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Yeah, I don't see what the big deal is with all this. Besides, this article is from The Sun for feth's sake. If they can't put make a story into an outrage, they don't print it.

Locals kill whales for food. A Fisheries Office spokesman said: "We use the most efficient and humane means of killing."

But Campaign Whale director Andy Ottaway said: "This appalling slaughter must end. It's an unfolding tragedy."

Seems very straightforward to me. It's just a matter of presentation.

It is everywhere.

RustyKnight wrote:

Khornholio wrote:I always get a laugh out of the tourists who come to the Seaworld to see the whales and then go and buy the 'Whale Bento'.
.

You never see an animal and wonder what it tastes like?

Do women count? hurr hurr hurr

Colossal Donkey wrote:I just think if your going to use an animal as a food source it should be sustainable.

You go ahead and you march right down there to that island and show all those people how they should survive then.
There's nothing brutal, inhumane, or wrong about this.

People eat meat, meat doesn't just come from Wal-Mart already pre-packaged in Styrofoam and cellophane wrap with that little blanket thing under the meat, it comes from animals. These people are connected to their food source directly, they depend on it, if they manage it properly and sustain it then they can co-exist forever. If they don't, the food source will die out and the people on the island will die with it or move on. In fact truthfully, they have MORE right to eat those whales than you have to any hamburger or steak you've ever bought from the store. They have to learn about their food, they have to track it, and plan to harvest it, their entire community invested resources into the fishermen to go out gather it. Ask yourself what do you know of the chicken you barbeque or the bacon you have for breakfast? What did it take to raise and slaughter that animal? How much waste did it generate? What were the conditions it lived in?

You want to know whats really a shame? The fact that people in the modern world can become so disconnected and removed from the very food chain that supports them that the sight of that food, so close in appearance to the source from which it came, actually disturbs people. You want to judge those people? Join a 4H program and raise a lamb or hog to slaughter weight, then actually slaughter the animal for yourself and go watch the reactions on the faces of those it feeds when you donate it to a soup kitchen or homeless shelter.

@warboss wait I thought kangaroos where protected

I see no problem with what they did I just think they did to much at once a whale could feed two familys they do not need 200 some.

Soladrin wrote:Also, person who said pig's aren't cool. Pig's are bloody awesome, I'm getting one as a pet when I get a bigger garden. (and I will still eat his family harhar)

Pigs are indeed very cool. So far as I'm concerned they're the most dangerous non-venomous/poisonous animal in Australia.

Kogwar wrote:@warboss wait I thought kangaroos where protected

Not so far as I know. You can buy their meat in the supermarket if you're so inclined; the only part worth eating is the tail. Most farmers I've spoken to on the subject think they're a damn pest.

would rather have my food killed inhumanly then treated like this WHILE THEY ARE alive.

The two aren't mutually exclusive.

Amazingly it IS possible to treat animals humanely AND slaughter them in a way that minimises stress and suffering.

I think the people who are comparing this to farmed livestock are being pretty silly. We control the populations of livestock, and therefore they are in absolutely no danger of becoming extinct. We don't control the populations of fish and whales, therefore they are at a much greater risk of becoming extinct. It IS possible to hunt and fish in a sustainable way, but I am dubious as to whether that's what's happening here. The real focus of the conversation should be sustainability, because even people who don't find the slaughter distressing (and I don't, personally) should be concerned about that.

drukawski Wrote
If they don't, the food source will die out and the people on the island will die with it or move on.

I don't know if this was intended but this comes across very much as a point of view that only cares about humans. The people suffering because they have not bothered to think about the future doesn't in any way make up for a species being entirely wiped out.

I would love to have a pig.

4M2A wrote:

drukawski Wrote
If they don't, the food source will die out and the people on the island will die with it or move on.

I don't know if this was intended but this comes across very much as a point of view that only cares about humans. The people suffering because they have not bothered to think about the future doesn't in any way make up for a species being entirely wiped out.

Where is it suggested that their hunting is actually presenting a threat to the species as a whole? Where?

I am not sure if they actually 'need' to hunt these whales, but I am quite sure they could give a toss what you think. You don't 'need' to drink coffee in the morning, nor do you need to watch cable TV. I can safely bet you do one of those two things, and if you need something a bit further along the lines of personal taste, pick a commonly available meat. Don't eat that meat, or you're a bad person. A bad, bad person.

Da Boss wrote:I think the people who are comparing this to farmed livestock are being pretty silly. We control the populations of livestock, and therefore they are in absolutely no danger of becoming extinct. We don't control the populations of fish and whales, therefore they are at a much greater risk of becoming extinct.

These were pilot whales, and are not actually in danger of being overfished. If this undercover moron of a whale activist, the one from the Sea Shepherd crew, actually gave half a damn, he would have picked a fight that actually mattered. Locally there were a bunch of people doing a tree sit in an Oak grove, they were verifiable idiots, at least most of them. I have little compassion for ego-driven hippies, that don't know how to do something useful. Complaining about pilot whales being killed in numbers as small as a hundred or two, is just picking a fight where there is none to be had.

Go hug a panda.

It IS possible to hunt and fish in a sustainable way, but I am dubious as to whether that's what's happening here. The real focus of the conversation should be sustainability, because even people who don't find the slaughter distressing (and I don't, personally) should be concerned about that.

What are the odds that this fishing WAS in fact done in a sustainable way, such as the way it has been done for hundreds, if not thousands of years. Has the small population in this community gotten so massive that they are gorging themselves in an unsustainable way? Yeah, probably not. I worry more about things like bluefin tuna than pilot whales.

Seriously, what in the hell would I put in my mac and cheese when I am hungry and broke? Canned tuna is the bees knees, I hope it doesn't become extinct.

Ill play devils advocate and say maybe we dont know the whole story?

Im pretty sure its not "senseless" as the story said they eat the meat.

And some of you lot are just being typically idiotic hippies leaping in with statements like "its murder man!"

I dont like to see any animal suffer needlessly, but im a meat eater, so its hypocritical to go on about it. Look at halal meat if you want to see some cruelty. People are just being reactionary cos whales look kinda cute.

If you eat chickens and cows and pigs, i dont see how you can get so pissed about people eating whales?

The " food source will die out" suggests that they are threatening the species. Not knowing the whole story my comment assumed this was the case.

Whether they care what I do is pointless, I am sure lots of thieves don't care about my opinion but stealing is still wrong. Do something which harms something while their is a less destructive alternative is wrong in my opinion.

I can understand killing and eating animals, it's part of nature and isn't wrong, what I have a problem with is killing animals inhumanly and eating endangered species if neither of these are occuring I don't have a problem with it but it's possible that they are.

4M2A wrote:...what I have a problem with is killing animals inhumanly and eating endangered species if neither of these are occuring I don't have a problem with it...

How would you recommend they kill these whales more humanely? I don't even understand what you are getting at here.

Also, and yet again, PILOT WHALES ARE NOT AN ENDANGERED SPECIES. PLEASE PROVE ME WRONG.

...but it's possible that they are.

It isn't if they aren't doing what you suggest. Not an endangered species... check. Killing them in a relatively quick way... check.

You could suggest that they shoot the whales in the face with a shotgun. Or, maybe, severing the spine is actually a very effective way to kill a large animal quickly.

I could care less about this. I mean, my viewpoint on how to do deal with walking meat that hasn't been prepared yet may be a little bit biased, but eh. I'm Icelandic, as long as you cooked it right, we'll eat it. Last time I checked, us and the Japanese still eat us some delicious Whale, and everyone is still pissed off about it. Now, if you think that every whale is a super special snowflake of supreme supernatural beauty and goodness, fine. Don't let me eat whale, but I fully expect and demand that if you see a Killer Whale going after one of the delicious bastards, that you jump in and beat him to death or what have you. If you think I can't enjoy the meat of this animal, why do you allow any other animal to eat their meat?

chowderhead13 wrote:Yeah. Having whale guts spewed out on the ground made me violently sick. I threw up a little after looking at the photo for .2 seconds. That is not something that should be shown. Honestly, there are 10 year olds on this forum. Take it down. NOW.

I don't understand how a 14-year-old 4chan enthusiast finds this abhorrent and calls for its removal, but I guess you get all sorts. Cows are sacred to some societies, and I happen to think cats and dogs are pretty cool, but some people eat 'em. Animals eat animals. Anteaters commit terrible acts of genocide on a daily basis, lions eat harmless herbivores, and don't get me started on the plankton... please, won't somebody think of the plankton?

Arctik_Firangi wrote:

chowderhead13 wrote:Yeah. Having whale guts spewed out on the ground made me violently sick. I threw up a little after looking at the photo for .2 seconds. That is not something that should be shown. Honestly, there are 10 year olds on this forum. Take it down. NOW.

I don't understand how a 14-year-old 4chan enthusiast finds this abhorrent and calls for its removal, but I guess you get all sorts. Cows are sacred to some societies, and I happen to think cats and dogs are pretty cool, but some people eat 'em. Animals eat animals. Anteaters commit terrible acts of genocide on a daily basis, lions eat harmless herbivores, and don't get me started on the plankton... please, won't somebody think of the plankton?

Every breath you take kills millions of innocent Bacteria. Please, think of the Bacteria.

(insert picture of crying Native American Amoeba here)

I agree with Haddi, i love dogs for example, but im not going to demand that the Chinese stop eating them,

Ridiculous and OTT offensive hyperbole removed, please remember we try to keep a PG 13 rating on the forum. ta.

Im not completely opposed to the killing of whales for meat, as long as it is done humanely...

But letting anything suffer for a few minutes while you try to kill it is just wrong.

ShivanAngel wrote:Im not completely opposed to the killing of whales for meat, as long as it is done humanely...

But letting anything suffer for a few minutes while you try to kill it is just wrong.

Of course, any normal human would agree with that sentiment, and thats my point.

The story is just sensationalist, im pretty certain they kill them humanely. These eco-warriors like to paint the people who kill them as monsters, but im sure they kill them humanely, i mean, why wouldnt you? Its not like the fishermen are going to tie the whales to racks and stretch them to death!

Yknow what I think is hilarious is all these animal rights people get up in arms about the animals being mistreated BEFORE THEY ARE BEING KILLED and pay no mind to the fact that on a daily basis literally THOUSANDS of them are killed, dissected and eaten.
And sorry, how the feth do you 'humanely' kill something? It's horrendously mind boggling that there is apparently a compassionate way to snuff out an animal so you can cook and eat it.
As far as I'm concerned, they can eat their stinking whales. I don't think in the grand scheme of things anyone but serious animal rights activists actually care anyway. As previously mentioned, we have a mass-production method of killing animals and you only bat an eye at the ~200 whales which were killed (which is actually an insignificant number compared to how many animals we kill dailiy for food)
I think a large factor influencing people's views on this is that people almost objectify them and they begin to forget that meat actually comes from a once-living animal.
People, there is a food chain. Get over it.

Go Vegan or go home.

Animals are tasty, some of them are hard to kill quickly. Life is brutal, get used to it.

Checking into it, doesn't look like this species is currently in danger of over-fishing. So I'm cool with it, as long as everyone keeps their eye on that particular ball.

Wow I never ceases to be amused by this kinda treads, Have you actually consider that are just overgrown vermin? And besides, just because some hippie says we cant whale we are supposed to obey? Please, whales are just a source of food. Spend your energy on humans that are suffering, much more useful.

Meh. Pilot whales participate in the brutal slaughter of hundreds of squid, humans participate in the brutal slaughter of hundreds of pilot whales. Seems fair.

Stormrider wrote:Go Vegan or go home.

But the harvest season is the apocalypse for carrots! No meat! No vegetables should be ripped from their home in the ground! Inert matter shall sustain us! Everyone, go find your favorite rock and make a sandwich.

Or you could do what the Jainists do and sit under an apple tree and wait for one to fall. Pulling it off the tree harms the tree.

Remember, you can't spell slaughter without laughter.

garret wrote:

Xx_ECHO_xX wrote:
They are killing them for food but its the fact that they killl them in a very inhumane way i agree with the topic poste. they should not be killed

Please tell me you dont eat factory beef then. becuase the way we treat cows is bad.


I would rather have my food killed inhumanly then treated like this WHILE THEY ARE alive.

the way that they catch whales/kill wales is they shoot them with a harpoon gun with a large grenade attached to the end so when it goes deep enough into the whales it explodes, not killing the whale outright but causing it extreme pain. and im not saying that they treat them bad its the way they kill them

Xx_ECHO_xX wrote:

garret wrote:

Xx_ECHO_xX wrote:
They are killing them for food but its the fact that they killl them in a very inhumane way i agree with the topic poste. they should not be killed

Please tell me you dont eat factory beef then. becuase the way we treat cows is bad.


I would rather have my food killed inhumanly then treated like this WHILE THEY ARE alive.

the way that they catch whales/kill wales is they shoot them with a harpoon gun with a large grenade attached to the end so when it goes deep enough into the whales it explodes, not killing the whale outright but causing it extreme pain. and im not saying that they treat them bad its the way they kill them

no, they don't that would waste meat. and a large grenade attached to anything underwater is going to turn it to jelly.

Ahtman wrote:

Stormrider wrote:Go Vegan or go home.

But the harvest season is the apocalypse for carrots! No meat! No vegetables should be ripped from their home in the ground! Inert matter shall sustain us! Everyone, go find your favorite rock and make a sandwich.

Or you could do what the Jainists do and sit under an apple tree and wait for one to fall. Pulling it off the tree harms the tree.

Remember, you can't spell slaughter without laughter.

I LAWLED!

I vaguely remember England Playing the Faroe Islands at Old Trafford a few years ago. IIRC the commentator noted that the capacity of the stadium (around 70,000) was greater than the population of the Faroe Islands by quite a significant margin. It's a miniscule country.

The Faroe Islanders are not in danger of over-fishing pilot whales.