Save The Polar Bears!!!!!!!

I found an article on Yahoo news linked to an LA Times story of an environmental group pushing for the inclusion of the Polar Bear on the Endangered Species List. The arguemnt being that global warming is "rapidly" taking away the bears habitat and shortening it's hunting season when it can hunt seals on the ice. It all sounds so tragic until you read further into the article and come to find that Polar Bear numbers have actually increased over the last three decades from 25,000 to 30,000. They are in fact quite well protected without being listed under the Endangered Species Act. The true motivation behind it all is that groups fighting against global warming are in search for a "poster boy" or in this case "poster bear" of the damaging affects of global warming. "We hope it will have a big educational benefit to bring this to the attention of the American public," said Kassie Siegel, the lead author of the petition. "People do like polar bears" The groups are using existence value of the polar bear to promote awareness of global warming. The Endangered Species Act is merely the vehicle for doing so. When people think of Arctic ice lands and glaciers they think of Big "cuddily polar bears" Like we have discussed in class it makes people feel good to know that they are there wandering the ice and playing in the snow. Claiming they are threatened is nothing more than a scare tactic directed towards to the masses so they will do their part to fight against global warming and protect polar bears. Whether or not this stategy will work will come down to how much existence value polar bears really do have for people and if they are truly willing to pay for that value. I personally think its just another example of how the Endangered Species Act is readily abused time and time again.