{"id":15569,"date":"2021-02-06T15:41:24","date_gmt":"2021-02-06T20:41:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/jimbovard.com\/blog\/?p=15569"},"modified":"2021-02-08T16:17:44","modified_gmt":"2021-02-08T21:17:44","slug":"masking-americas-greatest-natural-monuments","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/jimbovard.com\/blog\/2021\/02\/06\/masking-americas-greatest-natural-monuments\/","title":{"rendered":"Masking America’s Greatest Natural Monuments"},"content":{"rendered":"

American Institute for Economic Research, February 6, 2021<\/p>\n

\n

Masking America\u2019s Greatest Natural Monuments<\/a><\/h1>\n<\/header>\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\"JamesJames Bovard<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\u2013\"\"T<\/a>he Biden administration just issued an edict that will spur endless pointless conflicts for Americans seeking to peacefully enjoy hundreds of national park<\/strong>s. On Groundhog Day, the National Park Service (NPS) mandated wearing face masks on all National Park Service lands \u201cwhen physical distancing cannot be maintained, including \u201cnarrow or busy trails<\/a>, overlooks and historic homes.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Probably 95% of the Park Service\u2019s 800+ million acres is uncrowded 95% of the time. But the new mandate is an entitlement program for anyone who wants to harass anyone on federal land who is not wearing a mask, regardless of social distancing, wide open spaces, or trails wide enough for 18-wheel trucks.<\/strong><\/p>\n

As the Idaho Statesman<\/em><\/a> noted, \u201cIt\u2019s unclear how park officials will enforce Biden\u2019s federal mask mandate.\u201d The Outdoor Society hailed the new regulation: \u201cIt is straight forward and very simple to follow, helping to keep everyone safe.\u201d That organization insisted that the policy \u201cis not going to be invasive\u201d but told readers: \u201cIf you see violations of the mask<\/a> requirement: Find the closest ranger or volunteer in the area and let them know.\u201d<\/p>\n

Captain Sara Newman, NPS director of Office of Public Health declared, \u201cGetting outside and enjoying our public lands is essential to improving mental and physical health, but we all need to work together to recreate responsibly.\u201d But the latest mask rule will empower legions of zealots to accost, harass, and possibly assault people for failing to obey the latest Pandemic Security Theater mandate.<\/p>\n

Mask controversies have already spurred plenty of idiocy in National Parks and other parks:<\/p>\n

*At Acadia National Park in Maine, a family complained that a stranger \u201cwho may be from Massachusetts intentionally coughed on them<\/a> for not wearing masks while they were socially distancing during a quaint wedding.\u201d<\/p>\n

* In a state park in Massachusetts, at the Hudson Overlook on the Midstate Trail (Ashburnham?), a man spit at two female hikers who were not wearing masks. Police reported: \u201cHe explained to them that it was the \u2018law\u2019 and that they were selfish<\/a>. He aggressively turned towards them and stated, \u2018I have Covid\u2019 and began spitting at the young females.\u201d<\/p>\n

I lead hikes most weekends, usually on the C & O Canal Towpath in Maryland. I tell attendees that masks are optional but kvetching about other hikers wearing or not wearing masks is prohibited. The Towpath \u2013 formerly used by mules dragging along barges \u2013 is at least 10 feet wide in most places.<\/p>\n

Since the hikes are in the Washington area, there is no shortage of people outraged when anyone fails to comply with any government recommendation \u2013 even though the trail isn\u2019t narrow. Many zealots follow a simple standard for maskless hikers: \u201cIf you see them, scream at them.\u201d<\/p>\n

Recently as our hiking group neared a wooden bridge, a 50ish guy coming from the other direction suddenly stopped and looked as horrified as a vampire who had spotted a crucifix.<\/p>\n

He lifted his shirt up over his face to provide double protection along with his facial covering, and shouted, \u201cYOU\u2019RE NOT WEARING MASKS!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re outside. It\u2019s sunny. The wind is blowing,\u201d I replied. The dude was perhaps unaware that Covid transmission hinges on \u201cviral load,\u201d which wasn\u2019t happening on that hike.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re violating the rules!\u201d he proclaimed.<\/p>\n

We just kept walking past him.<\/p>\n

He turned and shouted at me: \u201cSo what\u2014is your beard supposed to be your mask!?!\u201d<\/p>\n

I kept going.<\/p>\n

And then he hollered: \u201cYour beard is ugly!\u201d<\/p>\n

Damn! Me and Rodney Dangerfield \u2013 no respect. This learned gentleman was apparently unfamiliar with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration guidance warning that beards make tight masks<\/a> ineffective. Bummed that the dude didn\u2019t offer me a free razor.<\/p>\n

Things got worse after Biden issued an executive order on<\/a> January 20 that people had to wear masks any time they were on federal property. The edict had an unwritten exemption for Great Leaders \u2013 when Biden went to the Lincoln Memorial a few hours after signing the order, he posed by the statue of Abraham Lincoln; neither Lincoln nor Biden were wearing a mask. At a daily press briefing, Biden spokeswoman Jen Psaki scoffed at a reporter\u2019s concern over the apparent crime: \u201cHe was celebrating a historic day<\/a> in our country\u2026. We have bigger things to worry about.\u201d<\/p>\n

Regardless, Biden\u2019s order is inflaming legions of junior Stasi across the land. Leading a hike ten days later (and shortly before the NPS mandate), we exited the Towpath and crossed under a bridge where two middle-aged women were standing on an embankment 25 feet away. One of them began shouting and waving her arms.<\/p>\n

I looked at her but had no idea what she was saying.<\/p>\n

She screamed louder and became even more distraught.<\/p>\n

\u201cI can\u2019t understand you,\u201d I hollered at her.<\/p>\n

She waved her arms up and down.<\/p>\n

I shrugged.<\/p>\n

She pulled down her mask: \u201cYou\u2019re not wearing masks!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re outside, it\u2019s windy,\u201d I replied.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s the law! You have to wear a mask on federal property!\u201d she proclaimed.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s an executive order, it\u2019s not a law,\u201d I replied. \u201cBiden didn\u2019t obey it himself.\u201d<\/p>\n

When she repeated her denunciation, I refrained from pointing out that she was violating the order because she lowered her mask to berate us.<\/p>\n

She tried to buttonhole two other hikers who were bringing up the rear.<\/p>\n

\u201cGroup? What group? We\u2019re not with a group,\u201d a laggard hiker wisely responded.<\/p>\n

Maybe the same woman will be ready with multiple surveillance cameras and a couple of drones to capture video from different angles in case she sees our group again.<\/p>\n

Maybe it\u2019s too bad policies for hiking trails on federal land aren\u2019t being set by Rachel Levine, Biden\u2019s designee to be Assistant Secretary of Health and Human Services and the first openly transgender federal<\/a> official to be nominated. Levine made waves when the Pennsylvania Department of Health she headed offered \u201cbest practices\u201d advice to people who \u201cattend a large gathering where you might end up having sex<\/a>.\u201d <\/em>Unfortunately, the new NPS rules for hikers are much more restrictive than what Levine recommended for Pennsylvania orgies.<\/strong><\/p>\n

The new mask mandate is sanctified with the usual invocations.<\/strong> NPS Deputy Director Shawn Benge declared, \u201cWorking with public health officials and following the latest science and guidance<\/a>, we can make national parks safer for employees, visitors and partners.\u201d But NPS has no data on how many hikers have contracted Covid from passing within shouting distance of other people. If Covid was so contagious that momentary exposure from passing individuals could spread the virus, then almost all the nation\u2019s grocery store clerks would have been struck down early in the pandemic.<\/p>\n

But the only \u201cevidence\u201d necessary for this mandate is that many Biden supporters are frightened when they see anyone outside not wearing a mask. The new regulation encourages viewing people not wearing masks as physical assailants who pose an immediate deadly peril to anyone within eyesight<\/strong>. One Twitter user responded to my article on hysterical Covid complaints<\/a> by warning: \u201cIf you approach me without a mask<\/a>, I\u2019m free to do whatever I need to do in self defense.\u201d That dude had nothing to fear since I go out of my way to avoid frenzied people.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Where does the mask mania mindset lead? Last month, in Glendale, California, a 38-year-old shirtless jogger was arrested for \u201cspitting on random people outdoors<\/a>, primarily for not wearing a face mask\u2026. Victims of his assaults ranged in age from 13 to 78 years old. In some incidents, the suspect taunted and used racial slurs towards the victims during the assault,\u201d a police statement said. He was charged with \u201cbattery, elder abuse and committing a hate crime.\u201d<\/p>\n

If Biden has a right to compel everyone to wear a mask in the National Park Service, he would also have the right to dictate that people wear two masks \u2013 a policy endorsed by Covid Czar Anthony Fauci<\/a> on Tuesdays and Thursdays but not on other days of the week. And if Biden has the right to mandate multiple masks, then would he also have the right to dictate that no one can enter a national park unless they prove they have received a Covid vaccine?<\/p>\n

A more likely policy is that national parks could simply be shut down as part of a future lockdown strategy. Parking lots at the C & O Towpath were blocked early in the pandemic and there is no reason to presume that could not happen again. What if the Biden administration chooses to \u201cgo big\u201d with a nationwide dictate modeled after the Los Angeles edict that banned almost all walking<\/a> and bicycling in the city, ordering four million people to \u201cto remain in their homes?\u201d That utterly failed to stop the increase in local Covid cases but the media still cheers dramatic gestures, sort of like how the Italian press treated Mussolini.<\/p>\n

Americans hiking in national parks and elsewhere should strive to be courteous and stay as far away as possible from people tormented by Covid dread. There are unseen perils when federal policy seeks to placate mass fears rather than protect public safety.<\/strong> Plenty of Americans need to heed the warning a British publication gave to its readers: \u201cIs constantly monitoring COVID rulebreakers wrecking your mental health<\/a>?\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

American Institute for Economic Research, February 6, 2021 Masking America\u2019s Greatest Natural Monuments James Bovard \u2013The Biden administration just issued an edict that will spur endless pointless conflicts for Americans seeking to peacefully enjoy hundreds of national parks. On Groundhog Day, the National Park Service (NPS) mandated wearing face masks on all National Park Service […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":15571,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[2643,2646,2627,2316,2645,2576,2285,2640,2638,2313,2642,2641,2639,2644],"class_list":["post-15569","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-acadia-national-park","tag-beards","tag-c-o-canal-towpath","tag-covid-19","tag-harassment","tag-los-angeles","tag-masks","tag-national-park-service","tag-national-parks-lockdown","tag-pandemic","tag-pennsylvnia","tag-rachel-levine","tag-shawn-benge","tag-zealots"],"yoast_head":"\nMasking America's Greatest Natural Monuments - James Bovard<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"National Park Service now requires masks for all its parks. Pointless mandate will spur harassment in wide open spaces\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/jimbovard.com\/blog\/2021\/02\/06\/masking-americas-greatest-natural-monuments\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Masking America's Greatest Natural Monuments - James Bovard\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"National Park Service now requires masks for all its parks. Pointless mandate will spur harassment in wide open spaces\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/jimbovard.com\/blog\/2021\/02\/06\/masking-americas-greatest-natural-monuments\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"James Bovard\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:author\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/jim.bovard\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2021-02-06T20:41:24+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2021-02-08T21:17:44+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/jimbovard.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/yosemite-1200x762-1.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1200\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"762\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Jim\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@jimbovard\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Jim\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"8 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/jimbovard.com\\\/blog\\\/2021\\\/02\\\/06\\\/masking-americas-greatest-natural-monuments\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/jimbovard.com\\\/blog\\\/2021\\\/02\\\/06\\\/masking-americas-greatest-natural-monuments\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Jim\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/jimbovard.com\\\/blog\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/79550830ad81c14be529a2c37469974f\"},\"headline\":\"Masking America’s Greatest Natural Monuments\",\"datePublished\":\"2021-02-06T20:41:24+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2021-02-08T21:17:44+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/jimbovard.com\\\/blog\\\/2021\\\/02\\\/06\\\/masking-americas-greatest-natural-monuments\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":1571,\"commentCount\":1,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/jimbovard.com\\\/blog\\\/2021\\\/02\\\/06\\\/masking-americas-greatest-natural-monuments\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/jimbovard.com\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2021\\\/02\\\/yosemite-1200x762-1.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Acadia National Park\",\"beards\",\"C & O Canal Towpath\",\"COVID-19\",\"harassment\",\"Los Angeles\",\"masks\",\"National Park Service\",\"national parks lockdown\",\"pandemic\",\"Pennsylvnia\",\"Rachel Levine\",\"Shawn Benge\",\"zealots\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/jimbovard.com\\\/blog\\\/2021\\\/02\\\/06\\\/masking-americas-greatest-natural-monuments\\\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/jimbovard.com\\\/blog\\\/2021\\\/02\\\/06\\\/masking-americas-greatest-natural-monuments\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/jimbovard.com\\\/blog\\\/2021\\\/02\\\/06\\\/masking-americas-greatest-natural-monuments\\\/\",\"name\":\"Masking America's Greatest Natural Monuments - James Bovard\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/jimbovard.com\\\/blog\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/jimbovard.com\\\/blog\\\/2021\\\/02\\\/06\\\/masking-americas-greatest-natural-monuments\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/jimbovard.com\\\/blog\\\/2021\\\/02\\\/06\\\/masking-americas-greatest-natural-monuments\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/jimbovard.com\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2021\\\/02\\\/yosemite-1200x762-1.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2021-02-06T20:41:24+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2021-02-08T21:17:44+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/jimbovard.com\\\/blog\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/79550830ad81c14be529a2c37469974f\"},\"description\":\"National Park Service now requires masks for all its parks. Pointless mandate will spur harassment in wide open spaces\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/jimbovard.com\\\/blog\\\/2021\\\/02\\\/06\\\/masking-americas-greatest-natural-monuments\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/jimbovard.com\\\/blog\\\/2021\\\/02\\\/06\\\/masking-americas-greatest-natural-monuments\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/jimbovard.com\\\/blog\\\/2021\\\/02\\\/06\\\/masking-americas-greatest-natural-monuments\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/jimbovard.com\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2021\\\/02\\\/yosemite-1200x762-1.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/jimbovard.com\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2021\\\/02\\\/yosemite-1200x762-1.jpg\",\"width\":1200,\"height\":762},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/jimbovard.com\\\/blog\\\/2021\\\/02\\\/06\\\/masking-americas-greatest-natural-monuments\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/jimbovard.com\\\/blog\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Masking America’s Greatest Natural Monuments\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/jimbovard.com\\\/blog\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/jimbovard.com\\\/blog\\\/\",\"name\":\"James Bovard\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/jimbovard.com\\\/blog\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/jimbovard.com\\\/blog\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/79550830ad81c14be529a2c37469974f\",\"name\":\"Jim\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/d95466cfd0934e38803c5035629df727ae4ec1f3f96c6883c05b5c52e2044505?s=96&d=mm&r=r\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/d95466cfd0934e38803c5035629df727ae4ec1f3f96c6883c05b5c52e2044505?s=96&d=mm&r=r\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/d95466cfd0934e38803c5035629df727ae4ec1f3f96c6883c05b5c52e2044505?s=96&d=mm&r=r\",\"caption\":\"Jim\"},\"description\":\"Bovard's homepage is at http:\\\/\\\/www.jimbovard.com He can be contacted at jim@jimbovard.com James Bovard is the author of ten books. The Wall Street Journal called Bovard \\\"the roving inspector general of the modern state\\\" and Washington Post columnist George Will called him a \\\"one-man truth squad.\\\" His 1994 book, Lost Rights: The Destruction of American Liberty, received the Free Press Association\u2019s Mencken Award as Book of the Year. His Terrorism & Tyranny won the Lysander Spooner \\\"Best Book on Liberty in 2003\\\" award. He received the Thomas Szasz Award for Civil Liberties work, awarded by the Center for Independent Thought and the Freedom Fund Award from the Firearms Civil Rights Defense Fund of the National Rifle Association. Bovard\u2019s writings have been publicly denounced by FBI director Louis Freeh, the Secretary of Agriculture, the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, the Postmaster General, and the chiefs of the U.S. International Trade Commission, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency, as well as by many congressmen and other malcontents.\",\"sameAs\":[\"http:\\\/\\\/www.jimbovard.com\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.facebook.com\\\/jim.bovard\",\"https:\\\/\\\/x.com\\\/jimbovard\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/jimbovard.com\\\/blog\\\/author\\\/admin\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Masking America's Greatest Natural Monuments - James Bovard","description":"National Park Service now requires masks for all its parks. Pointless mandate will spur harassment in wide open spaces","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/jimbovard.com\/blog\/2021\/02\/06\/masking-americas-greatest-natural-monuments\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Masking America's Greatest Natural Monuments - James Bovard","og_description":"National Park Service now requires masks for all its parks. Pointless mandate will spur harassment in wide open spaces","og_url":"https:\/\/jimbovard.com\/blog\/2021\/02\/06\/masking-americas-greatest-natural-monuments\/","og_site_name":"James Bovard","article_author":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/jim.bovard","article_published_time":"2021-02-06T20:41:24+00:00","article_modified_time":"2021-02-08T21:17:44+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1200,"height":762,"url":"https:\/\/jimbovard.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/yosemite-1200x762-1.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Jim","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@jimbovard","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Jim","Est. reading time":"8 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/jimbovard.com\/blog\/2021\/02\/06\/masking-americas-greatest-natural-monuments\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/jimbovard.com\/blog\/2021\/02\/06\/masking-americas-greatest-natural-monuments\/"},"author":{"name":"Jim","@id":"https:\/\/jimbovard.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/79550830ad81c14be529a2c37469974f"},"headline":"Masking America’s Greatest Natural Monuments","datePublished":"2021-02-06T20:41:24+00:00","dateModified":"2021-02-08T21:17:44+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/jimbovard.com\/blog\/2021\/02\/06\/masking-americas-greatest-natural-monuments\/"},"wordCount":1571,"commentCount":1,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/jimbovard.com\/blog\/2021\/02\/06\/masking-americas-greatest-natural-monuments\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/jimbovard.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/yosemite-1200x762-1.jpg","keywords":["Acadia National Park","beards","C & O Canal Towpath","COVID-19","harassment","Los Angeles","masks","National Park Service","national parks lockdown","pandemic","Pennsylvnia","Rachel Levine","Shawn Benge","zealots"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/jimbovard.com\/blog\/2021\/02\/06\/masking-americas-greatest-natural-monuments\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/jimbovard.com\/blog\/2021\/02\/06\/masking-americas-greatest-natural-monuments\/","url":"https:\/\/jimbovard.com\/blog\/2021\/02\/06\/masking-americas-greatest-natural-monuments\/","name":"Masking America's Greatest Natural Monuments - James Bovard","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/jimbovard.com\/blog\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/jimbovard.com\/blog\/2021\/02\/06\/masking-americas-greatest-natural-monuments\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/jimbovard.com\/blog\/2021\/02\/06\/masking-americas-greatest-natural-monuments\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/jimbovard.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/yosemite-1200x762-1.jpg","datePublished":"2021-02-06T20:41:24+00:00","dateModified":"2021-02-08T21:17:44+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/jimbovard.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/79550830ad81c14be529a2c37469974f"},"description":"National Park Service now requires masks for all its parks. Pointless mandate will spur harassment in wide open spaces","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/jimbovard.com\/blog\/2021\/02\/06\/masking-americas-greatest-natural-monuments\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/jimbovard.com\/blog\/2021\/02\/06\/masking-americas-greatest-natural-monuments\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/jimbovard.com\/blog\/2021\/02\/06\/masking-americas-greatest-natural-monuments\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/jimbovard.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/yosemite-1200x762-1.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/jimbovard.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/yosemite-1200x762-1.jpg","width":1200,"height":762},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/jimbovard.com\/blog\/2021\/02\/06\/masking-americas-greatest-natural-monuments\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/jimbovard.com\/blog\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Masking America’s Greatest Natural Monuments"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/jimbovard.com\/blog\/#website","url":"https:\/\/jimbovard.com\/blog\/","name":"James Bovard","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/jimbovard.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/jimbovard.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/79550830ad81c14be529a2c37469974f","name":"Jim","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/d95466cfd0934e38803c5035629df727ae4ec1f3f96c6883c05b5c52e2044505?s=96&d=mm&r=r","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/d95466cfd0934e38803c5035629df727ae4ec1f3f96c6883c05b5c52e2044505?s=96&d=mm&r=r","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/d95466cfd0934e38803c5035629df727ae4ec1f3f96c6883c05b5c52e2044505?s=96&d=mm&r=r","caption":"Jim"},"description":"Bovard's homepage is at http:\/\/www.jimbovard.com He can be contacted at jim@jimbovard.com James Bovard is the author of ten books. The Wall Street Journal called Bovard \"the roving inspector general of the modern state\" and Washington Post columnist George Will called him a \"one-man truth squad.\" His 1994 book, Lost Rights: The Destruction of American Liberty, received the Free Press Association\u2019s Mencken Award as Book of the Year. His Terrorism & Tyranny won the Lysander Spooner \"Best Book on Liberty in 2003\" award. He received the Thomas Szasz Award for Civil Liberties work, awarded by the Center for Independent Thought and the Freedom Fund Award from the Firearms Civil Rights Defense Fund of the National Rifle Association. Bovard\u2019s writings have been publicly denounced by FBI director Louis Freeh, the Secretary of Agriculture, the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, the Postmaster General, and the chiefs of the U.S. International Trade Commission, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency, as well as by many congressmen and other malcontents.","sameAs":["http:\/\/www.jimbovard.com","https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/jim.bovard","https:\/\/x.com\/jimbovard"],"url":"https:\/\/jimbovard.com\/blog\/author\/admin\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/jimbovard.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15569","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/jimbovard.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/jimbovard.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jimbovard.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jimbovard.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=15569"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/jimbovard.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15569\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":15582,"href":"https:\/\/jimbovard.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15569\/revisions\/15582"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jimbovard.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/15571"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/jimbovard.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=15569"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jimbovard.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=15569"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jimbovard.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=15569"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}