Founded in 1987 and based in Oakland, California the Pacific Institute is an independent, nonpartisan think-tank studying issues at the intersection of development, environment, and security.The Seattle Post Intelligencer editorial page didn't hold back in opining on Monday's federal appeals court rejection of a Bush Administration salmon restoration plan.
In strong and appropriate terms, a federal court has rejected the false ways the administration tried to revise science and the law to ignore the role of four lower Snake River dams in destroying salmon runs. The administration claimed the dams had to be treated as part of the natural landscape. A 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals panel ruled the feds had indulged themselves in "sleight of hand," manipulation and a uniquely "cramped view" of their ability to protect endangered species.
Thanks to reader TER for sending the editorial, which you can read in full here. I visited Seattle for the first time in February. It is a fantastic city. And from Native American carvings to the Pike Place Market to top-notch restaurants, there's no denying salmon's role in city's culture, so I'm not surprised that the PI wasn't pulling punches on this one.
And the trip from Opinion to Comics takes us from salmon to polar bears. Today's Sylvia (definitely one of the more underrated strips out there) muses about not talking about the polar bear (hat-tip to Michael Halpern at UCS) Click the cartoon for the punchline.
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