You post a story like this one below, No. 2 with a bullet on our most-read this Friday afternoon, and it really brings on the outrage, and properly so. ('Course it also brings out the wack jobs sprinkled in among the regular folks in the comments section, bores who would blame the lack of green cheese on the moon on illegal immigrants, but that comes with the territory -- they have nothing better to do, and can be ignored.)
But reading the list of state parks is both a kind of tonic -- what a natural bounty this state has, and how many of these places we've all been to! -- and something that just ticks off any sane person.
Because, right, how dare the government say it's going to "close" a beach or a mouintain when it isn't the damn government's to open or close in the first place! It's our California, not the bureaucrats'. So much of the time, what is it that the state brings to the party here other than a booth with a uniform to whom I have to pay my 10 bucks? I went to Bolsa Chica State Park to surf on Saturday -- early, because that's when surfers surf. We left before the life guards even arrived. So we used the parking space and the head to change into our wetsuits. The state didn't make the waves. I don't litter. I demand a refund.
Most of these wonderful places, Sacamento brings a lot less than that to the party. Stop trying to balance the billions in red ink on Californians' God-given right to the outdoors. If the workers have to be laid off or reassigned, fine. Close the toll booths and let us at our land. For years, just as on federal land, we've been told there isn't enough money to provide any help from rangers or other state workers anyway. So don't pretend you're providing us a service when you charge us to get in.
At San Onofre State Beach, it's the members of the volunteer surfing club who do the work to keep the place nice -- including the outdoors showers and other plumbing -- not the state. Let similar associations take care of their favorite wildlands up and down our state. Government, stop pretending you created California -- and leave us alone.
Here's the list:
Schwarzenegger proposes closing 220 state parks
These are the 220 state parks, state beaches, state recreation areas, museums and state reserves that officials say would be closed under Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's proposed budget cuts:
1. Leo Carrillo State Park.
2. Los Angeles State Historic Park.
3. Los Encinos State Historic Park.
4. Malibu Creek State Park.
5. Malibu Lagoon State Beach.
6. Pio Pico State Historic Park.
7. Point Mugu State Park.
8. Rio de Los Angeles State Park.
9. Robert H. Meyer Memorial State Beach.
10. Santa Susana Pass State Historic Park.
11. Topanga State Park.
12. Verdugo Mountains.
13. Will Rogers State Historic Park.
14. California State Capitol Museum.
15. Governor's Mansion State Historic Park
16. Leland Stanford Mansion State Historic Park.
17. Railtown 1897 State Historic Park.
18. State Indian Museum State Historic Park.
19. Sutter's Fort State Historic Park.
20. Bethany Reservoir State Recreation Area.
21. Calaveras Big Trees State Park.
22. California Mining & Mineral Museum.
23. Caswell Memorial State Park.
24. Columbia State Historic Park.
25. George J. Hatfield State Recreation Area.
26. Great Valley Grasslands State Park.
27. Indian Grinding Rock State Historic Park.
28. McConnell State Recreation Area.
29. Carpinteria State Beach.
30. Chumash Painted Cave State Historic Park.
31. El Capitan State Beach.
32. Emma Wood State Beach.
33. Gaviota State Park.
34. La Purisima Mission State Historic Park.
35. McGrath State Beach.
36. Point Sal State Beach.
37. Refugio State Beach.
38. San Buenaventura State Beach.
39. Anza-Borrego Desert State Park.
40. Cuyamaca Rancho State Park.
41. Indio Hills Palms.
42. Palomar Mountain State Park.
43. Picacho State Recreation Area.
44. Salton Sea State Recreation Area.
45. Annadel State Park.
46. Bale Grist Mill State Historic Park.
47. Benicia Capitol State Historic Park.
48. Benicia State Recreation Area.
49. Bothe-Napa Valley State Park.
50. Candlestick Point State Recreation Area.
51. East Shore State Park State Shoreline.
52. Jack London State Historic Park.
53. John Marsh Home State Historic Park.
54. Mount Diablo State Park.
55. Petaluma Adobe State Historic Park.
56. Robert Louis Stevenson State Park.
57. Sonoma State Historic Park.
58. Sugarloaf Ridge State Park.
59. Brannan Island State Recreation Area.
60. Delta Meadows.
61. Folsom Powerhouse State Historic Park.
62. Franks Tract State Recreation Area.
63. Marshall Gold Discovery State Historic Park
64. Stone Lake.
65. California Citrus State Historic Park.
66. Chino Hills State Park.
67. Mount San Jacinto State Park.
68. San Timoteo Canyon.
69. Wildwood Canyon.
70. Angel Island State Park.
71. China Camp State Park.
72. Mount Tamalpais State Park.
73. Olompali State Historic Park.
74. Samuel P. Taylor State Park.
75. Tomales Bay State Park.
76. Caspar Headlands State Beach.
77. Caspar Headlands State Natural Reserve.
78. Greenwood State Beach.
79. Hendy Woods State Park.
80. Jug Handle State Natural Reserve.
81. MacKerricher State Park.
82. Mailliard Redwoods State Natural Reserve.
83. Manchester State Park.
84. Mendocino Headlands State Park.
85. Montgomery Woods State Natural Reserve.
86. Navarro River Redwoods State Park.
87. Point Cabrillo Light Station.
88. Russian Gulch State Park.
89. Schooner Gulch State Beach.
90. Van Damme State Park.
91. Westport-Union Landing State Beach.
92. Andrew Molera State Park.
93. Carmel River State Beach.
94. Fort Ord Dunes State Park.
95. Fremont Peak State Park.
96. Garrapata State Park.
97. Hatton Canyon.
98. Henry W. Coe State Park.
99. John Little State Natural Reserve.
100. Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park.
101. Marina State Beach.
102. Monterey State Beach.
103. Monterey State Historic Park.
104. Moss Landing State Beach.
105. Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park.
106. Point Lobos Ranch.
107. Point Lobos State Natural Reserve.
108. Point Sur State Historic Park.
109. Salinas River State Beach.
110. San Juan Bautista State Historic Park.
111. Zmudowski State Beach.
112. Admiral William Standley State Recreation Area.
113. Azalea State Natural Reserve.
114. Benbow Lake State Recreation Area.
115. Del Norte Coast Redwoods State Park.
116. Fort Humboldt State Historic Park.
117. Grizzly Creek Redwoods State Park.
118. Harry A. Merlo State Recreation Area.
119. Humboldt Lagoons State Park.
120. Humboldt Redwoods State Park.
121. Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park.
122. John B. Dewitt Redwoods State Natural Reserve.
123. Little River State Beach.
124. Patrick's Point State Park.
125. Pelican State Beach.
126. Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park.
127. Reynolds Wayside Campground.
128. Richardson Grove State Park.
129. Sinkyone Wilderness State Park.
130. Smithe Redwoods State Natural Reserve.
131. Standish-Hickey State Recreation Area.
132. Tolowa Dunes State Park.
133. Trinidad State Beach.
134. Ahjumawi Lava Springs State Park.
135. Anderson Marsh State Historic Park.
136. Bidwell Mansion State Historic Park.
137. Bidwell-Sacramento River State Park.
138. Castle Crags State Park.
139. Colusa-Sacramento River State Recreation Area.
140. McArthur-Burney Falls Memorial State Park.
141. Shasta State Historic Park.
142. Weaverville Joss House State Historic Park.
143. William B. Ide Adobe State Historic Park.
144. Woodson Bridge State Recreation Area.
145. Pismo State Beach.
146. Armstrong Redwoods State Natural Reserve.
147. Austin Creek State Recreation Area.
148. Fort Ross State Historic Park.
149. Kruse Rhododendron State Natural Reserve.
150. Salt Point State Park.
151. Sonoma Coast State Park.
152. Border Field State Park.
153. Carlsbad State Beach.
154. San Pasqual Battlefield State Historic Park.
155. Silver Strand State Beach.
156. Torrey Pines State Beach.
157. Torrey Pines State Natural Reserve.
158. Estero Bluffs State Park.
159. Hearst San Simeon State Park.
160. Limekiln State Park.
161. Los Osos Oaks State Natural Reserve.
162. Monta ±a de Oro State Park.
163. Morro Bay State Park.
164. Morro Strand State Beach.
165. William Randolph Hearst Memorial State Beach.
166. A ±o Nuevo State Natural Reserve.
167. A ±o Nuevo State Park.
168. Bean Hollow State Beach.
169. Big Basin Redwoods State Park.
170. Burleigh H. Murray Ranch.
171. Butano State Park.
172. Castle Rock State Park.
173. Castro Adobe (Rancho San Andres).
174. Gray Whale Cove State Beach.
175. Half Moon Bay State Beach.
176. Henry Cowell Redwoods State Park.
177. Lighthouse Field State Beach.
178. Manresa State Beach.
179. Montara State Beach.
180. Natural Bridges State Beach.
181. New Brighton State Beach.
182. Pescadero State Beach.
183. Point Montara Light Station.
184. Pomponio State Beach.
185. Portola Redwoods State Park.
186. San Gregorio State Beach.
187. Santa Cruz Mission State Historic Park.
188. Seacliff State Beach.
189. Sunset State Beach.
190. The Forest of Nisene Marks State Park.
191. Thornton State Beach.
192. Twin Lakes State Beach.
193. Wilder Ranch State Park.
194. Bodie State Historic Park.
195. Burton Creek State Park.
196. D.L. Bliss State Park.
197. Donner Memorial State Park.
198. Ed Z'berg Sugar Pine Point State Park.
199. Emerald Bay State Park.
200. Empire Mine State Historic Park.
201. Grover Hot Springs State Park.
202. Kings Beach State Recreation Area.
203. Lake Valley State Recreation Area.
204. Malakoff Diggins State Historic Park.
205. Mono Lake Tufa State Natural Reserve.
206. Plumas-Eureka State Park.
207. South Yuba River State Park.
208. Tahoe State Recreation Area.
209. Ward Creek.
210. Washoe Meadows State Park.
211. Antelope Valley California Poppy Reserve.
212. Antelope Valley Indian Museum.
213. Arthur B. Ripley Desert Woodland State Park.
214. Colonel Allensworth State Historic Park.
215. Fort Tejon State Historic Park.
216. Providence Mountains State Recreation Area.
217. Red Rock Canyon State Park.
218. Saddleback Butte State Park.
219. Tomo-Kahni State Historic Park.
220. Tule Elk State Natural Reserve.