I'm amused by news this morning that President Obama will be signing the stimulus package at a Denver museum. After having been voted out of the Senate version of the bill, museums, arts centers and theaters were reinstated to the list of institutions eligible to compete for stimulus funding. In a move that has left the museum community shaking its head in disbelief, zoos and aquariums were specifically excluded in all versions of the bill right from the start. Apparently, Washington understands living collections as more akin to entertainment than to scientific research and education. I guess our lawmakers think that living, breathing animals, fish and plants are too "fun" (like the also excluded swimming pools and casinos) and therefore not worthy of a hefty dose of taxpayer stimulus dollars. Ironically, Obama is signing this bill at the Denver Museum of Nature & Science, but the animals he'll see there will be of the serious and not fun stuffed variety. ...