Letter to the editor

UVU CELEBRATES AUCTION FRAUD

TO THE EDITOR:

This month, UVU will welcome Tim DeChristopher, a college student from Utah convicted of auction fraud in the name of environmentalism, to its campus for a “meet-and-greet.” (DeChristopher will speak on “The Ethics of Direct Political Action,” February 19, from 4 – 5:15 pm in the Timpanogos Room of the UVU Library.) DeCristopher is being glorified by this invitation for his attempt to disrupt the auction of oil and gas drilling leases in Utah. Not only did he bid on available leases with no intention to pay, by doing so he also drove up the auction prices for the real buyers. The United States is already over-reliant on foreign oil, and at the mercy of imported oil prices. Environmental activists like Tim who attempt to preserve the land by illegally stalling oil drilling are sacrificing people’s jobs, the local economy, and indirectly driving up the cost of gas. UVU may be proud to support land preservation, but should NEVER condone the idealization of fraud.

SHAYLENE NISTLER