Air Date: Week of January 28, 2000

In the mailbag this week are comments on our profiles of the Republican presidential candidates, and some thoughts on people’s close encounters with animals.

Transcript

CURWOOD: Our profiles of Republican presidential candidates George W. Bush and John McCain drew most of our recent comments. Pam Phillips, an environmental scientist who hears us on KERA in Dallas, Texas, appreciated our report but said we missed one of the governor's major environmental sins. "Mr. Bush and the Republicans in the state legislature," she wrote, "nixed a new vehicle inspection system after it was set up, resulting in the highest lawsuit judgment against the state in history. In other words," adds Ms. Phillips, "the more gasoline we burn, the better the petroleum industry likes it."

And KQED listener Phillip Marty of Escolon, California, called to say he was thinking about voting for John McCain, but the candidate's derogatory description of some environmental leaders as, quote, "far left and liberal," changed his mind.

MARTY: McCain seems like an honorable man, but after listening to your show and him talking about the fringe people? God, if anyone is fringe, it's been the Republicans, way, way out. They just don't get it.

CURWOOD: From Hill City, Kansas, KZNA listener J.F. Stover wrote that our feature on hand-feeding wild birds reminded him of his close encounters with animals in Europe 30 years ago, "Birds," he wrote, "hardly hesitated to land on our hands and fly off with raisins. Squirrels climbed our trousers and ran along our outstretched arms to perch on our wrists and eat shelled walnuts. The fresh connection to wildlife reformed my relationship to all nature. Thanks for the memory."

And finally, KUT Austin, Texas, listener Carol Belmont called with this response to our feature on driving rats from federal buildings in the nation's capital.

BELMONT: I have a suggestion that might help the situation. I feel that every government office building in Washington should employ one to three homeless cats. Now, these cats would undoubtedly rid the rat population, and it would give each one of these homeless cats a meaningful job.

CURWOOD: Well, whether you think we're the cat's meow or something the cat dragged in, your comments on our program are always welcome. Call our listener line any time at 800-218-9988. That's 800-218-9988. Or write to Living on Earth, 20 Holland Street, Suite 408, Somerville, MA 02144. Our e-mail address is letters@loe.org. Once again, letters@loe.org. Tapes and transcripts are $15. Or you can hear our program on our web page at www.loe.org. It's NPR's Living on Earth. I'm Steve Curwood.