The news is both hopeful and frightening:

New nonprofit pushes to preserve Franklin Battlefield.

We could begin with the question, who needs a new conservation group? That's a deep one we'll save for another time. Right now we can assume that the people who formed this organization did not feel any existing body could be sufficiently trusted to save Franklin battlefield.

Let me put down this bag of peanuts and shout some advice from the gallery.

(1) Buy land. Don't let anyone talk you out of buying land.

(2) If an officer of your new organization proposes buying easements or restrictive covenants, say "We buy land." Then fire that officer for suggesting you fritter away resources.

(3) If a member of your new organization proposes buying easements or restrictive covenants, say "We buy land." Then return the member's card and say goodbye.

(4) If a member of your board stands in the way of your buying land because of cost, remind that board member that you have only one purpose on earth: to buy land.

(5) If people tell you a landowner is asking too much for battlefield land, remind them that the amount asked is so cheap that a developer could pay full asking price and still make millions reselling the same property in parcels.

(6) If you do not have enough money to buy the land you want, act like the entrepreneur launching a startup ... spend your whole life, 18 hours per day, looking for money, for investors, for deep pockets. Borritt has his millionaires to fund the Lincoln Prize. Find your millionaires.

(7) If a developer gets the land before you do, buy lots in the development. Make one of the new houses a battlefield welcome center. Encourage tourist traffic to the development and weekend tours of the neighborhood. As more development property becomes available, buy it. Continue this process until you own the battlefield.

(8) Express your displeasure with developer-friendly officials; use lawsuits, elections, and press conferences rich with names named.

(9) When this or that organization comes to you offering to team up, or "help" or to "coordinate efforts," simply say to them, "What we need from you is money to buy battlefield land - and it must have no strings attached. Can you provide that?" If not, tell them goodbye.

(10) Structure your organization to prevent an internal coup by paid management. Management will try to hijack the organization in order to make a living out of it.

If you want to see how battlefields have been destroyed by preservationists and government entities look at this discussion thread, "Spinning Wheels on South Mountain." It could be the furture of Franklin battlefield if you repeat the mistakes made in Maryland.