Woofs & Growls
From ANIMAL PEOPLE, December 1992:
Introduced October 5, an agribusi-
ness-backed bill to gut the Endangered Species
Act died with the closure of the 102nd Congress,
but will be reintroduced in the 103rd, according
to the sponsors, Rep. Jack Fields (R-Tex.) and
W.J. Tauzin (D-La.) The bill, which has no
number or title pending reintroduction, is
endorsed by the National Cattlemen’s
Association, American Farm Bureau Federation,
and 38 other groups. It would subordinate
Endangered Species Act enforcement to econom-
ic considerations, and probably won’t be favored
by the Clinton administration. The ESA came up
for renewal this year but was ducked by legisla-
tors up for re-election, and now must be either
extended or amended by the 103rd Congress.
The National Rifle Association has
sued to overturn a Phoenix municipal ordinance
that prohibits minors from carrying firearms
without parental permission. Rarely embar-
rassed, the NRA was redfaced recently when
obliged to apologize in American Rifleman mag-
azine for identifying Defenders of Wildlife as a
“terrorist” group in a fundraising appeal to mem-
bership. The letter targeted hunter harassment
actions actually promoted by the Fund for
Animals. Since the NRA began an aggressive
counter-campaign against the actions, member-
ship has increased by over 300,000.
Livestock Market Digest is selling
bumperstickers reading “Hungry & Out of
Work? Eat An Environmentalist.”
