Where Eagles Dare

You’ve probably heard that the Bald Eagle was removed from the endangered species list this week. The announcement was rather timely, allowing the media to paste patriotic eagle pictures all over the place around the Fourth of July. It also came not too long after Rachel Carson’s 100th birthday. Carson, author of Silent Spring, was the driving force in saving the eagles, when she showed how pesticides were responsible for thinning raptor eggshells. She passed away several years after Silent Spring was published, so she couldn’t see the eagle’s victorious recovery. Should we be celebrating in her absence? Is this really a victory at all?

As the Los Angeles Times reports, the eagles are recovering while other species are more endangered than ever. What’s the deal? It seems our president only likes to save species when they are symbols of patriotic strength:

"It’s wonderful the bald eagle is recovering - one of the most charismatic and best funded species ever," said Jamie Rappaport Clark, a former director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service who now works for Defenders of Wildlife, an advocacy group. "But what’s happening with the other species? This administration has starved the endangered species’ budget. It has dismantled and demoralized its staff."

Bryan Arroyo, acting assistant director of endangered species for the Fish and Wildlife Service, acknowledges a 30% vacancy rate in the program’s staff, and the fact that the agency’s top position has been left unfilled for more than a year.

"We have a national deficit, and we are in the midst of a war," he said. "We have to live within the president’s budget."

The Bush administration has added 58 species to the endangered list, 54 of those in response to litigation.

By comparison, 231 mammals, birds, fish, reptiles, insects and plants were protected by the president’s father, George H.W. Bush, during his four years in office.

I guess we knew he didn’t exactly take after his daddy. It is bad enough that species that need protection aren’t making it on to the list, but even the ones that are on the list are getting screwed:

Beyond the reluctance to list new species, a bottleneck is weakening efforts to save those already listed. Some 200 of the 1,326 officially endangered species are close to expiring, according to environmental groups, in part because funds have been cut for their recovery.

Some species are being removed from the lists, as well. In the case of the Bald Eagle, this is assumed to be a good thing. In other cases, removal from the list may have been more in the interests of developers, rather than the species in question.

So, if you were an eagle, how would you be reacting to this news?

Maybe throw a kegger?

(Click the comic to read the whole thing, by J. Jaques at Questionable Content.)

Or maybe assume you have the upper hand now, and start taking revenge on those negligent humans?

(Click on the image to play Nuclear Eagle and read the review and hints just posted at JayIsGames.com, or click here to go directly to the game, created by Brad Borne. I usually prefer to click through the review; Jay uses classy and clean popup windows to start the games, eliminating some of the flashy and distracting ads.)

I must warn you, this game is quite violent and bloody, and will likely bring out the worst in your carpel tunnel syndrome. But there is something about flinging around fuel trucks, exploding things and feeding screaming citizens to your hungry eaglets that makes it fairly irresistible. It’s about time the eagles got one back!

Finally, here’s a bonus video, that has nothing to do with this post, except for my borrowing the title. I’m not sure what the video has to do with the song, in fact. Regardless of meaning, I believe everyone needs a little Misfits in their day:

It would make a pretty decent theme song for revenge-seeking nuclear eagles, though, don’t you think?

Eagle image via Creativity+ on Flickr, comic via J. Jaques at Questionable Content, Nuclear Eagle via Armor Games, and YouTube video by FellatingGnome. (Ok, I just liked his curious handle.)