This story caught the eye of far right blargher Kevin Binversie. Which is great, its a simple story that holds interest for many people throughout the country. It shows the dangers of mixing eco systems and the consequences of just dumping your "pet" anywhere when you are done with them. The problem comes in when Binversie poorly attempts humor at the end with a shot at the left:
No word yet if any environmentalists have yet sued to halt it, but it’s early.Now let's explain how even stories like this show us how disingenuous and deceitful our friends on the right are.
1. It absolutely is NOT early, as in many things it is way too late:
These snakes were determined to be an established species in 2000. It is believed that the snakes were originally pets that found their way into Everglades National Park.The Everglades, known as the river of grass, is a vast area with a climate perfect for the pythons to hide and thrive. And thrive they do: The largest Burmese python ever found in Florida -- its 17 foot, 6-inch carcass weighed 164.5 pounds -- was harvested in the Everglades in August. Researchers at the University of Florida found 87 eggs inside the snake.Friar told CNN last year that it is believed "tens of thousands" of Burmese pythons live in the Everglades.
The snakes prey on native wildlife such as the endangered Key Largo wood rat and the endangered wood stork. The largest prey, Friar told CNN, was a 76-pound deer that was found in the stomach of a 16-foot python a few months ago.Earlier this year, researchers at Virginia Tech University, Davidson College and the U.S. Geological Survey reported that populations of rabbits and foxes have disappeared and numbers of raccoons, opossums and bobcats have dropped as much as 99%.
2. It is not the left that has actually exacerbated the problem it is his masters on the right:
At issue is a proposed rule from the Interior Department that would designate the Burmese python and eight other snake species as “injurious,” which would make it illegal to import them or transport them across state lines.Yes you read that right, the republicans in congress fought the ban on importing snakes into Florida as a "job killing regulation" that would "threaten a million law-abiding citizens".
The ban has been a pet cause of Florida Sen. Bill Nelson, who called for Interior to take action based on estimates that 100,000 or more pythons are dwelling in the Everglades, where scientists say they feast on herons, egrets and other native species.
The issue exploded into a media sensation six years ago after a photographer captured an image of a decapitated python that had burst after swallowing a 6-foot alligator. Some scientists have warned that the snakes might eventually spread throughout much of the U.S., with potentially suitable climate for some species existing as far north as coastal Delaware or Oregon.
But in a report released Wednesday, Republicans on the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee denounced the proposed rule as part of the Obama administration’s “regulatory tsunami.” They said the snake ban could “devastate a small but thriving sector of the economy.”
Snake breeder and herpetologist David Barker testified at a committee hearing Wednesday that the rule would hurt the livelihoods of people like him.
“It threatens as many as a million law-abiding American citizens and their families with the penalty of a felony conviction for pursuing their livelihoods, for pursuing their hobby, or for simply moving with their pet to a new state,” Barker told the panel.
Barker also warned about the impact of the rule on existing pets. “What’s going to happen to the million or so animals that suddenly are without value?” he said. “The implementation of the proposed action may precipitate the greatest slaughter of pet animals in American history.”
As Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Md.) says:
“With all due respect to our witnesses from the Association of Reptile Keepers, repealing a so-called job-killing regulation to allow more pythons, boa constrictors and anacondas into the United States is not the kind of bold, bipartisan solution Americans are looking for to help the economy,”
Of course looking back on it we know that their plan was to obstruct everything, because there is a black man in the White House!
So remember that when they say in Wisconsin that they want to protect the environment on the upcoming Mine bill discussions and PLEASE take everything you read from the righty bloggers with a HUGE grain of salt!
I love it, talk like a pirate day, avast ye dastardly blarghars
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