While everyone is talking about the sanctity of life a la Terri Schiavo... This appears to have gone largely unnoticed by the blogosphere: it has been reported on by the Canadian blog site POGG -EH? (Peace Order and Good Government) with links to the Humane Society of America:Bush's Interior Secretary Gale Norton has named Matthew J. Hogan to be acting director of the US Fish and Wildlife Service.What.. you've not heard of this guy, you say... cant be too bad? Well, check these credentials out:
Hogan was formerly the chief lobbyist for Safari Club International (SCI), an extreme trophy hunting organization that advocates the killing of rare species around the world.
More on SCI, which I'd never heard of til now:
The Arizona-based SCI has made a name for itself as one of the most extreme and elite trophy hunting organizations, representing some 40,000 wealthy trophy collectors, fostering and promoting competitive trophy hunting of exotic animals on five continents. SCI members shoot prescribed lists of animals to win so-called Grand Slam and Inner Circle titles. There's the Africa Big Five (leopard, elephant, lion, rhino, and buffalo), the North American Twenty Nine (all species of bear, bison, sheep, moose, caribou, and deer), Big Cats of the World, Antlered Game of the Americas, and many other contests.
Lovely sounding group... and they also go out of their way to follow the law of the land:
To complete all 29 award categories, a hunter must kill a minimum of 322 separate species and sub-species—enough to populate a large zoo. This is an extremely expensive and lengthy task, and many SCI members take the quick and easy route to see their names in the record books. They shoot captive animals in canned hunts, both in the United States and overseas, and some engage in other unethical conduct like shooting animals over bait, from vehicles, with spotlights, or on the periphery of national parks.
SCI members have even tried to circumvent federal laws to import their rare trophies from other countries. Prominent SCI hunter Kenneth E. Behring donated $100 million to the Smithsonian's Natural History Museum and, according to published reports, tried to get the museum's help in importing a rare Kara Tau argali sheep which he shot in Kazakhstan and had shipped to a Canadian taxidermist—one of only 100 Kara Tau argali sheep remaining in the world.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, now under Hogan's watch, is the agency charged with granting or denying such trophy import permits.
Trophy Hunting Advocate Named Acting Director of U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Of all the appointments Bush's Administration has done... this might be the quietest one.. but it also might be one of the most blatantly obvious of putting the lunatics in charge of the aslyum.
I dont care if he's acting director... that he should even be CONSIDERED.. much less named to the post.. even temporarily.. is an absolute outrage.