Utah is a politically conservative state in which the dominant interests have long opposed the idea of wilderness. Among Western states, only Hawaii has less wilderness. Jerry McNelly, a county commissioner in Moab, says of potential wilderness, "We need it for economic development." That ignores the fact that Moab, the entry point to Arches and Canyonlands national parks, is booming with business from tourists and outdoor recreationists and adventurers. It also blinks at the long history of boom-and-bust energy projects that blighted many areas in the West and left them without steady tax revenue for schools, police and alternative economic development.