument like Yellowstone or Glacier National Park.

Siskiyou Citizen wrote in with disapproval of the plan:

The last thing we need for the Siskiyou's is another layer of govt envolvement and "protection". For the uninformed, most of the public land in the proposed Monument is already under some type of federally designated protection such as Designated Wilderness, Late Successional Reserves, Riparian Reserves, Administratively Withdrawn Areas, and Wild and Scenic Rivers. Management on the federal lands is almost non-existant. This would do nothing but increase the risk to the area. KS Wild supposes this would create jobs by conducting thinnings and road decommissioning. In fact, this would only further prohibit future projects that are needed in the area to protect it from catastrphic fires. The proposed thinning proposed in the Giant Sequoia NM were opposed by environmental groups suck as KS Wild and are still fighting their way thru the court systems. All while the risk increases.

Siskiyou County is rooted in an environmentally based heritage and economy. Think about where the wood in you houses and decks come from, and where your food comes from before you proclaim how great it would be to add yet another hurdle to the regulatory nightmare that already exists. 

More reactions after the jump..

Rivals of the road: Honda Insight and Toyota Prius

While the Big Three continue to struggle for survival, Japanese carmakers Toyota and Honda are raising the bar. Both companies have new and improved versions of the two oldest gasoline-electric hybrids on the market, and both vehicles will be available for consumers this spring.

With new models of each revealed this week at the Detroit Auto Show, the 2010 Honda Insight, named after the company's original hybrid for the U.S. (1999-2006), can now be considered a direct competitor to the Toyota Prius, the bestselling hybrid around the world since 1997. 

Although Honda executives deny targeting the Prius with their updated hybrid, the Honda Insight looks suspiciously similar to its competitor.

For those eager to purchase the next hot "green" vehicle, there are some things to take into consideration.

On the one hand, the 2010 Prius, with fuel economy rising to 50 miles per gallon, or 4 mpg better than its predecessor, maintains its status as the most fuel-efficient car in America. The new Insight offers 41 mpg.

The Insight, however, has an additional fun factor that has been lacking in past generations of the Prius, according to critics such as Los Angeles Times writer Dan Neil, who has tested the Insight. He raves that it is "impeccably constructed, well planned and honeyed with high-tech surfaces and materials. Nothing feels cheap or compromised."

Both the Insight and the Prius appeal to eco-conscious and budget-conscious consumers, making this a close competition. Are you a loyal Honda or Toyota fan? Which hybrid do you think will steal the show? 

-- Stephanie Chang

Photo: A 2010 Honda Insight hybrid at the 2009 North American International Auto Show in Detroit on  Tuesday. The show runs until Jan. 25. Credit: Andrew Harrer / Bloomberg News