Take the Marine Sanctuaries Seriously

A tip o' the hat to VPO for calling the Marine Sanctuaries isssue to everyone's attention. However, I was not surprised that only a few made comments even though Deirdre on the vpo email list saw the potential in fund raising and I know that y'all are glad to see anything that we can use.

Just to show you that the media considers this important news, let me reference a couple of additional stories:

KXTV headlines their story: Environmentalists Attack Pombo's Marine Sanctuary Bill but makes the point that...

Rep. Richard Pombo, R-Tracy and chair of the House Natural Resources is proposing significant changes to the 1976 Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act. Pombo's HR 5018 would replace the definition of "overfished" stock to diminished stock and set less stringent timelines to replenish depleted species. The bill would remove the discretion marine sanctuary managers have to extablish rules for the waters they manage.

Then, insiderbayarea.com (Ang Newspapers) carried a similar story today, headlined Pombo bill would change control of fish sanctuaries. Again, they define the issue:

At its core, the dispute centers on what role sanctuaries play. Fishermen want access to the protected waters; environmentalists prefer to see the 13 national sanctuaries preserved as natural hatcheries that replenish ocean stocks.

Once again, as more people are beginning to realize, Pombo supports the interests of his commercial backers rather than the public.

Maybe it is time to return a few favors. Some of Pombo's $$ backing, including the trips on which he did not pay income taxes, were bankrolled by owners of Darden Reataurants. That Darden Restaurants operates "nearly 1,400 Red Lobster, Olive Garden, Bahama Breeze, Smokey Bones Barbeque & Grill and Seasons 52 restaurants in North America..." Why would Pombo want to increase fishing? It is time to start a boycott of those two restaurant chains.

Here is what the Center for Public Integrity had to say about it.

The Pombo trips involved a subsidiary of IFCNR called the Sustainable Use Parliamentarians Union, which the foundation formed several years ago, according to IFCNR President Emeritus Stephen Boynton. Pombo was chairman of SUPU from its formation in 2000 until this past July. He was replaced as chairman of the group by Rep. Dennis Rehberg, a Republican from Montana.

When Pombo spoke up for increased whaling, it was for the benefit of Darden Restaurants. When he tries to open Marine Sanctuaries for commercial fishing, it is for the Red Lobster.

I have telling you all that fishing is a real issue and that fishers are a constituency that should not like Pombo. Just ask the Fish Sniffer.

Tags: CA-11, Richard Pombo, Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act, H.R. 5018, Darden Restaurants, Red Lobster, Olive Garden, Bahama Breeze, Smokey Bones Barbeque & Grill, Seasons 52, IFCNR, Sustainable Use Parliamentarians Union, Stephen Boynton, Dennis Rehberg, marine sanctuaries, Fish Sniffer