The Alliance for the Wild Rockies (AWR) filed a lawsuit, on Monday, in a challenge to "the U.S. Forest Service's decision to go forward with three road-building and logging projects in occupied habitat for the endangered Cabinet-Yaak grizzly bear. According to the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, the Cabinet-Yaak grizzly bear is almost certainly going extinct and roads pose the most imminent threat to these bears."
Do these government departments / bureaus ever talk to - or listen to - each other?
Here you have the FWS - part of the Department of the Interior - whose "... mission is, working with others to conserve, protect and enhance fish, wildlife, and plants and their habitats ..." stating that building roads through the Cabinet-Yaak area is contributing to the decimation of the grizzly population. A population, by the way, that is limited to only 5 areas in the western United States and is estimated (April, 2007) to number less than 50 individuals in what is known as the Cabinet-Yaak Recovery Zone. This zone consists of the Cabinet Mountains and Yaak Valley.
Now, we add the USFS, part of the Department of Agriculture - but funded through the Department of the Interior. Their mission "... is to sustain the health, diversity, and productivity of the Nation’s forests and grasslands to meet the needs of present and future generations." Doesn't sound incompatible to me? And yet, in practice, the left hand certainly has different goals than the right hand (non-politically speaking).
The USFS projects, which AWR is challenging, include:
Commercial thinning on 780 acres, regeneration harvest on 398 acres, prescribed burning only on 691 acres, 5.5 miles of new permanent roads, and 2 miles of temp roads in Little Beaver Drainage;
Commercial timber harvest on 2,506 acres and prescribed fire on 3,148 acres in Miller West Fisher; and
Timber harvest, prescribed burning, pre-commercial thin, and access mgmt changes in the Grizzly Planning Subunit.
The full complaint (PDF file) can be found on the AWR website.
This will be my third year participating in this exciting event. Imagine! Thousands of bloggers, around the world, united - if only for one day - in one idea. For 2009, the topic upon which we are all focused is Climate Change.
For those of you unfamiliar with Blog Action Day, let me simply quote the source:
Founding Story
Blog Action Day was founded by Collis & Cyan Ta'eed in the summer of 2007. With the support of their team at Envato in Australia as well as numerous volunteers, they recruited over 20,000 bloggers to write about the issue of Environment on October 15, 2007 - making the first Blog Action Day an immediate and quite unexpected success.
In 2009, Collis & Cyan asked the team at Change.org, the world's leading blog network for social issues, to take over responsibility of Blog Action Day and expand its reach. We were honored to accept the offer.
Preparing for Blog Action Day 09 has been a true team effort, and we would like to thank the many people who have made it possible, including Happy Cog West for the beautiful site design, Brian Potstra for the pixel-perfect logo, and Seth Brau for the awesome animated Blog Action Day 09 video.
My 'personal relationship' with the Kennedy family began the weekend after / of my 7th birthday. When our birthdays fell during our mother's work week, we celebrated over the weekend. The year that I turned 7, my birthday fell on a Wednesday. That weekend saw the funeral of our 35th president.
After all these years, I remember standing in front of a small black-and-white screen. I remember a riderless horse and a flag-draped coffin. I remember 2 very young, very small children watching the passing of this box that held their father's body. I remember my heart breaking and tears rolling down my cheeks. This was the first death I had experienced in my young life; it left a mark.
Less than 5 years later, I would watch in horror as Robert Kennedy died in a hotel kitchen. (Technically, he died a day later, after extensive surgery at a Good Samaritan Hospital in Los Angeles.) I couldn't believe that another son, another promising life, had been taken from this family. It just seemed too cruel. (I would quickly develop a dislike for the father who, in my opinion, pushed his sons into the political life to which he had aspired in vain. And don't get me started about what he did to Rosemary!)
It wasn't long before the youngest son made headlines.
Chappaquiddick and Mary Jo Kopechne - the event killed a young woman, a presidential career, and perhaps, a father. (Joe Sr.'s death, almost exactly 6 years after John's assassination, less than 18 months after Robert's, and 4 months - to the day - after Chappaquiddick, made me wonder if his heart had simply broken with the knowledge that no other Kennedy would sit in the Oval Office during his lifetime.)
Projecting what many of us felt at the time, I hoped that Ted wouldn't seek presidential office. The Kennedy sons seemed to wear a bullseye, borne of a strong belief in social justice, equality for all citizens, and - most dangerously for John and Robert - the destruction of the mafia. They were fighting an uphill battle against powerful organizations.
To this day, I wonder if Ted Kennedy's problems with alcohol and women weren't a subconscious way of making himself a smaller target. Although the plane crash in 1964, as Mark reminds me, could have been an object lesson - long before 'they' got to Robert. Who knows?!
Even after his father's death and the death of that pressure to please Joe Sr., Ted sought the presidency. Much has been made of his hesitant answer to the question "Why do you want to be President?" Yet, the tape of the conversation belies much of that:
It's easy to admire Ted Kennedy for his vote against the Iraq War. But those of us of a certain age, as it were, won't forget his work to pass the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Voting Rights Act of 1965, the 1990 Americans With Disabilities Act, the 1993 Family and Medical Leave Act and the Kennedy-Hatch law of 1997. Ted had his hand in the establishment of OHSA, as well.
I am sad to watch the passing of the last son of Joe and Rose. Yet, I am happy to have grown up in 'his time' and to know that Edward Moore Kennedy - of all his brothers - "lived to comb grey hair."
I read the above-titled press release with no small measure of joy.
Issued today, by Earthjustice.org, it explains the memo sent, by the White House Chief of Staff, to the heads of all executive departments and agencies. Effective immediately, all pending regulations are stopped and the rules must be reviewed by new agency heads in the Obama administration. A good start.
However, many of what they call midnight regulations, snuck in under cover of dark, were published before Obama took office and before the Emanuel memo was issued.
There are still many in Congress who support what Bush tried to do to the environment and endangered species in this country. President Obama's administration will not have an easy time, undoing the mess that was left for them. I urge you to join me and let your voice be heard.
Take a minute, if you would, and send your message urging President Obama to act: Five Important Ways to Break with the Bush Legacy.
1. Allow gray wolves in the northern Rockies to fully recover before removing federal protections
2. Protect Appalachian streams from being buried by mountaintop removal rubble
3. Restore oversight by wildlife scientists to the Endangered Species Act
4. Keep Western public lands free from oil and gas drilling
Since my last *holiday* post, I've been thinking about resolutions.
Admittedly, there are several things I'd like to change in the New Year. Some are a matter of willpower; others are more along the lines of get-started-now and it'll take care of itself. So, here we go:
Stop smoking I don't usually make this resolution, because it's the first one I break. But this year, I think I'll add an alternate activity to compensate.
Clean House Every Day It doesn't take long to keep a tiny apartment clean, when you do a little every day. I used to get up at 3:00am, make Mark's breakfast and pack his lunch, clean the kitchen, dust the furniture, clean the bathroom, scrub the floors, and vacuum the carpet - every day. It took me less than 2 hours. Then, the rest of the day was mine. (I don't want to get up at 3:00am again, but I do like having everything neat and tidy.)
Exercise This is a two-fold resolution. I need to get into better shape and it will give me something more constructive to do when I think I need a cigarette.
Edit Every Day Over the last few months, I have developed a bad habit of putting off *going to work* until the end of the month. Then, I have several days of manic, no-sleep work that burns me out for the first 2/3 of the next month. So, at the end of the month, I have several days of . . . You get the idea!
Bake Once a Week We both love biscuits and coffee cake and fresh bread. Not to mention, cookies and cakes and brownies. With the ever-increasing prices of - everything - it's just practical to make some things at home. And you just can't beat the smell of anything baking in the oven.
Work on JMark Afghans I have gotten involved in so many other things, that I've been spending less time with the website. For 2009, I want to add the FAQ section, Glossary, and completely revise the Photo Albums. Not to mention, find even more great companies and products to offer our customers!
Create an Inventory for JMark Afghans, etc. I've been thinking about this one for a while. Letting customers choose a style, size, and colors for their afghan, hat, scarf, or shawl is still the foundation of JMark Afghans, etc. But, sometimes, you need a gift in a hurry. By having items in stock, I can broaden my customers' options.
Start a Topical Blog (or two) Don't get me wrong, I love Random Musings. It's a place where I can sit down and talk - about anything that crosses my mind. But, I have some very specific interests and passions which would benefit from more focused attention. They often get lost in the other posts and random thoughts.
And lastly, but most importantly:
Schedule My Time It's easy to come up with great ideas. Not so easy to follow through and get everything done. In the last couple of years, I've become rather disorganized, giving attention to whatever is screaming the loudest at the time. I'd like to have a schedule, so that everything I want to do gets its fair share of attention and I'm not chasing my tail from dawn to dusk.
On that note, I'm going to go have a cigarette, flop down in my recliner, and play *myFarm* on Facebook. Hey! It's not 2009, yet!
One of the things I do, when I'm not crocheting, blogging, and avoiding housework is search out and add sites to a variety of categories at Best of the Web. Currently, I'm exploring species of birds - alive and extinct. It's a rather upsetting situation sometimes.
Take, for example, the Passenger Pigeon.
Two hundred years ago, in 1808, there were documented sightings, from the likes of Audubon and Muir, putting the population of these beautiful birds in the billions. Yes, Billions - per flock.
It didn't take long for humanity to wreak its usual havoc. Less than 100 years later, the last bird was gone from the wild:
The last wild bird was a female shot on 24 March 1900 by a 14 year old boy named Press Clay. He shot this bird at his family farm near Sargents, Pike County, Ohio, USA. The stuffed skin of this female is now kept in the museum of the Ohio Historical Centre, Columbus. A few individual passenger pigeons still survived in captivity. Some in Milwaukee (Wisconsin, USA), Chicago (Illinois, USA) and some in the Cincinnati Zoological Gardens (Ohio, USA). By 1909, only the Cincinnati birds were left. These surviving birds were a female named Martha and two males of which one was named George. By the of 1910 only the female Martha survived. Martha was found dead on the floor of her cage on Tuesday 1 September 1914 at 13.00h (1.00 p.m.) precisely. Her keepers had just checked a short while previously. Martha, the very last passenger pigeon, is now kept in the collection of the Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C. (Fuller 2000; Wilcove 1989)
http://www.petermaas.nl/extinct/speciesinfo/passengerpigeon.htm
Remember, this is billions of birds -- per documented flock -- wiped out in less than 100 years.
If I recall correctly, there is a lame duck in Washington who seems to think that this is the way to treat non-human residents of this planet. And, rumor has it, he was a History major.
Apparently, some lessons don't stick.
And do not get me started on the mammals that this moron is endangering!
I read an interview with soon-to-be-ex President Bush recently. He was detailing his religious beliefs. I think he missed a page or two (thousand) in the how-to-be-a-Christian manual!
Check out this press release from Defenders of Wildlife:
For Immediate Release
December 11, 2008
Contact(s) Cat Lazaroff, (202)772-3270
Bush administration takes parting shot at endangered wildlife
Last minute Endangered Species Act regulations put nation's wildlife at risk of extinction
WASHINGTON—Rushing to put in place changes it failed to secure in the past eight years, the Bush administration has finalized new Endangered Species Act (ESA) regulations today, cutting huge holes in the safety net that protects animals and plants in danger of becoming extinct.
First proposed by the Department of the Interior a little over three months ago, the new regulations will eliminate the requirement that agencies seek advice from expert biologists with federal wildlife agencies in decisions about whether dams, towers, highways and other projects will likely harm imperiled species.
"This administration’s disdain for wildlife and the environment has never been more clear than it is today," said Jamie Rappaport Clark, executive vice president of Defenders of Wildlife and former director of the Fish and Wildlife Service. "For 35 years, the Endangered Species Act has helped save and recover imperiled wildlife on the brink of extinction. Now, with this administration facing its last days, they are doing everything they can to cement their anti-environmental legacy before the Obama administration takes office."
The Bush administration’s last minute rulemaking has drawn heavy criticism from the public, lawmakers, conservation groups and newspaper editorialists around the country. More than 250,000 comments opposing the changes were submitted to the Interior Department in the 60 days it allowed for the public to respond to the changes.
But the massive public outcry seems to have fallen on deaf ears. In its push to finalize the rules before President-elect Barack Obama takes office, the department had only 15 people spend only 32 hours reading the comments, averaging mere seconds in reviewing each of the more than 250,000 comments. Department officials then ignored the major concerns raised by the comments, making only cosmetic changes to the original proposals.
Both President-elect Obama and key Democratic leaders have signaled that they will oppose the ESA changes. In addition, Defenders intends to take immediate legal action to stop these regulations.
Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne has argued that the new regulations are needed to keep the ESA from being used to limit emissions from coal power plants and other polluting sources that contribute to global warming. This continues the Bush administration’s failed approach of ignoring the problem.
"Global warming presents the greatest threat this generation has seen to ourselves, our wildlife and our environment, and yet the Bush administration has dragged its feet on addressing the impacts of a warming planet for its entire time in office," Clark said. "While the ESA by itself certainly can't provide a comprehensive solution to global warming, its protections will be essential in helping at-risk species survive a changing climate. If allowed to stand, these regulations will deprive the Obama administration of a powerful tool to protect wildlife and ecosystems from the effects of global warming."
Many of the ESA regulation changes finalized today were tried before in a failed legislative effort by former Representative Richard Pombo (R-CA), whose anti-environmental record and repeated attacks on the ESA contributed to his defeat in the 2006 elections.
"The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Marine Fisheries Service are the keepers of the flame for our threatened and endangered wildlife. They are equipped to make decisions based on looking at the whole picture for a species, on what’s happening to their habitat, their health and other significant impacts," Clark said. "It seems that the Bush administration has prioritized the interests of its industry allies over its responsibility to the public for protecting our nation’s imperiled wildlife. We will work in the courts, with Congress, and with the Obama administration to overturn these damaging regulations, so that we can begin to address the environmental neglect and damage that has been done over the last eight years."
###
Thank heaven we only have a few weeks left before sanity retakes the White House. Contact President-elect Obama and let him know that these abominations need to be reversed!
I love to play computer games - online and offline. We belong to a game club and get one game each month, at about 1/3 of the regular price, for download. Of course, there are a bunch of great sites that let you download demos or play online, so I'm never short of games to play.
Since we've added pages on Facebook, I've found a great set of games - Save the Planet! For zero out-of-pocket, I can play great games and have a positive impact on the world.
There are arcade, card, word, and strategy games, as well as the daily bonus games. Every day, one randomly selected game from each category becomes a bonus game and points are doubled for 24 hours. Why does this matter?
Points matter - beyond bragging rights - because the more one wins, the more one can donate to favorite causes. Or donate to them all. There are so many ways to win points and so many ways to help, I never want to stop playing.
Feed the Hungry with the World Food Programme. Help offset Carbon Dioxide through CarbonFund.org. Supply clean drinking water where it's needed most by helping Action Against Hunger.
Giving and helping has never been more fun! And those are just a few of the options on Facebook!
I have designed reusable shopping bags at Zazzle, and own several myself. This is something I strongly believe in - fewer plastic bags being 'born' and 'dying' every day.
Today, I found a site that offers reusable promotional bagsmade from recycled materials! Isn't that amazing!? Not only are they not adding plastic to the dump heap, they're actually pulling some of the debris out and creating eco-friendly products.
It's easy to talk-the-talk. I appreciate a person - and a company - that walks-the-walk. (Not to mention, the bags look great!)
I was working, at BOTW.org, trying to find information about endangered species. There are a number of good pages and quite a number of bad pages. But there are not many that scream at me to share them with everyone I know.
The information is absolutely amazing! I found links to what they call, alternately, flagship species and umbrella species. It explains ecoregions, projects, and ways for us average peeps to take action.
But, what I just had to share was the section on, what they call, Camera Traps. These are places, around the world, where cameras with infrared sensors capture animals in their natural habitat. See incredible images from the Amazon, Sumatra, Cambodia, Indonesia, Costa Rica, and Panama.
So many species are in so much danger - thanks to humans. It's time to look these beautiful creatures in the eye and commit to their future, in any way we can.
After all, man is primarily responsible for the threats to their habitats, their food sources, and their - need I say it - lives.
With all that I've heard in the news recently about the non-existence of the Holocaust, this is a post that I felt compelled to publish.
If you've seen "The Sound of Music" - Germany annexed Austria in March, 1938. Germany had not yet allied with Italy or attacked Poland. Those events happened in 1939.
May 3, 1938: The Flossenbürg concentration camp opens in Bavaria, Germany, near the Czech border.
May 24, 1938: The German Nuremberg Laws are extended into Austria, with the effect of having all Jew-authored and remotely anti-Nazi books removed from Austria libraries and bookstores.
July 2, 1938: Nearly 40,000 Austrian Jews are taken into protective custody.
July 21, 1938: Legislation is passed in Germany requiring identity cards for Jews.
October 27/28, 1938, the family of Herschel Grynszpan and more than 15,000 other Jews (originally from Poland) were forcibly transported out of Germany in boxcars and left at the Polish border. Grynszpan and his family end up in Paris.
November 7, 1938: The 17-year-old Grynszpan shoots a member of the German Embassy staff, Ernst vom Rath, in retaliation for the treatment of his family at the hands of the Nazis.
November 9, 1938: Ernst vom Rath dies of his wounds.
1938 WWII timeline
This was a perfect opportunity for the Third Reich. In response to the killing, (this was also used as a way to blame Jews for what happened) orders were issued throughout Germany (and other Nazi-controlled areas) to incite, encourage, and not interfere with attacks against synagogues and Jewish-owned properties.
KRISTALLNACHT – THE NOVEMBER 1938 POGROMS
Seventy years ago, on November 9–10, 1938, the Nazis staged vicious pogroms—state sanctioned, anti-Jewish riots—against the Jewish community of Germany. These came to be known as Kristallnacht (now commonly translated as “Night of Broken Glass”), a reference to the untold numbers of broken windows of synagogues, Jewish-owned stores, community centers, and homes plundered and destroyed during the pogroms. Encouraged by the Nazi regime, the rioters burned or destroyed 267 synagogues, vandalized or looted 7,500 Jewish businesses, and killed at least 91 Jewish people. They also damaged many Jewish cemeteries, hospitals, schools, and homes as police and fire brigades stood aside. Kristallnacht was a turning point in history. The pogroms marked an intensification of Nazi anti-Jewish policy that would culminate in the Holocaust—the systematic, state-sponsored murder of Jews.
Explore the Online Exhibition » (Reprinted from: The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum)
Orders were given:
From Heinrich Müller to all Gestapo offices - transmitted at 11:55 p.m., November 9, 1938:
1) Actions against Jews, especially against their synagogues, will take place throughout the Reich shortly. They are not to be interfered with; however, liaison is to be effected with the Ordnungspolizei to ensure that looting and other significant excesses are suppressed.
2) So far as important archive material exists in synagogues this is to be secured by immediate measures.
3) Preparations are to be made for the arrest of about 20,000 to 30,000 Jews in the Reich. Above all well-to-do Jews are to be selected. Detailed instructions will follow in the course of this night.
4) Should Jews in possession of weapons be encountered in the course of the action, the sharpest measures are to be taken. Verfugungstruppen der SS as well as general SS can be enlisted for all actions. Control of the actions is to be secured in every case through the Gestapo. Looting, larceny etc. is to be prevented in all cases. For securing material, contact is to be established immediately with the responsible SD...leadership. Addendum for Stapo Cologne: In the Cologne synagogue there is especially important material. This is to be secured by the quickest measures in conjunction with SD.
This is just one early example of the intent and practice of the Third Reich against Jews. If you look at the timeline link, you'll see that Britain and France and the United States were informed and aware of the activities of the German military. By and large, their response was to offer Hitler territories around the world in exchange for his not attacking closer targets. History tells us how well that worked.
If you are not familiar with this period in history - please review the links provided. If you are familiar with the early Hitlerian years, please share with everyone you know.
As long as we allow people - anywhere in the world - to claim that it never happened, the chances that history will repeat itself increase exponentially!
If you have a blog, this is a wonderful use of your time and energy. I participated last year and am excited about posting again this year.
This is a perfect opportunity to share with your readers - what you know, how you help, and what they can do. There is no single way or perfect answer. Together all things are possible.
One huge misconception is that it takes legislators and laws to make a difference. Another is that it takes huge amounts of money to have an impact. The truth is much simpler.
On October 15th, join thousands of bloggers, and tens of thousands of their readers, in bringing the issue of poverty - in your country and around the world - to the forefront.
Read and write about truths, myths, and ideas. Contribute your energy and, if you can, more.
For many years, National Breast Cancer Awareness Month (NBCAM) has promoted early detection and treatment. Absolutely nothing wrong with regular check-ups. Cancer, if curable, is most curable in the early stages. (We learned that with Mark's lung cancer.)
Several well-established organizations have questioned the actions and motives of NBCAM and the pharmaceutical company behind it. I guess that it's a bit iffy when the company that makes the primary drugs approved for treating breast cancer is busily pushing 'think pink' activities. Rumor has it that more money is spent promoting these events than are actually contributed to research.
Personally, I don't know what to think. Several organizations question the apparent philanthropy that masks corporate greed. Ask the right questions before arbitarily accepting that the latest promotion is helping more than a corporate image and bottom line.
There are problems that are not being publicized by NBCAM. For example, Yoplait and rBGH, or cosmetic companies claiming to contribute a portion of the sales of their products, many of which contain estrogen-like ingredients that may actually increase the risk.
This month - and every month - make it your goal to get educated about the risks we all face everyday. Men are not immune to breast cancer, you know.
I haven't had very kind thoughts about the governor of Alaska - pretty much since I first heard about her. And my opinion just keeps getting more and more negative.
For whom, exactly, does McCain think Sarah Palin has appeal? Seriously!? Oh, that's right - those who believe that humans are more important and take priority over every other species on the planet.
Despite strong scientific, ethical and public opposition to aerial hunting, Governor Palin has…
* Proposed paying a $150 bounty for the left foreleg of each dead wolf.
* Approved a $400,000 state-funded propaganda campaign to promote aerial hunting.
* Introduced legislation to make it even easier to use aircraft to hunt wolves and bears.
From: Defenders of Wildlife Action Fund
I urge you to watch this shocking video. Chances are pretty good that - if McCain is elected - this woman will be President before the 4 years are out. Can our animal friends afford that?
I DON'T THINK SO!!
As much as I don't trust Obama and crew, I truly cannot abide the thought that this morally reprehensible person could ever reach a position of national power!
For anyone in doubt - the bible was written by man to control man's behavior - just ask King James. Mankind has evolved since those days - or at least some of mankind has.
Please! Stop buying into the nonsense that organized religion and questionable politics keeps foisting upon us! Think and live beyond yourself!
Help save the planet! For all the creatures who are trying to survive here!
I realize that I'm a little late to the party, but a friend sent a link to a very disturbing YouTube video today Kill and Destroy. (Although there are no graphic images, I've chosen to offer a link, rather than embed the video.) This is, in my humble opinion, important viewing.
After watching Kill and Destroy, I started researching the information it put forth. I am - without question - not an Obama supporter - never have been, but I prefer to have my facts straight before I blithely post something. Let me tell you - it was not difficult to find information on this topic!
A quick Google search turned up thousands of related pages and sites. Some of the most compelling, though I'm not sure I agree with her politics, come from Illinois nurse, Jill Stanek.
I have never trusted Obama or virtually anything that comes out of his mouth. It is my opinion that we couldn't do worse for this country than putting this man in the White House.
For more than 30 years, the Endangered Species Act has protected wildlife at risk of extinction. Now the Bush/Cheney Administration wants to eliminate vital checks and balances that are crucial to protect our polar bears, wolves and other imperiled wildlife.
Announced earlier this week, the Bush/Cheney proposal would severely limit scientific review by the Fish and Wildlife Service and National Marine Fisheries Service of projects that could harm imperiled wildlife. And it would explicitly limit the ability of these expert agencies to consider how greenhouse gas emissions from such projects could impact polar bears, wolverines and other wildlife that may go extinct due to global warming.
Instead, agencies proposing projects such as highways, dams, mines, oil or gas drilling and virtually any other activity would be allowed to decide for themselves whether a project is likely to impact any of the nearly 1,400 species currently protected by the Endangered Species Act -- without the crucial independent review now provided by scientific experts at the Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Marine Fisheries Service.
Many of these agencies do not even have biologists or other qualified staff to make such a determination.
Even worse, the new regulations would impose a brief 60-day review period, making it even less likely that anyone involved in the process will have the time or expertise to fully evaluate the potential harmful effects of a given project on sensitive wildlife or the habitat it needs to survive.
There are less than 160 days left in the Bush/Cheney Administration -- and even less time for your Members of Congress to act. Please take action now to help stop the Bush/Cheney Administration’s last-minute attempt to eliminate effective protections for the wildlife that you and I love.
Sincerely,
Rodger Schlickeisen President Defenders of Wildlife
P.S. Two years ago, Defenders led the fight that stopped Congressional legislation that would have gutted the Endangered Species Act. Now we need your help to stop the Bush Administration from trying to do the same thing. Please take action now!
Defenders of Wildlife is a national, nonprofit membership organization dedicated to the protection of all native wild animals and plants in their natural communities.
Defenders of Wildlife can be contacted at: 1130 17th Street, NW Washington, DC 20036
I am a huge fan of social networking, with pages all over the Internet. Thanks to these sites, I've managed to reconnect with friends from grade school, junior high and high school. Some of those relationships go back over 40 years.
Today I found a site for Paka and me to join - pets are welcome at Zootoo.com. Unlike some sites, it was really easy to build a profile and add pictures of Paka. I think I even found one of his 'relatives' - amazing similarities.
Meeting people and exploring profiles is fun, but Zootoo.com is much more than just socializing.
Sleepy Paka
All actions on Zootoo.com - adding photos, journaling, reviewing, asking and answering questions - earn points. Those points can be used to support the shelter and/or rescue group of your choice. In my case, I've chosen to help the Arizona Humane Society and Arizona Rescue Center.
I don't know about the Humane Society office in your area, but out here we're in trouble. There are so many abandoned cats, for example, that any new drop-offs are virtually guaranteed to be euthanized. Through my activities, which are interesting and a lot of fun, I can make a difference.
Please consider joining. Where else can you meet fellow pet lovers, get and give help with pet-parenting problems, and give to the organizations that need your help?
Every night, before I fall asleep, I read through the day's news on my phone. One of the sections I read faithfully is Health and I've noticed a dramatic increase in stories about Alzheimer's. With an aging population, more and more of us have or soon will have direct experience with this disease.
That's why the Alzheimer's Memory Walk, the nation's largest event to raise awareness and funding, is so important. According to the latest facts and figures:
As many as 5.2 million people in the United States are living with Alzheimer’s.
10 million baby boomers will develop Alzheimer's in their lifetime.
Every 71 seconds, someone develops Alzheimer’s.
Alzheimer's is the sixth-leading cause of death.
The direct and indirect costs of Alzheimer's and other dementias to Medicare, Medicaid and businesses amount to more than $148 billion each year.
Advances are being made. I read about a nasal spray in development that has shown significant improvement for patients with pre-Alzheimer's cognitive impairment. Such research and development needs continuing support and funding.
Walks are planned in over 600 communities - including an Iraq Memory Walk! It couldn't be easier to join or start your own team:
Sign up as a team with your friends, family, organization, or register as an individual participant.
Create your own Web site and personalize it with pictures and stories.
Set a fundraising goal and send e-mails to everyone you know asking them to join and support you.
Walk and celebrate the difference you are making in the millions of lives affected by Alzheimer’s.
All the tools you need - including Team Captain Kits - are available on the Alzheimer's Association website.
Experts differ in opinions as to the cause. Some blame overfishing, which is forcing the penguins further out to find food and leaving them vulnerable to stronger ocean currents. Another theory, that global warming has altered ocean currents, created more cyclones, and made the seas rougher. As most of the birds are newly out of the nest, either of these make a great deal of sense.
So many animals are at risk these days, thanks to global warming and pollution, it's so sad to see the young ones in trouble.
According to the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, the Cabinet-Yaak grizzly bear is almost certainly going extinct and roads pose the most imminent threat to these bears."
Now, we add the USFS, part of the Department of Agriculture - but funded through the Department of the Interior. Their mission "... is to sustain the health, diversity, and productivity of the Nation’s forests and grasslands to meet the needs of present and future generations." Doesn't sound incompatible to me? And yet, in practice, the left hand certainly has different goals than the right hand (non-politically speaking).
One of the things I do, when I'm not crocheting, blogging, and avoiding housework is search out and add sites to a variety of categories at 
