RSN: Obama Administration Sides with Hunters, Takes Aim at Wolf Protection Ruling, People of Israel: You Should Know...

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Robert Reich | People of Israel: You Should Know...

Robert Reich, Robert Reich's Facebook
Reich writes: "People of Israel: You should know that the new-found alliance between your Prime Minister and our Republican Party, the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, and some wealthy right-wing Jews here (such as billionaire Sheldon Adelson), is poisoning the relationship between Israel and the United States."
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Jeffrey Toobin | A Cynical Challenge to the ACA
Jeffrey Toobin, The New Yorker
Toobin writes: "This week, the Court will hear arguments in a momentous case, King v. Burwell, a challenge to a central feature of the Affordable Care Act. But, in contrast to other landmarks in Supreme Court history, the King case is notable mostly for the cynicism at its heart. Instead of grandeur, there is a smallness about this lawsuit in every way except in the stakes riding on its outcome."
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The Fear of Ebola Led to Slayings - and a Whole Village Was Punished
Amy Brittain, The Washington Post
Brittain writes: "Nearly six months after the Womey massacre, the repercussions have been far-reaching. When the military invaded and looted the village after the killings, thousands fled their homes. More than a dozen died from malnutrition after living for months in the surrounding bushland."
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Private Police Carry Guns and Make Arrests, and Their Ranks Are Swelling
Justin Jouvenal, The Washington Post
Jouvenal writes: "The number of 'special conservators of the peace' - or SCOPs, as they are known - has doubled in Virginia over the past decade to roughly 750, according to state records. The growth is mirrored nationally in the ranks of private police."
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A Brutal Beating Wakes Attica's Ghosts
Tom Robbins, The New York Times
Robbins writes: "Looming over everything at Attica is the riot. The state commission that investigated the September 1971 uprising memorably described it as the bloodiest single encounter, Indian massacres aside, between Americans since the Civil War."
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The Black Lives Matter Movement Needs the Black Panthers
Deena Guzder, Al Jazeera America
Guzder writes: "Protests over police killings of unarmed African-Americans continue to erupt across the nation, largely thanks to the organizing efforts of the Black Lives Matter movement. As Black History Month draws to a close, it's worth asking what the movement can learn from earlier organizing efforts - in particular, the Black Panther Party."
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Obama Administration Sides with Hunters, Takes Aim at Wolf Protection Ruling
Renee Lewis, Al Jazeera America
Lewis writes: "The Obama administration and two states plan to appeal a federal judge's order that returned legal protection to gray wolves in the Great Lakes region."
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Senator Markey & ESA

EDWARD J. MARKEY MASSACHUSETTS		218 RUSSELL SENATE OFFICE BUILDING WASHINGTON, DC 20510 (202) 224-2742
	United States Senate January 30, 2015

Thank you for writing to me about the Endangered Species Act status of the gray wolf. I appreciate hearing from you on this important matter.

Last year, I lead a bipartisan group of over 50 lawmakers in calling on U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to continue protections for the gray wolf under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). In 2011, I wrote Secretary of Interior Ken Salazar expressing my opposition to the delisting of the gray wolf from the Endangered Species Act (ESA). In the Senate, I will continue to monitor this ongoing situation and advocate for the protection of the gray wolf. The backbone of the ESA has always been its commitment to use science to protect species from extinction. Science, not politics, should guide the conservation and management of the gray wolves in America.

The continuing recovery of the gray wolf has been one of the greatest success stories of the ESA. Through several decades of rigorous federal protection, the gray wolf population has risen to roughly 6,100 across three Great Lakes states and seven Western states. However, the recovery of gray wolves still faces challenges today and it is premature to take it off the ESA list.

The gray wolf once ranged across most of North America, Europe, and Asia. As a keystone predator, restoring the gray wolf through the Endangered Species Act is crucial to the long-term function of ecosystems. Reintroducing wolves to the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem in the 1990s has had far-reaching benefits. Fear of wolves prevented elk from using areas with aspen trees, which allowed the aspen to grow up, and this in turn has been good for songbirds and beavers. Yellowstone wolves has helped grow the local tourism economy in parts of the Northwest United States. Gray wolf recovery in the lower 48 states is a wildlife success story in the making, and I will encourage my Senate colleagues and the relevant federal and state agencies to continue to work toward greater recovery of this important species.

While in the U.S. House of Representatives, I served as the Ranking Member on the Natural Resources Committee and protecting our nation's wildlife has been one of my top priorities. I am honored to have received a 100 percent score from the Humane Society of the United States as well as a 100 percent score since joining the Senate from the League of Conservation Voters because of my voting record on animal welfare and environmental issues. In the Senate, I will continue fighting to protect America's wildlife and our environment.

Thank you again for contacting me about this issue. If I can be of further assistance, please do not hesitate to contact me. To sign up for my newsletter, visit http://www.markey.senate.gov/newsletter. You can also follow me on Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube.

Sincerely,

Edward J. Markey
United States Senator

 

 

RSN: The Horrors of Ferguson, FBI Arrests NM Sheriff, Son in Armed Assault of Motorist, Conviction in a Post Katrina Murder by Police

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FRANTICALLY TRYING TO GET YOUR ATTENTION ON DONATIONS! We are 5 days into the May fundraiser and the numbers are dreadfully low. We are doing everything in our power to get your attention to the fundraising campaign. Pull off the info-superhighway for a moment and put a few bucks behind Reader Supported News. Thanks to all. / Marc Ash, Founder Reader Supported News

Okay, I'll make a donation.

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Glenn Greenwald | The Horrors of Ferguson

Glenn Greenwald, The Intercept
Greenwald writes: "The intensive militarization of America's police forces is a serious menace about which a small number of people have been loudly warning for years, with little attention or traction."
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Missouri Police Fire Teargas at Ferguson Protesters Defying Curfew
Jon Swaine and Rory Carroll, Guardian UK
Excerpt: "Protesters chanted 'no justice, no curfew' and 'we are Mike Brown' as they gathered at midnight at one end of the street where unrest has centred. Dozens of officers, some carrying assault rifles, were still poised at the other end more than half an hour after the curfew began."
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FBI Arrests NM Sheriff, Son in Armed Assault of Motorist
Joseph Kolb, Reuters
Kolb writes: "FBI agents arrested a New Mexico sheriff and his son on Friday after the lawman allegedly pistol-whipped a motorist following a high-speed car chase."
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The Peace Corps' Sexual Assault Secret
Tim Mak, The Daily Beast
Mak writes: "The Peace Corps’ internal watchdog is publicly criticizing the agency for not releasing sexual assault records, which they say is disrupting oversight of an agency that has struggled in the past to protect its volunteers."
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Conviction in a Post Katrina Murder by Police
Kevin McGill, Associated Press
McGill writes: "For a second time, a former New Orleans police officer has been sentenced to more than 17 years in prison for burning the body of a man shot to death by another New Orleans police officer in the chaotic days following Hurricane Katrina."
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Idaho Suspends Wilderness Wolf-Killing Plan in Face of Court Challenge
Defenders of Wildlife
Excerpt: "Faced with a legal challenge by conservationists and an imminent hearing before a federal appeals court, the Idaho Department of Fish and Game ('IDFG') has abandoned its plan to resume a professional wolf-killing program in the Frank Church-River of No Return Wilderness during the coming winter."
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After Bundy, Ranchers Continue to Bully Federal Government Without Consequence
Travis Bruner, The Wildlife News
Bruner writes: "While the Bureau of Land Management is required by federal law to protect wildlife habitat on our public lands, the agency has been woefully lax in addressing the combined impacts of livestock grazing and drought on habitat essential to sage-grouse, antelope, mule deer and countless other species."
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Romeo: A Lone Wolf’s Tragedy in Three Acts

Romeo: A Lone Wolf’s Tragedy in Three Acts

Stop the Wolf Slaughter!

Please add your name to speak out for the protection of wolves that keep the ecosystem healthy....deadline Dec. 17th.

Center for Biological Diversity

The public comment period on the fed's plan to strip Endangered Species Act protection for wolves ends tomorrow!

Take action today using the form below to tell them to keep America's wolves protected.

Stop the Plan to Slaughter Wolves

action.biologicaldiversity.org
 

Because of the government shutdown, the comment period on the proposal to strip Endangered Species Act protection from America's wolves has been extended to Dec. 17. Your voice is needed now more than ever -- please take action below and share this action with your social networks.

Killing for the sake of KILLING

Predators ensure the health of the ecosystem by culling the weakest, among other things.

There is no scientific basis for hunting wolves, quite the contrary.

This is KILLING FOR THE SAKE OF KILLING.

Center for Biological Diversity

The shooter "swears he didn’t park an SUV with a dead wolf strapped to the roof on the Town Square just for the attention..."

Read the full story here: http://www.jhnewsandguide.com/print.php?art_id=10399&pid=news — This is what wolf hunting looks like. (3 photos)

Hunter parks with wolf on the roof at Square

By Mike Koshmrl, Jackson Hole, Wyoming

Date: October 18, 2013

Bill Addeo swears he didn’t park an SUV with a dead wolf strapped to the roof on the Town Square just for the attention.

Addeo sat on a bench next to his Ford Excursion across the street from the Cowboy bar Thursday afternoon, eager to answer questions posed by folks passing by.

“It’s a neck shot,” Addeo said. “The bottom of the neck is blown apart and there’s blood everywhere, so I didn’t want to put him in the back.”

The Hoback Junction resident killed the wolf, a black 85-pound female, that morning while elk hunting near Bondurant.

Addeo said he toted the still-warm canine to Jackson to register it at the Wyoming Game and Fish office on North Cache Street. He parked it on the Town Square, he said, while his wife was shopping.

At the time Addeo shot the wolf, she and four packmates were sitting around “satiated” after having eaten an antelope, he said.

“We saw them from about one mile away,” Addeo said. “Then we crawled to 375 yards.”
His guide, Sammy L. Coutts, had forgotten shooting sticks to rest a rifle on for a shot, so the duo needed to improvise, Addeo said.

“He kneeled down and I put it right on his shoulder,” Addeo said. “It blew the hat right off his head.”
Coutts called the Jackson Hole News&Guide on Thursday afternoon to alert the newspaper to his client’s position on the Square.

The day before, Coutts had a shot at the wolves, Addeo said, but the hunting guide’s rifle didn’t prove steady enough.

“Yesterday, Sam saw the big one at about 250 yards,” Addeo said. “He gets on the hood of his truck and misses twice.”

Coutts stewed all night.

Back on the Square, almost everybody passing by stopped for a look. Most snapped photos.

Despite the interest, nobody gave Addeo flak for putting his wolf on display.

“There hasn’t been one person that’s said anything negative,” he said. “Everybody’s happy.”

Because Addeo was hunting in Wyoming’s wolf predator zone, where there are virtually no rules, a license was not necessary. The free-fire zone encompasses about 85 percent of the state. The southern edge of the zone starts in Wilson, just south of Highway 22, for about half the year.

Addeo could have shot all five wolves if he had the opportunity. The other four packmates, however, scampered off.

“After the shot went off,” Addeo said, “we ran the draw and never saw them again.”


http://www.jhnewsandguide.com/print.php?art_id=10399&pid=news

 

 

Montana: Killing for the sake of killing

Center for Biological Diversity shared a photo.

 

Hunters have already killed 91 wolves in the northern Rockies this fall. The state of Montana issued over 6,000 permits to hunt the state's remaining 625 wol...ves-- that's more than 10 rifles aimed at every wolf in the state. We need 1,000 more wolf supporters to reach 6,000 donations and balance the odds. Give to the Center's Wolf Defense Fund today, because the life of a wolf is worth much more than $19. https://org.salsalabs.com/o/2167/p/salsa/donation/common/public/?donate_page_KEY=10348&track=E1311D1_FACE

 

 

 

Killing for the sake of killing

Center for Biological Diversity shared a photo.

 

America's wolves have already been hunted to brink of extinction once. Now the federal government wants to hand over management of wolf populations to state agencies. This year state agencies in Montana sold over 6,000 permits to hunt the state's remaining 625 wolves. Is this 'wolf management'? We're looking for 6,000 heroes who will stand up to protect wolves. Will you? Give today: https://org.salsalabs.com/o/2167/p/salsa/donation/common/public/?donate_page_KEY=10348&track=E1311C2_FACE

Stand for Wolves

Center for Biological Diversity

Stand for Wolves rallies and hearings across the country — Stand for Wolf Rallies (6 photos)

Montana: Killing for the sake of killing

Center for Biological Diversity

How much is the life of wolf worth?

In Montana, where only 625 wolves remain, a permit to kill a wolf costs just $19. More than 6,000 people in the state have already bought their permits.

Wherever they roam wolves are under attack. Help us fight back against the senseless slaughter of these animals with a gift to the Center's Wolf Defense Fund today: https://org.salsalabs.com/o/2167/p/salsa/donation/common/public/?donate_page_KEY=10348&track=E1311A_FACE

Please SHARE

Endangered Species

Remind me again why we fought to preserve the 'Union' for uneducated clowns like this - KILLING FOR THE SAKE OF KILLING!

Environmental Action

This is tragic. The first wolf seen in Kentucky for 150 years, shot dead on sight. And it's just a taste of what's to come if the U.S. Department of the Interior moves ahead with it's plan to allow #wolf hunting. Even though you hate it, like and share this image so everyone knows to send their comment to save the wolves: https://bitly.com/11dR7kG
Full story here: http://grist.org/list/hunter-shoots-the-first-endangered-wolf-seen-in-kentucky-in-150-years

Center for Biological Diversity

99 years ago the last remaining passenger pigeon died and the species was lost forever.

Today, with only about 4,000 breeding birds left, the Gunnison sage grouse is one of the most endangered birds in the U.S.

Take action by September 3 and urge the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to finalize Endangered Species Act protections for these beautiful and imperiled birds before they're gone: http://action.biologicaldiversity.org/o/2167/p/dia/action3/common/public/?action_KEY=14187#.Uh_3JZYVFwc.twitter

1,000,000 Strong Against Offshore Drilling

One of the world's most endangered species, the Mediterranean monk seal (Monachus monachus)

Of the 87 cetacean species existing worldwide (whales, dolphins and porpoises), 21 species and three subspecies have been sighted in the Mediterranean and Black Seas. Eight of these have regular populations in the Mediterranean, three subspecies are endemic to the Black Sea (i.e. not found anywhere else in the world) and 12 are visitors and appear from time to time in the Mediterranean.

Of the 9 resident species of marine mammals (8 cetaceans and the Monk seal) assessed using the IUCN Red List Criteria, 6 (66%) are threatened with extinction, amongst which the Mediterranean Monk seal, the Sperm Whale (Physeter macrocephalus) and the Short-beaked Common Dolphin (Delphinus delphis). ...

International Union for Conservation of Nature http://www.iucn.org/about/union/secretariat/offices/europe/?10367%2FSwimming-across-the-Mediterranean-and-the-Black-Seas

Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mediterranean_monk_seal

NOAA http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/species/mammals/pinnipeds/mediterraneanmonkseal.htm

Photo xray mag

Wolf Protection

Environmental Action

The history of #wolves and the The White House is not always pretty. See for yourself , and then take action here to make sure that this time, we don't hunt these amazing creatures to extinction: https://bitly.com/11dR7kG
Larger version here: http://www.environmental-action.org/blog/not-so-pretty-history-wolves-america

Center for Biological Diversity

Wherever the federal government strips wolves of Endangered Species Act protection, wolves die.

Recently, a two-year-old female gray wolf wandered out of Yellowstone Park into Montana where she was shot on sight.

This has to stop. Help us fight wolf delisting. Donate today and SHARE this post: https://org.salsalabs.com/o/2167/p/salsa/donation/common/public/?donate_page_KEY=10240&track=E1307_FACE