Significant Pursuit by Renaissance Guy

     Do you care about Eskimos?  Do you respect their opinions?  Be very careful how you answer that question.

     You see, representatives of the Native peoples of the North do not want polar bears listed as an endangered species.  Their culture and their livelihood is at stake if they are prevented by law from hunting the bears.  Usually the folks who support green causes also defend the rights of Native Americans.  But not this time.

     Despite the fact that there are lots of polar bears–apparently thousands more than there were in the 1970’s, some environmentalists want them to be protected as an endangered species.  Why?  Because global warming will supposedly cause the Arctic ice to melt, which will give the polar bears no place to live.  At least that’s the rationale they usually give.  Their real reasons are threefold:  (1) to force the Bush administration to admit that global warming is occurring, (2) to demand that factories shut down, (3) to stop all current and future drilling for oil  (Source:  Neal Boortz, “The Truth About Polar Bears“)

     So now they’ve done it.  The U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service has added the polar bear to the list of threatened species.  They have classified a species whose population has grown as a threatened species.  Why?  Because their crystal ball, also known as a computer model, tells them that the Arctic ice will continue to melt and a lot of polar bears are going to die.    

     No wonder the Wall Street Journal editors call it a melodrama.