About Coral Politics

Coral Politics provides a forum and encourages candid discussion of the politics (Yes! The politics! How and why human failings are killing coral reefs!) of coral reef ecosystem research, conservation, and education -- issues that are in vital need of being aired among marine and coral researchers. Comments and posts on the politics of the following topics are welcome:

- Long term change in coral reefs
- Interesting observations
- Reviews of coral reef books, papers, and articles
- Climate change and the potential (or lack of it) to adapt
- Land-based sources of pollution and their effects
- Over-fishing and over-exploitation of living and dead coral reef resources
- Inter-governmental research and conservation efforts, their successes and failures
- Socioeconomics
- Outreach and educational programs
- Ecological interactions
- Coral bleaching incidences and research
- Outbreaks of diseases and pests affecting coral reef organisms
- Environmental monitoring sites and methods
- Reproduction by coral reef organisms
- Shipwrecks on coral reefs and their effects
- Links to new and old coral reef-related publications and reports
- New and historical data availability
- Coral reef ecosystem modeling topics
- Coral reef restoration
- Egregious examples of human greed, stupidity, and corruption killing corals and reef organisms
- The systematic failure of policymakers and funding agencies to deal with all of the above, and their bogus claims to be doing so
- What should be done?

Let this blog be a true free-wheeling site where you can say what you really think. You may name, blame, and shame whatever institution or national or state government agency you believe to be doing a rotten job for whatever reason (but please be factual and reasoned, not inflammatory and libelous, humorous rather than vicious). You can use the site for direct or indirect lobbying or posting of links to Web pages that engage in such activities.

However, you may not:
- Engage in prohibited discriminatory conduct (racism, sexism, religious bigotry, nationalistic chauvinism, and homophobia, to name a few).
- Post, obtain, or view human sexually explicit material (dividing bacteria or zooxanthellae, invertebrate spawning, and horny fish aggregations are acceptable, but please, strictly marine!).
- Use profane language.

NOTE: The purpose of this site is free discussion of all coral reef issues (subject to the constraints listed above) without the censorship and self-serving propaganda currently practiced by existing coral reef sites run by government agencies and BINGOs (Big International NGOs), which often focus on fake claims of credit for "discovering" phenomena that are long known to all old divers. We are especially interested in the points of view of people from developing coral reef countries and communities who are seriously under-represented in existing forums. Our aim is to represent corals and those who love coral reefs, not official propaganda by those who are killing them while claiming to be their saviors. We DO NOT want job listings, announcements of courses and funding, propaganda by funding agencies and policy makers, requests for elementary information on coral reefs, climate change denial, or claims that coral reefs are "resilient" ecosystems.