LETTERS

I haven’t seen the documentary yet, but one paragraph in Mary McNamara’s review of “The National Parks” [“Burns’ Majestic History Lesson,” Sept. 25] really sets me off and epitomizes what I absolutely despise about the human race. She claims the real value of the film “is not its reminder of how beautiful the Grand Canyon is.” No, she claims the real value lies in how Americans shaped the parks and were shaped by them.

This is precisely what is wrong with the way humans view the entire natural world: only caring about it as it relates to them. Why can’t we appreciate nature simply for itself? As Theodore Roosevelt said, we cannot improve upon it. Frankly, the Grand Canyon is spectacular and would be even if no human being existed on this planet.

A little humility is in order, I think, because humans have done nothing other than to spoil nature; we have not enhanced it. We slaughter sharks by the hundreds of millions for their fins, we dam rivers, we pollute everywhere and we cannot see anything but ourselves reflected in everything.

I, for one, look forward to watching this program, hopefully with as few humans as possible spoiling the beautiful pictures.

Crista Worthy

Los Angeles