LA Weekly

I have no doubt that the seemingly trivial names of these creatures -- the unarmored stickleback fish, the red-legged frog and the infamous spotted owl -- have allowed a man like Richard Pombo, Republican Congressman of Tracy, to stir up enough bi-partisan support to pass a House bill gutting the Endangered Species Act Thursday.

The future of supporting legislation in the Senate is uncertain, as our earth-lover in the Republican camp, Lincoln Chafee of Rhode Island, oversees the Senate Resources Committee. But if it happens, it will because environmental groups failed to make the argument that we protect endangered species not just because we have deep affection for red-legged frogs, but because we species die off it means we're next. I'm not saying they didn't try. I'm saying we all failed.

The wetlands of the Gulf Coast and the mangroves of Thailand are just two examples. Had these habitats been protected for the sake of seabirds and marine life, as they should have been, the storm surge of Katrina and the blast of the tsunami would both have been slowed by their presence.

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