Bipartisanship and Killer Whales

It has come to my attention that many pundits on the right are calling Scott Brown a "traitor", or insisting that his willingness to cooperate with the Democrats makes him a "one-term" Senator. These remarks stem in part from Brown's vote against the GOP filibuster of a jobs bill, an action I do not believe deserves such criticism. While any sort of spending bill beyond a certain point seems to violate the "Small-Government" stance of many in the Republican party, at this point, with the recession over but employment stagnating, I think a small bill like this one is an appropriate measure.

Moving beyond the jobs vote, deriding Brown for being a moderate is uncalled for. The decidedly liberal state of Massachusetts elected Brown as a referendum against the most liberal parts of the Administration's agenda, and as the 41st vote against the current healthcare bill, Brown restored some semblance of balance to the senate. While Brown is a Republican, he is not a mouthpiece for the reactionary goals of the Tea Party movement, which may bother some, but a Republican of any leaning coming out of Massachusetts is good enough for me. In my opinion, Brown is doing the right thing. By breaking irrelevent filibusters, Brown is helping the Republican party shed its image as the "Party of No", and giving the moderate forces within the party a chance to shape policy. However, when push comes to shove, I am certain that Brown will vote with the party to block the key goals of the Liberal agenda, namely socialized healthcare.

Now, a topic I felt I must address is the recent death of Dawn Brancheau at the fins of Tilikum the orca. Animal rights activists and others have seized this opportunity to attack not only the use of animals in shows, but also the entire zoo/aquarium system. While I agree the system is due for some degree of self-imposed reform, I don't think that anyone will benefit from its complete dismantlement. First and foremost, Earth's biodiversity has been spared the worst in large part due to the presence of rare animals in zoos. In fact, two species of lion and one species of wild horse, among other species I am not aware of, exist only in zoo populations, and efforts to return them to their habitat would be (obviously) impossible had we not collected them for our enjoyment. Secondly, giving people the opportunity to see Earth's creatures firsthand helps people to imagine them as actual, living beings, rather than just distant pictures on a Discovery special, and does a lot more for conservation awareness than critics will ever admit. Conditions at zoos are tremendously better than the "tiny cages" that PETA crazies conjure up to win sympathy, but I admit that there is plenty of room for improvement. Animals need appropriately sized, natural environments in which to live, and it is the least we can do to give that to them in exchange for the priceless enjoyment they give us. I believe that larger parks, like Busch Gardens and Seaworld are doing an excellent job at providing this comfort to their animals, but smaller local zoos need support from their larger counterparts to ensure that we can maintain the highest standards for the animals we keep, enjoy, and protect.