Measure aims to get people outdoors, where the
air is clean — and only the birds tweet
ELY, MINN. — April 1, 2013 — Today, the Northern Minnesota town at the end of the road, Ely, Minnesota, has cut off access to social media within its borders. Ely city officials made the decision to ban social media in all its forms — including Friendster, MySpace and Google+ — to encourage visitors to look up from their handheld screens and enjoy the real outdoors.
Unnamed
local officials hint the ban may be extended to all electronic devices
in and around Ely — the gateway to the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness
(BWCAW). The area boasts pristine wilderness, crystal clear lakes and small-town
charms that one must see to believe, and not just in a YouTube video.
“The
only thing online here is a fish. And why would anyone need Pinterest?” says
Ross Petersen, Ely’s mayor. “We have a big bulletin board over at the grocery
store for that sort of thing. Or the Twitter? We have at least a hundred
forty characters right here, living in Ely. And don’t even get me started on
the kids listening to their Zunes.”
Tweeters,
posters, pinners, fans and hashtaggers have responded to the news swiftly,
posting their reactions to the measure on the internet. However, no one in Ely
is countering — or frankly, even cares. “We’ve got a million acres of
exclusive content, and hundreds of sites you can visit — in person,” adds
Petersen.
Sales
of ink pens and real paper tablets have reportedly spiked in area stores.
There’s plenty of non-electronic fun in and
around the water this summer when you travel to Ely to visit in person. For
more information on Ely, named “Coolest Small Town in America” by Arthur
Frommer’s Budget Travel; and to book a vacation that’s less than four hours
from the Twin Cities, please drop by the city, or call Spirit of the Wilderness at 800-950-2709 or 218-365-3149.
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