17 December 2005

Protecting Polar Bears

The numbers of polar bears aren't well known, though they're estimated to be low. What is known, is that their ecosystem is primarily based upon icebergs. They fish from the floating sea ice, and have a much harder time finding food when they are based off of solid land. Unfortunately, the area of the arctic occupied by sea ice has been shrinking with time.

Because of their threatened habitat, a few environmental groups are trying to get polar bears put onto the threatened species list.


Once a species is listed as threatened, the government is barred from doing anything to jeopardize the animal's existence or its habitat.

In the case of the polar bear, the environmentalists hope to force the government to curb U.S. emissions of greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide.

(CNN/AP)


Brilliant! It's not going to work, but it's an absolutely amazing idea to try, and 100% correct.
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5 comments:

  1. TS4:10 AM, December 17, 2005

    I think you are right, it's not going to work. I find it a bit of a naive way of going about the issue.
    But then again, it gets the attention of the press. Maybe one day journalists will find those issues interesting enough to actually start looking into them deeper.

    You can quickly gauge peoples general knowledge with the old joke:
    Why don't polar bear eat penguins?

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  2. zandperl10:00 AM, December 17, 2005

    Thomas:
    Huh, I haven't heard that one, go on.
    Reminded me to finally finish off a little post on penguins.

    BTW, half the time I see your name, I think of Seyfert galaxies, though I can never remember how to spell them. I think I smell a whiff of another future post...

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  3. TS12:25 PM, December 17, 2005

    zandperl:
    Oh, I thought this was one of the easy ones.
    OK, this is best answered by another question. Where geographically would you, under normal conditions, find polar bears and penguins?

    Since I got this name (from my wife) I always have to spell it. It's pronounced: seefort.

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  4. zandperl9:38 PM, December 17, 2005

    Oh duh! I guess I don't have much general knowledge! :-P I have heard that one, I guess I was in the mindset that you were telling a joke, and I was waiting for the punchline.

    And good for you for taking your wife's name! :) I think I'm the last of my family with my last name, so at the least I want my first child to have it, though I wouldn't mind a future spouse to take it. I've joked with my boyfriend about it, but despite us being non-traditional in other ways, I don't think I'll convince him of this one.

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  5. TS4:18 AM, December 18, 2005

    It's funny but the name has only survived because my wife's grandfather did the same.
    Several other men in the family has done the same the last eight years, when marrying a siefert girl.
    Guess we just want to get rid of our boring '*sen' names.
    'Thomas Andersen' didn't sound cool until after The Matrix came out. :-)

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