For over a hundred years these sites have been picked over, planted, and camped on.

Just because the integrity of an historical site has been compromised by the predations of scavengers and the ravages of time and weather does not mean it should no longer be protected, preserved and studied.

The antiquities of the Old World have been subjected to millenia of natural and man-made damage, yet continual improvements and innovations in technology and research techniques have resulted in new discoveries and interpretations at those sites. Surely no one would suggest that because the pyramids on the Giza plateau in Egypt have been looted, vandalized and partially dismantled over several thousand years, we should just throw up our hands and declare them to be unworthy of protection.

It's never too late to preserve what's left of our historical heritage. Who knows what the technology of the next generation will allow historical researchers to discover at these sites? Why must our generation have instant gratification in exploiting these sites? History is a common domain -- it belongs to all generations.

The more we fool around with these sites, the more we lose.