If you were a Maryland blue crab and you could vote in the upcoming election, which candidates would you vote for? Howard Ernst, author of
Chesapeake Bay Blues has some suggestions...
If you live in the Chesapeake Bay region you might remember a few years back the "controversial" book that was published by Naval Academy political scientist Howard Ernst,
Chesapeake Bay Blues.
The book was a unique look at the effort of trying to save the Bay. He examined the situation from a political perspective instead of an environmental perspective. The conclusion of the book is essentially that politicians and politics is currently the number one threat to the Chesapeake Bay.
Howard Ernst spared no one in this book. He criticized groups like the Chesapeake Bay Foundation and other related environmental groups for not doing more political to put pressure on elected officials to do the right thing for the Bay. He criticized the politicians for being weak-kneed and unwilling to pass needed legislation to stop the damage which is occurring to the Bay. He also attacked government agencies such as the Chesapeake Bay Program for providing what he called misleading data that suggested we were actually improving the condition of the Bay, when just the opposite was happening. [In defense of the Chesapeake Bay Program (I've had friends who have worked there) -- the reports and data they have released have been taken out of context and have been misreported in the media. In addition, the Chesapeake Bay Program does good work. They have good people working there. They are not perfect, but out of all the government agencies out there in the world, the Chesapeake Bay Program has my complete support and trust.]
Now that it is election year, Howard Ernst has decided to take his own advice and he has created the Blue Crab Project. The purpose of the project is to certify candidates (as opposed to endorse) as "Blue Crab" candidates. These are candidates for whom Chesapeake blue crabs would vote, if blue crabs could vote in the 2006 election. In other words, these are candidates who are committed to doing the right thing to help improve the condition of the Bay (and thus the crabs' home). The qualifications for receiving this certification are listed below:
* Proven record of environmental commitment
* Believe that the Bay is worth the price of restoration
* Agree to work across party lines and across political boundaries
* Incumbents need not apply
So far only a handful of candidates have received this certification and they have been state house/senate or county races. In order to even be considered for this certification, you have to be recommended by respected members of the environmental community. In other words, you have to do more than just talk the talk. You have to have a good understanding of the problem, a desire to fully implement the right solution, and have a track record of actually doing environmental work. More information about the Blue Crab Project can be found here -- http://www.bluecrabproject.org