Bad time to be bringing up polar bears, Baird.

[tuvor]

Polar bears caught up in politics
Randy Boswell , Canwest News Service
Published: Friday, August 29, 2008

The polar bear has been tossed into the choppy waters of Canadian electoral politics, with Environment Minister John Baird accusing Liberal Leader Stephane Dion of a"failure of leadership" in protecting the Arctic icon when he was environment minister.

"Our government believes that the polar bear is an iconic symbol of Canada," Baird said in a statement issued from Inuvik, N.W.T., where Prime Minister Stephen Harper and senior Conservative cabinet ministers were wrapping up a three-day visit to the Arctic just days or weeks ahead of an expected election call.

"Clearly, we need to ensure that the polar bear does not become endangered or threatened in Canada," the environment minister added.

Baird announced a national round table Thursday to assess the animal's future.

...

http://www.canada.com/topics/technology/science/story.html?id=251ac3a9-4991-44dc-8913-16110f29a06e

Published on the same day:

Sarah Palin: Tough on polar bears

In May, Palin said she would sue the federal government after it declared polar bears an endangered species. Here's what the Anchorage Daily News reported:

She and other Alaska elected officials fear a listing will cripple oil and gas development in prime polar bear habitat off the state's northern and northwestern coasts...

Climate models that predict continued loss of sea ice, the main habitat of polar bears, during summers are unreliable, Palin said.

...

http://www.boston.com/lifestyle/green/greenblog/2008/08/sarah_palin_on_energy_and_the.html

Heh.