student's little paper turns political

Why does this not surprise me??

LATimes report:

SELMA, Ore. — During tedious days of counting tiny Douglas fir seedlings on blackened slopes west of here, Daniel Donato never imagined his work would put him in the crosshairs of Congress. He was just studying how forests grow back after a fire. But after his research appeared in the online version of the journal Science in January, the Oregon State University graduate student began to feel like a lightning rod. A federal agency briefly yanked funding for his project, irate politicians and timber interests e-mailed Donato's dean to complain, congressmen grilled him, and professors at his own university tried unsuccessfully to keep the paper from being published in the print edition of Science. **snip** "It's a one-page research note," Donato said, referring to the paper published in Science. "It's not that earth-shattering, and it really would be very easy to put the paper in context and sort of almost trivialize it. "Instead," he said, "it's been turned into this giant political thing. It just blows me away. I never anticipated that."

Environment News Service did a story on this the day after the House passed HR 4200 with a vote of 243-182.

“The Forest Service and BLM have an abundance of existing authorities that allow for timber salvage to be completed on our public lands with the appropriate checks and balances,” said Representative Tom Udall, a New Mexico Democrat. “This represents yet another attempt by the majority in this Congress to dismantle our most paramount conservation laws.” Federal land management agencies can currently get a waiver to expedite projects from the White House Council for Environmental Quality, Udall said, “and they have never been turned down.”

Hmmm...so, currently what "they" want to happen, can happen, within the law, with appropriate checks and balances....and they've never been turned down. This sounds like something I've heard before.

I care about the environment, but I'm really not that knowledgeable about it. Actually, not at all knowledgeable. The environment isn't why I chose to highlight this from the news. I chose it because it's an MO. Get what you want at any cost. Do it through fear, (or in this case) lies and slander and/or ignoring laws. If you read this stuff you'll see...it's all about power and money with this administration. DC is so out of touch with the people. I'm worried. I worry that with Gore's documentary, and the Marriage Protection Amendment, abortion and anti-abortion fights, etc. that we will stay divided through this next campaign and upcoming elections. I feel very strongly about the above issues. But I'm not going to let any one issue blind me. That is what the Repubs are trying to do -- divide us. Divide our donations between interest groups, divide our votes, and then charge that democrats don't have a platform...don't have ideas...are flip-floppers, etc. Seriously, read Crashing the Gate if you haven't. I'm not quite finished with it, but it's a very important book! Buy it for your open-minded friends and family. Bottom line: Democrats, whether liberal, moderate, or conservative, need to unite with one goal --

We need a regime change.

Now, literally, after I post this I am going to pick up the telephone and call the Democratic Co. Committee. They are having a volunteer orientation in a couple of days and I plan to be there.