The Feroe Island whale/dolphin massacre.

You probably have already seen this. One of the sickest things I've seen in some time (similar stuff most probably happeing every day around the globe).

I cannot express how dissappointed I am for being a human.
It's being said that this is allowed to happen for cultural reasons. THERE IS NO F****** CULTURE IN KILLING A DOLPHIN WITH A CROWBAR. You have to be really retarded to believe that.

As a sailor I hope I'll meet people with respect for nature, people that won't condone such a horrible display of killing frenzy. This goes way beyond respect for nature, this is "humanity" at it's worst displays.
The media linked this strongly to Denmark and Feroe population, but it's happening all around the globe in one way or another. Not just the freaks doing it are the culprits but also the people generating demand.

This is the lowest of the lowest.

http://www.yousaytoo.com/MandM/whale-massacre/8231

http://www.truthorfiction.com/rumors/w/whale-killing-denmark.htm

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Is it legal?

It's certainly ugly, but so is any slaughtering process. I can't criticize because I eat a lot of beef. Since young children are exposed to it, I assume it is a traditional part of their culture. If they considered it shameful or even horrific, the children would probably be excluded. Certainly it can be done more humanely.

As an American, it is a no win situation. If I criticize, I'm Imperious, if I do nothing I'm uncaring.

I've seen similar things in Japan. I wonder what Hindus think of American slaughter houses. . . no, I think I know already.

Pete,
I try no to look at it as - americans/europeeans/asians etc...
I think right/wrong is universal, doesn't need a name. I put this on "humanity's" account.
I think this is plain wrong, a huge stain on humanity. There's no arguement in culture's name that can stand straight against this.

You're right Pete. Agree or disagree, and you'll be labeled something....

Call me what you want, but I'm probably neither a red-meat monger nor a tree-hugger. I understand there needs to be a balance between our consumption and our contribution.

What do they use the whales for? As this seems to be an annual "harvest", they haven't eliminated the species, so is there some useful purpose this activity is serving?

There is an overabundance of deer in Texas that wipe out grasslands and (or course) threaten cattle operations. They allow hunting as a means of deer control.


I can agree to that logic - we've destroyed so much natural habitat already, if the remainig wild areas are overpopulated with animals, you've got an even worse situation (disease, further destruction, demise, etc). Besides, deer tastes pretty good.

Unfortunately, humans are NOT exclusive herbivores. We do not posess rumens or other fermentation organs, which makes us very inefficient at digesting plant material and extracting essential calories, nutrients, and proteins. So, in my view, humans do need SOME small amount of animal/fish protein/meat in the diet.

Yes, slaughter operations are very disturbing to the "sanitized" eye of today's society. We just want our food packaged in the nice little wrapper and don't want to know HOW it got there.

Maybe they just picked it from the "hamburger tree"...

How to efficiently and humanely "process" large numbers of animals will always be a source of contention for people.

Would it be "nicer" to see all these people out there trying to harpoon the whales individually (some escaping with serious injury and pain)?

Should the fishermen just drop a bomb in the water and hope that it kills them all instantly?

I'm not a fisherman.... how do you harvest whales? Let's assume there is a reason you have to...

Are they used for something? I wouldn't condone just killing them, but if the meat/carcass is used why not? I saw something about this on public television a while back. I can't remember the reasoning.

I wonder how many hogs, cows, chickens, turkeys, are raised and slaughtered each year in the US. Gotta be high, we eat alot of beef. Our indians (Native Americans), get to kill fish with spears, its thier culture. Whitey can't do it, unless its on a reservation. I think you can bow fish though. Works well with carp.

I respect your view that the topic of animal harvest is disturbing.

And I agree that there are plenty of things we as humans do that are NOT what you'd consider admirable, I'd be willing to debate if this activity of harvesting whales is "wrong" under ANY circumstance.

I am in no way defending this activity as I have no firsthand knowledge of WHY this is being done. I merely am seeking to engage in CONSTRUCTIVE debate on this...

Questions:
- is this the only source of animal protein that sociey (or village, or whatever) has access to? Is it only this time of year that the animals are accessable?

- If they didn't harvest the whales, what could the people do for food/protein/energy? Animal protein and fat are substantially more calorie rich than vegetable/plant material. Is there enough airable ground for these people to subsist on plants alone?

- if left to their own device, would the whales overpopulate their feeding grounds, suffer from disease or habitat exhasution/destruction?

- if they hunted the whales some other way, would it cause more injuyr/suffering to the whales?



I pose the question "How could this result be achieved in a more "acceptable" manner"?

The people on the islands, which btw. is under the danish crown, are experts on cooking pilot whales. Much relevant information can be found here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whaling_in_the_Faroe_Islands

The hunt is regulated by the government. To me the hunt/killing looks inhumane.
Apparently the kill is done in the traditional way, but the chase is done in motorized boats instead of rowing boats. My feeling is that as long as they argue it is a traditional/cultural hunt, they should go out there with rowing boats and no modern communication.

Todays trivia: Damn the treaty at Kiel of 1814. Until then Norway included the Faroe Islands, Iceland and Greenland. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treaty_of_Kiel

Okay, if there is some reason the crown still authorizes the hunt, how could it be made more humane?

Sleeping pills? (no, that's not a joke)

You shoot the whales with grenade loaded harpoons at sea. One big shock and you can reel them en.

And the fish, scuba divers, seals, other whales, etc. right along with them.

I still think grenade fishing is the fastest way to euthanize your target, but not as 'specific' as I'd like....

You're thinking though, and that's the point of brainstorming!



Sorry Rolf, didn't see the "harpoon" part of the grenade fishing. Yes, I think that's a more instant form of harvest, but how in the heck to you track down and harvest that many whales in the open?

That's a lot of grenade harpoons... I could use a few for (or against) some people in my office...

You are probably thinking about artillery, that is not what a grenade harpoon is. It is an harpoon with an exploding head. Once the harpoon have gone into the whale, it explodes and knocks the whale out. Ref: http://www.slate.com/id/2143986/
This is how modern whaling is done.

Not many scuba divers or seals around the faroe islands I think. I believe the fishing is poor these days as well, without having checked.
Ref: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Faroe_Islands

Correct. Although those whales looked pretty small compared to the explosive harpoons I've seen video of (during the Japanese "research harvest" of larger whales).

Do they make smaller versions? I guess to avoid the kind of images posted, it would make sense to develop one.

Still, the question persists... How would you get that many whales harpooned without chasing them all over the water for a looooong time...?

uhg

I had sushi for lunch and then I clicked on this.

let me re-iterate...

uhg

Grenade harpoons So much more effective than yelling starboard.
If the whales are bieng utilized for their blubber and meat then im ok with it. Yes it is inhumane but so are zoo's here in the U.S. . If its a cultural rite of passage then who are we to judge their society. Hooking a fish and fighting it for an hour then gaffing it and pulling it aboard and watching it bleed to death and suffocate at the same time is also cruel.

That is the point. Do a proper hunt and humane kill instead of a massacre.

That's why I quit hunting hogs with dogs. It's just too savage.

For those inclined to do something about this, contact their local tourist bureau. They'll put stop to it in a hurry!

I can just imagine the Florida Tourist Industry going insane if we did that on a public beach!!

Pete,

people pay a lot of money to see alligator wrestling. How humane is that (especially since the wrestler never loses)?

Is sport fishing humane (see above post about fishing)? How about commercial tuna netting?

Back to the whaling example, is there any particular need to harvest the whales? I haven't read the article. Is it used for meat, or whale population control? At least those have humanitarian purposes.

So, from the discussion so far, perhaps the most efficient and humane method for this 'harvest' is to corral the whales similar to how they are doing it in the pictures, and then "bang-stick" the whales with grenade harpoons suited for their size to instantly kill them individually?

And I like sushi, too. Which is why no one ever takes me fishing anymore...