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Call of the Wild

A wildlife group's ad attacks Palin for supporting the shooting of wolves from airplanes. She does, but there's more to it than that.

 

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Summary
A new ad from Defenders of Wildlife Action Fund shows the pursuit and shooting of a wolf from a small plane and tells viewers that Sarah Palin "actively promotes" such killings. It's true that she does, and in 2007 she offered $150 payments for anyone who brought the left forepaw of a wolf to state officials. The ad calls the practice "brutal and unethical" but doesn't tell the whole story.

Alaskan officials call it "predator control," not aerial hunting, and use it to keep the populations of moose and caribou high for subsistence hunters.

The program is limited to just 9 percent of the state's land mass, or five of 26 Department of Fish and Game districts.

Far from being endangered, as they are in the Lower 48 states, gray wolves number between 7,000 and 11,000 in Alaska.

Analysis
This TV spot isn't for the squeamish, especially not squeamish animal-lovers. Its visuals include sinister-looking photos of Gov. Sarah Palin juxtaposed with footage of a wolf trying to outrun an airplane, then being shot and writhing in pain. Finally we see a small plane taking off, a wolf carcass tied to one of its wing struts.

Defenders of Wildlife Action Fund Ad: "Brutal"
Narrator:
The more voters learn about Sarah Palin, the less there is to like. As Alaska governor, Sarah Palin actively promotes the brutal and unethical aerial hunting of wolves and other wildlife.

On screen text: Palin promotes brutal aerial hunting of wildlife

Narrator: Using a low-flying plane, they kill in winter, when there is no way to escape.
Riddled with gunshots, biting at their backs in agony, they die a brutal death.
And Palin even encouraged the cruelty by proposing a $150 bounty for the severed foreleg of each killed wolf.

On screen: Encouraged cruelty with $150 bounty for severed foreleg

Narrator: And then introduced a bill to make the killing easier.

On screen: Introduced bill to make killing easier

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Member Comments

  • Posted By: Omaar @ 05/02/2009 7:37:10 AM

    This Wasilla Hill Billy is a Joke and will continue to be a Joke.

    1.Secr. Of State, Condoleeza Rice, Qualified, Experienced, Educated and Intelligent. Yes

    2. Sen. Hillary Rodham, Clinton Qualified, Experienced & Educated. Yes

    3. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, Qualified, Educated & Experienced. Yes

    4. Rep. Alaskan Sen. Lisa Murkowski, Qualified, Educated, Experienced & Intelligent. Yes

    Sarah Palin: A Hollow, Floating Bubble.

    A MILF as long as she does not attempt to Speak, especially on things Political..

    But Keep her Hill Billy A!! Away from the Senate, Congress and above all, the Presidency or Vice Presidency.

    End of Discussion

  • Posted By: Omaar @ 05/02/2009 4:06:52 AM

    This Wasilla Hill Billy is a Joke and will continue to be a Joke.

    1.Secr. Of State, Condoleeza Rice, Qualified, Experienced, Educated and Intelligent. Yes

    2. Sen. Hillary Rodham, Clinton Qualified, Experienced & Educated. Yes

    1. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, Qualified, Educated & Experienced. Yes

    4. Rep. Alaskan Sen. Lisa Murkowski, Qualified, Educated, Experienced & Intelligent. Yes

    Sarah Palin: A Hollow, Floating Bubble.

    MILF as long as she does not attempt to Speak, especially on things Political..

    But Keep her Hill Billy A!! Away from the Senate, Congress and above all, the Presidency or Vice Presidency.

    End of Discussion

  • Posted By: Omaar @ 05/02/2009 4:05:50 AM

    Sarah Palin: The Hollow, Floating, Bubble..Caves in on the Obama Stimulus Money...
    ---------------------------
    ANCHORAGE, Alaska: Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin will sign bills accepting most of the federal stimulus funds available to the state, her spokeswoman said Tuesday.

    Palin initially said she would accept only about two-thirds of the $930 million available to Alaska.

    Palin spokeswoman Sharon Leighow said the governor changed her mind after the public weighed in during legislative hearings prior to lawmakers passing bills to seek almost all of the funding.

    Palin had warned about the state having to finance projects created by the stimulus funds after the federal money runs out. She earlier called the stimulus package "an unsustainable, debt-ridden package of funds."

    Alaska's Legislature conducted more than 20 public hearings on the federal stimulus package, and legislative leaders said they couldn't find any of the strings attached to the funds that Palin had warned about.

    They passed bills accepting nearly all the funds before the April 19 adjournment.

    "I thank legislators for their work on the federal economic stimulus package and the public for participating in the process," Palin said Tuesday in a statement.

    The only funds Palin will reject, Leighow said, will be nearly $29 million for a State Energy Program she says are tied to adopting a statewide energy code.

    Alaska's vast expanse and wide-ranging conditions are not conducive to such an energy code, Palin said.

    Leighow anticipates the legislative bills covering the stimulus will be sent to Palin by early next week. She will have 20 business days to sign or veto them.

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