Could it get any sadder. By Geniusodespair and Gimleteye

Stranded pilot whales in Everglades National Park.

I'm amazed what it takes to get Everglades National Park into the national news and, from there, the public consciousness. It happens every time. Last night, this image made NBC Nightly News. The jeopardy to iconic animals does the trick. 

People -- across the world -- connect strongly to the Everglades. In the not-so-distant past, we've had a raft of attention to invasive species like the Burmese python. Now, it's a school of more than 50 stranded pilot whales.

I understand that the 24/7 news cycle not only demands easily-identifiable symbols, but that complexity is the enemy of the sound bite. But what happened to the Everglades is not complex.

Why can't the media focus on Big Sugar whose domination of water management, politics, and infrastructure have largely lead to the conditions that pollute and endanger wildlife and people? Big Sugar poisons people, poisons Democracy, and poisons the Everglades. 

That's not a difficult message to match with this picture, is it? 

(As many readers know, I am the volunteer president of the board of Friends of the Everglades. Please consider making a donation and becoming a member today at our website: everglades.org)