Endangered Spaces blog: June 2010

Wednesday, June 30, 2010

US left Agent Orange in Vietnam

The Associated Press: UN starts $5M Agent Orange cleanup at Vietnam base

The United Nations Development Program (UNDP) launched a $5 million project to clean up dioxin contamination from Agent Orange at a former air base in Vietnam. U.S. sprayed more than 11 million gallons of Agent Orange, which has been linked to cancer, birth defects and other medical conditions, across southern parts of the country during the Vietnam War.

My husband suffers from heart disease and diabetes, as a direct result of exposure to Agent Orange during his tour in Vietnam. It is a shame that the US left this mess for others to clean up. We should learn from this and clean up after our wars, if we must have them. Better yet, let us stop the wars.

Tuesday, June 22, 2010

BP is burning endangered sea turtles alive

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News has just emerged from the Gulf Coast that BP is burning endangered sea turtles alive. A boat captain who has been leading efforts to rescue the endangered turtles says BP has blocked his crews from entering the areas where the animals are trapped, effectively shutting down the rescue operation.

BP is using "controlled burns" to contain the oil spill. Shrimp boats create a corral of oil by dragging together fire-resistant booms and then lighting the enclosed "burn box" on fire. If turtles are not removed from the area before the fire is lit, they are literally burned alive.

I just signed a petition telling BP to stop burning endangered sea turtles alive. To learn more and take action, click on the link below.

http://act.credoaction.com/campaign/bp_endangered_turtles/?r_by=9693-434534-h5lQ6tx&rc=paste1

Monday, June 21, 2010

Cadium Found in McDonald's Collectibles

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Cadium in Shrek Forever After collectible glass from McDonald's

McDonald’s issued a recall for approximately 12 million collectible glasses with characters from the popular movie, Shrek Forever After (tm). Cadmium has been discovered in the paint on the glasses that were made in the USA by ARC International of Millville, New Jersey and distributed by McDonald’s. Purchasers may return the collectibles to any U.S. McDonald’s restaurant beginning June 9. Find more information on the McDonald's website.

Friday, June 04, 2010

We are Stewards of the Earth

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Unidentifiable Bird Coated with Oil (Louisiana)

Dead Turtle (Mississippi)

Dead Shark (Mississippi)

Dead Dolphin in Mississippi

Brown Pelican Covered in Oil (Louisiana)

What the Bible says about Stewardship Over Earth and Its Inhabitants:

Genesis 1:26-28 seems to indicate clearly that humans were placed in charge of the non-human world.
Psalm 8:6 reiterates that idea.
Psalm 24:1 indicates that even though we are, in some sense, in charge, the world, and the things in it, are God’s.
So does Psalm 50:10,11. The story of Noah seems to indicate that, at one point, humans were directly responsible for the lives of many kinds of animals.
Genesis 7:2-5, 14-16, Proverbs 12:10 and Proverbs 27:23 all have to do with caring for animals.
God seems to care not just for animals in general, but for kinds of animals.Psalms 104:24-25 praises God for the diversity of His creation, and His creatures. Since this explicitly includes the wide variety of ocean animals, it doesn’t seem possible that this praise is meant to be only because of their usefulness to humans.
Genesis 7:3, 14-16 indicate God’s concern that the different kinds of animals would be preserved.
Genesis 8:1 says that God had not forgotten Noah or the animals. Noah and his family were God’s agents in this care, of course, but they were God-directed agents. It would seem reasonable to argue that in our day, we also have responsibilities to the kinds of animals that exist in our time.