Sarah Palin: Enemy of Polar Bears

So, like many of you I learned yesterday that John McCain is aiming to put a gun-totin', beauty pageant winnin', hockey mom one 72-year-old's heartbeat away from being the leader of the free world. After I stopped laughing, I decided to spend my time learning about Ms. Palin, both the good and the bad.

But I didn't have time to comb over some of the lesser-reported parts of her 18-month tenure as a state-elected official. That's why I have a twin brother. Tim emailed me a link that made my jaw drop. I am now sure that McCain will lose the support of all the fans of the Golden Compass, because Palin is a blatant enemy of nature's white-furred warrior, the polar bear.

And why, you may ask, does Ms. Palin want to end the threatened species listing for polar bears? According to the article:

She and other Alaska elected officials fear a listing will cripple oil and gas development in prime polar bear habitat off the state's northern and northwestern coasts.

Palin argued there is not enough evidence to support a listing. Polar bears are well-managed and their population has dramatically increased over 30 years as a result of conservation, she said.

Really? With all the ice melting in the arctic, I would think we would want to do all we can to help save animals that can be as cute and cuddly as this:

(Sea) Lions, and Penguins, and (Polar) Bears! Oh my!

The Bush administration is slowly taking steps in acknowledging global warming. And you know what caused such a political shift? Polar bears. Behold the power of the cute animal. Due to the climactic changes in the Arctic, the beloved figure of winter Coca-Cola commercials everywhere is in a real-life battle to survive. Tom Brokaw had a special about this a few months ago, and steadily the polar bear is getting more coverage.

Cute animals have a way of tugging at our heartstrings that is almost mythical. I’ve made a list of movies that have made me cry and most deal exclusively with a cute animal: Bambi, Homeward Bound, Black Beauty, White Fang, and Babe. [Sidenote: I am actually shocked a Bambi defense hasn’t emerged in a court of law. If I was sitting on a jury for a murder case and the defense brought up the fact that the defendant saw Bambi when s/he was five and was traumatized for life – I would buy it.] And I refuse to see Old Yeller.

I reckon most people are the same. At the multiplex some little penguins in their own tuxes beat out the famous tux-clad James Bond. Well one explanation is that the penguins in Happy Feet are just a lot cuter than Daniel Craig.

Considering that 2007 is an El Nino year, I think we should all brace for some dicey weather. And according to this poll, 70% of Americans aren’t optimistic about the climate. [Sidenote: Also this poll claims 25% of Americans expect Jesus Christ to return... um, yeah.] But if the cute animals are what it takes to get the Bush administration doing anything about global warming, more power to them.