Maintaing the Endangered Species Act

At the cost of the environment, our nation has greatly expanded to consist of large, crowded cities that are influenced by an industrialized and technologically advanced society. The smoky and unpleasant mixture of gases released from our factories now reign the lands that humans have developed on, which used to be the homes of animals. With boom and bust economies that emphasize production, Humans are the main cause for habitat destruction; however, they have made an effort to preserve wildlife by methods such as establishing national parks, designating limited times for hunting season, and restricting land use to protect species and their habitats. In hopes of protecting species that are on the brink of extinction, the Endangered Species Act was signed on 28 December 1973, officially making our nation a more environmentally friendly society. In the article “The Endangered Species Act Should be Preserved,” Representative John D. Dingell appeals to environmentalists and other congressmen in order to demonstrate that upholding the Endangered Species Act (ESA) can be beneficial for the environment and coexist in modern society by using his credibility and logic.

Representative John D. Dingell tries to establish his credibility by emphasizing that he is the author of the Endangered Species Act (ESA) and a sophisticated member of the House of Representatives; he utilizes his familiarity with the ESA so that he can positively portray it to the other congressmen and convince them that it is useful and should continue to be enforced. Because of this perceived credibility and his first-hand experience with the Endangered Species Act, he will most likely make the readers of the article feel like the ESA has had a positive influence in our nation and will continue to do so if it is preserved. Dingell, who represents the people of Michigan, is one of the most senior members in the Legislative Branch: In order to become a member of the House of Representatives, one must be directly elected by the people every two years in addition to getting approved by the other two branches in government. Since he is one of the most senior members in this branch, he must have had to win many elections, showing that he is greatly supported and well-liked by the people in his state. It can take several years to pass a Bill in Congress and it is a time-consuming process because it has to be approved by the executive, legislative, and judicial branch in government. If one of the branches denies the bill, it is shot back down to step one and is subject to resubmission with the revisions that the other branches imposed. The readers are lead to believe that Dingell is a credible man since other distinguished and prominent congressmen, chosen by the people, supported his proposed act. Since congressmen are directly elected by the people, the readers are indirectly are targeted to consider him as a credible person. Representative Dingell builds up the readers’ trust and confidence in him--showing that he is favored by the by both the people of Michigan and well-respected members of authority--so that he can convince them that the ESA is necessary in modern times and should be preserved.

In addition to defining his credibility, Dingell also logically appeals to his audience by using statistics to paint a colorful picture of how the Endangered Species Act has been successful and continues to positively impact our environment. Dingell points out that the Endangered Species Act was unanimously passed by the senate with a vote of 92-0 and passed by a majority of the House of Representatives with a vote of 391-12. These statistics are referenced by the author to draw the reader’s attention to the fact the ESA was supported by a great majority of Congress and hopes that they will believe that it is successful. By utilizing the tactic of the “Bandwagon Appeal”, the author tries to persuade the readers that the ESA is popular and is supported by an immense number of people.

Dingell then builds on the reader’s expectations and furthers the idea of its success by giving examples of several wildlife species that benefited from the Endangered Species Act that protected their habitats. Since the act’s establishment, he claims that nearly forty-one percent of endangered species’ population stabilized. According to the author, 14 species of wildlife since 2003 alone, such as the gray whale and peregrine falcon, have completely recovered. He uses such statistics to indicate that a modern, environmentally friendly and an industrialist nation are not mutually exclusive. Some people worry that the American economy will not prosper if lands are solely dedicated to protect the habitats of endangered species. However, Dingell points out that in the time since the ESA became active; our economy was not hindered, but actually thrived as it grew even more. By using statistics, Dingell tries to logically appeal to both environmentalists and industrialists to convince them that the ESA is successful and should be upheld.

The government should financially support research that promotes fuel efficiency so that emissions from vehicles can be lowered in order to reduce the global warming.