Not since the last great land rush of Japan has there been such a scramble for a piece of property.

If you don't recall the great land rush of Japan, it took place in the 1890s when far-eastern farmers loaded up their wives, children and domesticated hamsters in covered wagons and trekked across their continent in search of the promised land. Leaving their homes for the unknown, many Japanese traveled from one coast to the other to find a dream. Journeys would sometimes last almost 45 minutes. Lost, wandering settlers would sometimes go hours without food or shelter. What extremes will man go for a morsel of acreage? How important is land?

Now we have a prime parcel on Ga. Highway 54 that everyone is fighting over. Like me, many people thought we were finally going to have the American dream (the way it should be) with the Mews project. Shopping, dining, 24 movie theaters, all just a Furbies' throw away from each other. All reachable by golf cart.

You know, I don't ask for much, just maybe a dozen or so Krystal burgers every now and then and some sprinkled Dunkin' Doughnuts. Yet, I am denied again in my life, because a few people outweigh the needs of the many.

Have we learned nothing from "Star Trek II"? Did Spock die for nothing? Okay, sure, he was brought back during the Genesis project in "Star Trek III," but I am sure you get my point.

For land's sake, do we have to resist everything? There is something about affluent neighborhoods breeding protesters. Someone could try and build a hospital for crippled bunnies and someone else would complain that a bush was getting hurt in the process.

Traffic, traffic, traffic, that's all people worry about these days. If you don't like traffic, stay in your house. Do us all a favor and sell your car, nail your doors shut and huddle around your Sterno cans praying about the Y2K bug.

I know people think it is deep to have a "cause." I know people think it is important to protect the land, protect nature, to keep our beautiful Peachtree City pristine and pure. Move to Montana. Take up a job on some buffalo farm. You can quit shaving you underarm hair, bathing and spend your time trying to make fuel out of bison dung.

Listen to what Paul Brooks, author of "The Pursuit of Wilderness," writes, "We shall never understand the natural environment until we see it as a living organism. Land can be healthy or sick, fertile or barren, rich or poor, lovingly nurtured or bled white. Our present attitudes and laws governing the ownership and use of land represent an abuse of the concept of private property.... Today you can murder land for private profit. You can leave the corpse for all to see and nobody calls the cops."

He's a moron. There is no murder; it's dirt, you build stuff on it to make life more fun. It's just not that serious. Get a life, pal, one in this century.

I grew up in the country. We hunted, fished, grew most of our own food. Our meals half the time came fully from the production of our family, not from any store. But, nature is not what it is cracked up to be. I still love it there, but I moved to the city. I didn't come to Atlanta trying to turn it into Macedonia, South Carolina.

You can't be a little bit pregnant. You can't live in the city and expect that progress will stop. I just hate it because what has been stopped in the Mews project will be the best that could have come along for that strip of land.