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Mark Twain had a way of swatting aside the nonessentials of an issue and getting to the point: “Buy land, they’re not making it anymore.”

But we are making more people. In 1910 Blount County’s population was 20,809, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. The estimated population 100 years later is more than 123,000.

At last count, Blount County still had 584 square miles, bordered by mountains on one side and water on the other.

People have different assessments of how we deal with this population growth. How do we preserve the land while allowing people the freedom to use their property as they choose to maintain their livelihoods — including selling it for another use?

There’s a difference between private lands and public lands. There’s a difference between earning a living as a farmer or as a fishing guide or as a builder of a subdivision. There’s a difference between maintaining a standard of living as a storekeeper conducting commerce at a shopping center or as a worker at a manufacturing plant on property served by highways and utilities.

It takes all of the above, which means it takes balance.

Land use was the topic at a Raven Society program Sunday at the Blount County Public Library. There were presentations on population growth, growth patterns, the county budget, tourism and — of course — the 2010 election.

After all, the Raven Society is a political action committee. It endorses candidates. Its declared mission is to support candidates and issues that protect the rural, natural, and historic qualities of Blount County and East Tennessee by promoting the principles of smart growth.

Those principals, as espoused by the Raven Society:

• Strengthen and direct development toward existing communities;

• Preserve open space, farmland, natural beauty and critical environmental areas;

• Create walkable communities;

• Create a range of housing opportunities and choices;

• Create a mix of land uses;

• Take advantage of compact building design;

• Provide a variety of transportation choices;

• Make development decisions predictable, fair and cost-effective;

• Encourage community and stakeholder collaboration.

Nothing to quibble about there. How to accomplish those goals? There have been and will continue to be wide-ranging opinions on that.

Will a new road destroy the beauty and character of a community that makes it such a wonderful place to live and raise a family? Or is a highway an economic necessity that helps provide jobs so people can afford to feed their families and generate taxes needed to pay for community improvements, including the preservation of rural land?

Again. There’s no more land and lots more people. It’s not a question of either/or. There has to be a balance, and that can only be achieved through reasoned debate. People have different opinions. That’s why there are elections.

Make your voice be heard — vote.