National Geaographic and the E.S.A.

You know how in my post about Reader's Digest and National Geaographic I said that N.G. gained a lot of respect from me? Well, they just lost it. Every last bit, and then some. E.S.A. stands for Endangered Species Act, but it should be called the Endangering Species Act. In this issue of N.G., they dedicate one section to the glorification of the worthless Act. They claim that it helped save several different species, including the American alligator and grizzly bear. However, the alligator was saved by a drop in the demand for its skins, which took place BEFORE the E.S.A. was passed, while the grizzly bear that was supposedly saved was only ONE POPULATION. N.G. also says that polar bears are endangered by habitat loss, which they most certainly are not, despite being on the endangered list. They have a picture of one with the number 3500 beside it, which implies there are only 3500 left. However, if you looked closely at one of the little tiny notes, you would see the words "in Alaska." The notes really are tiny, and located so that the average reader wouldn't look at them, since the picture and number are all that most folks care about. The environmentalist argument is that loss of sea ice threatens them, but they happen to be perfectly capable of living on land, and are common in northern Canada. 11 out of 13 populations are stable or rising. Wow, funny how easy it is to go off-subject. Anyhow, the ESA actually encourages elimination of species. Here's how it works: When the government finds out about an endangered species on your land, they essentially take it from you, by not allowing you to do anything
with it. In California for instance, you're not allowed to build a firebreak to protect your home from a wildfire. Why? It might disturb the kangaroo rat! What? You would rather save your house than avoid harming a kangaroo rat?! Get your priorities right! This idea causes harm to the rat by not allowing development for protection, which does two things: either the owner wishes to protect his/her home, so they kill the critter before the Feds find out, or the Feds find out, regulate the land, and a fire kills the things. Same with a certain tree farmer. The gov. discovered a rare type of woodpecker on a section of his land, and, of course, regulated it. He understandably wanted to use the rest of his land (which NG villifies) and promptly clear-cut the rest of his land. I would probably do the same thing.