Needless to say, Sarah Palin's political stands and ideologies both appeal to some people and repel others as well. Knowing about these major political stands, however, will help every American decide who to vote for or against. For those who are not yet fully aware of Palin's positions on social and political issues, here are some of her main beliefs:

Mrs. Palin supports Bush policies regarding the war in Iraq. As of this writing, the extent of her support for the Bush war policy is still quite vague. When asked by the Alaska Business Monthly regarding how she felt about Bush's suggestion to send more troops to Iraq, Palin answered in general terms. She stated that she "supports our president" and that she's very proud of the American troops currently deployed there (including her son, Track, who enlisted in the army on September 11, 2007). On the other hand, Palin also confessed that she hasn't "really focused much on the war on Iraq". She also favors an exit plan (which hasn't been defined clearly at this point), and she wants assurances that the American troops deployed in Iraq are "safe" (another vague statement, because in a war, nobody is totally safe).

Palin has a more naturalistic approach to global warming, and does not attribute climate change as being man made. Although she did not fully elaborate her position on global warming as strongly as Al Gore did a few years ago, her brief opinion about the issue was enough to gain support from some sectors, and at the same time, raise eyebrows from others.

She believes that President Bush failed to tap America's vast oil resources, particularly in her constituent state of Alaska. She attributes this failure partly to the fact that the current U.S. Congress is not "Republican controlled".

Palin claims to be pro-life. On the issue of abortion, she believes that every baby is "created with a future and potential", and that legislature should do all it can to protect them. She only favors abortion in the event that the mother's life is in danger, and there should be a mandatory parental consent.

Sarah Palin has been generally regarded as a social conservative. She is firm about her stand against same sex marriage. She supports capital punishment. She doesn't favor explicit sex education in schools. According to her, sex education in schools should only be limited to "abstinence only" information. In a recent interview, she said that she sees herself as a conservative both fiscally and politically. The question is, will these political stands ultimately help the McCain campaign, or will she indirectly and unintentionally swing thousands or even millions of votes to the Democrats? Only time will tell.

(*Direct quotes and paraphrases courtesy of Newsmax.com, Wikipedia.org, and Yahoo! News)

Indeed, in one location that has long been “ground zero” for moose populations, northwestern Minnesota, only a few dozen now remain. Wildlife biologists are now predicting that the moose will vanish from northwestern Minnesota in less than 15 years. Just 22 years ago, a moose count in this region yielded 4,000 animals. Today, there are only about 200 moose left, and they'll soon be gone.

GLOBAL WARMING

What's killing the moose is most likely global warming, say research scientists with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Winters have been getting steadily warmer in Minnesota for 41 years, and the trend has accelerated in the past 10 years.

Warmer weather means higher parasite loads which infect moose, making the animal more vulnerable to disease and death. The parasites include brain worms, liver flukes and even ticks. Warmer springs and falls allow ticks to cling to moose longer, sometimes well into winter.

After the moose population peaked in 1984, higher than normal temperatures in the spring and fall have meant that moose needed to expend more energy to stay cool, which also weakened them. These findings are the result of a five-year moose study completed in 1999, and which is finally being published last year. The study is called “The Minnesota Moose Mystery.”

In addition to warm weather and parasites, the Moose Mystery study also revealed some other curious moose stress factors:

• Lower than normal birth rates. The pregnancy rate for northwest Minnesota moose averaged just 48 percent, while moose in Canada average 84 percent.
• Malnourishment. Many moose studied here seem to be starving, although the study showed that availability of food was not a problem.
• Lack of copper. Moose livers showed a low level of copper, which is a key mineral for regulating moose reproduction. The speculation is that acid rain has leached copper from the environment.

Moose are still likely to thrive in Canada and northeast Minnesota, the study showed. But as for northwest Minnesota, all moose will be completely gone by the year 2019, just 13 years from now. And they are not likely to return.

THE MOOSE CAPITAL OF THE NORTH

The predicted demise of the moose is a special irony for one small town in northern Minnesota which has long billed itself as the “Moose Capital of the North.”

Karlstad is a tiny town of just 801 souls. Its located in the northwester corner of Minnesota in Kittson county which shares a border with Manitoba, Canada. The moose and it's image has been a key element in the identity of this proud little community which has attracted hunters and wildlife enthusiasts from around the world.

A large statue of a moose commands a spot next to Highway 59 at the north end of Karlstad -- it's the first thing many motorists see when they approach the city from the north. The moose is also featured prominently on the Karlstad official web site. A sign on the south end of town welcoming visitors also depicts a moose. The city conducts an annual “Moose Festival” every fall. A moose head is emblazoned on the city water tower. Even the receipts at Karlstad's only grocery store are imprinted with an image of the moose.

But this once proud symbol of Karlstad may soon become only a fond memory of a time when the world was simpler -- and a lot less polluted/

A BLOW FOR LOCAL CITIZENS

Karlstad residents have been blindsided by the predictions of the Minnesota Moose Mystery study. Many express deep sadness, and even shock at the idea that moose will no longer be a part of the local landscape.

Jon Pearson of Karlstad is an avid hunter and bear hunting guide who last hunted moose about 10 years ago. He said the loss of the moose would be a “terrible thing.”

“I remember when I was a kid and the DNR had its offices over by Kim's Beauty Shop,“ he said. “When they had a moose season, that's where they brought them in. I remember going over there several times a day to watch and see what kind of trophies hunters were getting. It was exciting. It's sad to think it may never happen again.”

Pearson is also owner of town's only motel -- the North Star Motor Inn. He said most moose hunters in Kittson County were from outside the area, meaning his motel

was filled with guests during the season.

“That's another aspect of this,” Pearson said. “It means a loss of that kind of business, and probably other businesses as well.”

Danny Johnson sells used cars in Karlstad. As a member of the Karlstad chapter of the Jaycees, he was the “point man” in adopting the moose as the official mascot of the city. He still remembers the day the idea came to him:

“I think it was back in 1984, or so,” Johnson said. “It was a Sunday afternoon, and I was just lying down for a nap, and I got this eerie feeling that someone was watching me. I turned my head and looked out the window, and there was a gigantic moose looking at me right through the window!”

Johnson froze.

“I didn't dare make a move,” he said. “I'm sure if I would have flinched, that moose would have shattered my window.”

The bull moose decided to go its own way without bothering Johnson, but the incident sparked an idea. Johnson and others suggested to Karlstad community leaders that the moose become the official mascot of the city.

With the backing of the Jaycees, the city council agreed, and the fund raising began. One of the primary fund raisers was the annual Four-by-Four Mud Run, an event in which people competed to drive 4x4 trucks through a long stretch of gooey mud. With the money raised, the Jaycees commissioned a bigger-than- life statue of a moose, which was created by F.A.S.T. Fiberglass Wonders Company of Sparta, Wisconsin.

“The statue cost $5,000,” Johnson said. “We drove down to Sparta to get it. We took a Ford pick-up with a short box. On our way back, we turned a lot of heads because everybody could see that big moose head sticking up out over the top of the pick-up. We stopped at a gas station and one person asked us, "Hey! What are you doing with that moose!” I think some people thought it was real.”

The giant moose statue was installed in a Karlstad municipal park in a prominent location next to Highway 59. It"s a can't miss icon which screams out to travelers: “Now you're in moose country!”

So assured were community boosters that the moose would serve as its symbol for years to come, a time capsule was placed within the base of the moose statue for a distant future generation to open at an appointed time.

CHANGING TO REACT TO THE TIMES

The probable extinction of the moose in Kittson County means that city officials may have to rethink the way Karlstad presents itself to the world.

“It's definitely something we're going to have to think about,” said Karlstad Mayor Dale Nelson. “If the moose disappear. That's something we have no control over. Yes, it would be very sad. It would be something that Karlstad was known for, but if we no longer have moose in this area, well, we'll have to see what that means.”

Long-time Karlstad City Clerk Wayne Ruud agreed.

“It's very sad and ironic,” Ruud said. “The moose have been very much a part of this

community. The kids at the school used to have an Adopt-a- Moose program. Each kindergarten student was able to adopt a moose -- it was run by the DNR. They tagged and followed moose, and then the kids could follow what was going on with their own moose.”

QUESTIONS REMAIN

So many questions remain. What will happen to the moose statue in the park? Will the city stop billing itself as “The Moose Capital of the World?” Will the sign featuring a moose on the south end of town need to be replaced with something else? What will happen to the time capsule waiting patiently within the base of the moose statue?

Several residents noted that Kittson County has now become “bear country.” North Star Motor Inn owner Jon Pearson also runs a business called Bear Buster Outfitters, a bear hunting guide service. Pearson said that there are currently some 30,000 bears inhabiting northwestern Minnesota, and that the bear has already become an attraction to the area.

Still others hope the moose will hang on, though wildlife biologists don't see that happening. No other studies are being planned, and only time will tell if the moose will remain a beloved resident of Karlstad and northwestern Minnesota.

It just makes me sick. I and many around me already know this, but the whole global warming scare is a gigantic lie. Since the early 1980s the overall temperature has risen less than 1 degree, a change so insignificant that it is hardly noticeable to the complex scientific instruments that measure it. Not only is the change in temperature so drastically small, but since the early 1920s, the Fourth Estate has switched their view 4 Times from global warming to global Cooling, at Least. In periods of about 20 years, some overlapping, the Fourth Estate has been either crying "Global Warming!" or "The Next Ice Age is Here!!!" in 10 to 20 years, all of this global warming hype will have switched to a global cooling freak, which upsets me deeply.

Yes, the earth may possibly be getting hotter, but even if it was, it is not our fault and there is nothing we can do about it. The Earth goes through natural cylces of heating and cooling, hence ice ages and "global warming" periods millions of years ago, and even thousands of years ago, during the age of the cave men. They didnt have the technology to heat up the earth, so how did the Earth go from being an ice age to being what it is today? I'll tell you why, it was a Natural part of the cycle, a natural phase of heating coming out of a cold recession. Don't get me wrong, we can still all recycle and help the environment, but doing it to stop something that isnt even happening is the problem. The Motive behind helping the environment is what is misplaced. Global warming, whether or not it exists, is Not our fault, and it is just part of a NATURAL cycle of heating and cooling that the Earth goes through on its Own.

The earth in a thermal sensor showed that light gives off a lot of heat into the environment. Which increase the temperature by a little. Also it creates a glare that can be seen from space. All this could be stop by having shielded lights so the lights only shine downwards. So now many organizations are trying to make the whole world do it so that people are aware of light pollution and "Global Warming." During this day you do not need to turn off all your lights just the unnecessary ones. It is on March 29 from 8 PM to 9PM.

Recent stats have shown that, ice about the size of Texas and California combined have already melted into the ocean in the past two years. That's nearly a fourth of the artic ice shelf. But according to many scientist, Global warming doesn't necessarily mean a rise in temperature. It could possibly mean an other ice age, even. But isn't that very ironic, considering the loss of polar ice? Theory has it that when those ice are melted into the ocean, they disrupt the flow of sea currents that is responsible for distributing warmer waters to the northern hemisphere. As a result, temperatures would decrease tremendously and ice would start to form again and cover a much more enormous portion of the earth.

However, that is only a possible long-term effect. A short-term effect to Global Warming would be the sinking of coastal cities. Again, this brings us back to the ice in the arctic circle. Since these ice are melting, it's common sense to conclude that it adds up to the sea level. A major concern would be Venice, being it is a “floating” city. As of now, the current water level is innocuous to the city's major infrastructures. But in a few years from now, provided the rate that the ice melt remains consistent, there'd be more reported floods throughout Venice, and perhaps the city would become abandoned similar to what we call ghost towns in the west.

The earth needs our attention and is crying for our help. It's either that, or because we're abusing it too much. Either way, we need to come up with a solution, and quick. And before you think that any of this might not happen within your lifetime, you might want to think about the movie The Day After Tomorrow. And before you think about throwing trash out of your car window into the streets, and driving literally next door when you can walk, you might want to give it a second thought about your future and your children and grandchildren's future.

Are We To Believe That The World Is Missing An Even More Pressing Issue?

It is true that both the U.S. and the rest of the world is now and even has begun in some critical areas to deal with this present issue by “preparing” themselves to slowly (really, as quickly as possible) wane away from “fossil fuels” in order to lower the global “footprint” enabling the release of the heat absorbing carbon dioxide gas, hoping that in the effort will lower this release. Throughout the world, many nations have and even daily are committing most of their efforts into switching to the course of the future by using Wind, Solar, Geothermal, etc. sources of renewable power, which will not release carbon dioxide into our atmosphere and hopefully reversing Global Warming. Wow, with all this effort, we will be able to sit back and relax. Not really.

In Our Attempt To Reverse Global Warming, We Have Overlooked One Thing.

True, in the attempt to reverse global warming, it will lower much of the future air polluting gases which will hopefully reverse the Earth's heating, but the present pollution levels of other human toxins that have been created from the past will not be reversed, such as mercury, PCB's, etc. in our oceans, lakes and soils, etc. and if we combine this with the ongoing pollution of the food we consume, which are grown using chemical fertilizers, pesticides, insecticides, genetically engineered seed, etc. and then are processed using additives such as food imitations, colorings, preservatives, conditioners, hydrogenated oils, etc., along with artificial sweeteners of great diversity, not to mention that much of the food we consume is “irradiated” before it reaches the grocer, the human body, many expert nutritionists contend will eventually overwhelm the unique workings of its organs, causing disease and untimely deterioration. It may be that this will be our undoing long before the Earth reaches a level of inhabitability. Should this be some food for thought?