WPTV (west palm beach news) did a quick story on S373 and made it sound like such a great thing. this news station has also done reports on black racers found on peoples porches and roofs. so i decided to send them a little email. if you are florida, i ask that you do the same. here is what i wrote:
"I saw a clip this morning about your stations backing the python ban. I suggest you do a little more research on your stories. If you really look into, this ban is based on public scare tactics and not real scientific data. Bill Nelson is using fake science (i am a biologist and know fake science when i see it) to cause public scare in order to pass this bill. There are no accurate counts of how many non native snakes are actually in the Everglades and with are recent cold snap, many, if not all, will have died. Bill Nelson and your news report also fails to tell you that this would devastate a three billion dollar a year industry and would put thousands out of work overnight. Not to mention the fact that animals that people have spent their hard earned money on would become worthless and they would take a huge loss financially. "How much could a snake cost?" Well some of these snakes cost in the thousands of dollars.
I suggest you do a follow up story on this using information provided by the United States Association of Reptile Keepers. They have the real facts and not just public scare tactics. Stories like these have gotten out of hand and I grow ever tired of seeing news stories of people finding native snakes on their porch or roof worried that they might swallow thier kids whole.
Report the facts.....I thought thats what news was....guess I was wrong and should pick a new station to watch.
Lucas Jennings
Biological Scientist"
here is the email address for commenting on a news story:
kgazda@wptv.com
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