Liberty
Matters News Service
May 27, 2005
Pombo Set to File ESA Reauthorization Bill
Representative Richard Pombo (R-CA) is set to file legislation next week to reauthorize the Endangered Species Act. Key Republican leaders that include Pombo, Greg Walden (OR), Mike Crapo (ID), and Lincoln Chafee (RI) have all banned together to "modernize and strengthen the 30-year-old ESA so that it can become a more effective tool for recovering threatened and endangered species." The term "property rights" are not to be discussed, used or even considered during this process. In fact, property rights advocates have been advised by Mr. Pombo and Senator Crapo to replace "property rights" terminology with "recovery and conservation" because the mere mention of those two dreaded words might hamper their efforts to make small "fixes" to the Act. As a precursor to filing his bill, Pombo just released a new report on the failures of the implementation of the Act emphasizing the miserable species recovery rate as being the worst aspect of the ESA. Not one mention was made about how the ESA has destroyed thousands of American's lives, livelihoods and industry.
Federal Effort to Save Threatened Species
Oversight Report on ESA Implementation
Property Rights First--ESA Letter to Pombo
Middle Mississippi River Partnership
A partnership of 16 organizations including the U. S. Forest Service, U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and The Nature Conservancy, has unveiled plans that will impact 225,000 acres of woods and farmland along the Mississippi from St. Louis, MO to Cairo, Ill. The Draft Management Plan lays out methods to protect forested acres across wide stretches of the floodplain and will do so by purchasing land from "willing sellers" or use conservation easements or landowner management agreements to control use of the land adjacent to the River. The Partnership plans to educate key leaders in the area and legislators with propaganda linked to the joys of having the entire Middle Mississippi River watershed controlled by government agencies and non-government organizations and will assist local citizens and communities in developing business opportunities from tourists after their farms and businesses are regulated out of existence. The Wildlands Project marches on.
Taking Liberty Unveiled
A new program called "Taking Liberty, How Private Property is being Abolished in America" was unveiled this month by the American Land Foundation and Stewards of the Range. The program is an animated narration created by Dr. Michael Coffman that shows how much of America is owned, controlled and regulated by government. Go to www.TakingLiberty.us or call 1-800-452-6389.Capitulating to Greenmail
Another major financial institution has
caved to the demands of radical environmentalists to avoid being branded as
unfriendly to the environment. J. P. Morgan Chase & Co. has recently joined
the ranks of Citigroup and Bank of America and agreed to new business standards
based on demands from the radical Rainforest Action Network (RAN). RAN has
conducted fear and smear campaigns against the CEOs of America's biggest
corporations to force them to give in to the greens' demands to conduct their
businesses in environmentally friendly ways. RAN is an unabashed foe of
capitalism and uses guerrilla tactics to force big companies into compliance
with their views. RAN successfully stopped Burger King from buying $35 million
worth of beef from Costa Rica and Guatemala because the ranches had once been
forested. J. P. Morgan Chase will now require power plants to adhere to strict
carbon dioxide emissions standards, dictated by RAN, before issuing loans to
the companies. There will be new structures on loans for energy development and
logging and new 'no go' criteria to protect biodiversity and critical habitats.
Fraser P. Seitel writes that when he was Chase Manhattan Bank's senior vice
president responsible for the bank's philanthropic giving program, the bank
required grantees to support the private enterprise system and refused to
support any organization that opposed capitalism. How times have
changed.
Big
Banks Green Goof
Feds Working on Mississippi River Corridor
The federal government has big plans for the Mighty Mississippi. The U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) has drafted a $216 million regulatory reform package that will limit waterfowl hunting, camping and boating beginning in the upper reaches of the river and extending downstream for hundreds of miles. The feds say FWS's plan is designed to reduce human stress on the "fragile" river environment. "What we're striving for is balance," said Jim Nissen, manager of FWS in La Crosse, Wisconsin. "We want people to be able to use the refuge and enjoy the critters." However, FWS plans to limit overnight camping to main channel islands and shorelines and anyone with a blood alcohol level of 0.08 would be banned from camping. Boaters could use only electric motors and must obey a 5-mph speed limit on 14,500 backwater acres. No-hunting zones would increase from 7 to 13, encompassing 5,322 acres. Zones where waterfowl hunting is prohibited would increase from 15 to 21 and hunters would be limited to 25 shells. "This is big stuff. It really gouges a lot of folks," said Ron Nicklaus, of Genoa, WI. "It [the River] doesn't belong to the Fish and Wildlife Service. It belongs to the folks," he said. Big Changes for Big Muddy