The Shark Debate Thread

[Izeroth]

Great job, Wylder! That's truly a blessing and an opportunity others don't get

And I forgot to answer your question about the sharks! My favorite is a thresher shark. It has a very long tailfin, which it uses to kill its prey! Quite ingenious. It is also rather docile and typically doesn't harm humans; sadly, the same cannot be said for the other way around. It's a popular shark for fishing

Seriously, why? Don't get rid of our sharks! They're essential to our ecosystem.

Sharks are misunderstood. Most people think they're brutal killers, while in reality shark attacks are very rare.

[Skyblade]

That's very true.

Statistics: About 5-10 people die from shark attacks each year. Meanwhile, over a hundred million sharks die at the hands of humans in the same amount of time.

Why? Because they're a "delicacy".

Sharks are actually risky to eat because they are top predators. Mercury builds up the higher you go up the food chain.

As you can see, I am fervent about this subject. Maybe I would feel differently if I got attacked by a shark But here are 11 animals than kill more people than our big-toothed friends: mosquitoes, deer, hippos, dogs, ants, jellyfish, horses, rattlesnakes, spiders, cows, and bees.

[Wylder Treejumper]

As far as I know, the only part of sharks generally eaten is the fins (shark fin soup), although I do know that the flesh of all sharks is edible, except for that of the Greenland shark, which has toxic levels of vitamin A in it.

You can thank my military survival guide for that wonderful fact.

[Banya]

As far as I know, the only part of sharks generally eaten is the fins (shark fin soup), although I do know that the flesh of all sharks is edible, except for that of the Greenland shark, which has toxic levels of vitamin A in it.

That only the fins are generally eaten is the biggest problem.  Many sharks that are hunted are hauled on board ships, their fins are cut off, and they're pushed back into the water.  They are no longer able to swim or hunt and soon die.  Of the sharks that are kept, they are only hunted for their fins; the delicacy called shark fin soup nets profits.  The rest of the meat, which is too toxic and unsavory to eat, is wasted.
Those of you who want to eat sharks might as well buy an elephant tusk or a rhino horn; you're doing the same thing to a different species.

[Eulaliaaa!]

As far as I know, the only part of sharks generally eaten is the fins (shark fin soup), although I do know that the flesh of all sharks is edible, except for that of the Greenland shark, which has toxic levels of vitamin A in it.

That only the fins are generally eaten is the biggest problem.  Many sharks that are hunted are hauled on board ships, their fins are cut off, and they're pushed back into the water.  They are no longer able to swim or hunt and soon die.  Of the sharks that are kept, they are only hunted for their fins; the delicacy called shark fin soup nets profits.  The rest of the meat, which is too toxic and unsavory to eat, is wasted.
Those of you who want to eat sharks might as well buy an elephant tusk or a rhino horn; you're doing the same thing to a different species.

I actually didn't know that. That's pretty sad, really.

[Skyblade]

Huh, y'all think I hate girls. Well, fun fact of the day: I'm goin' on a date on Saturday. Stick that in yer lug, eh! All you beasts who think I won't get married *cough*Banya*cough*

Sounds great, Wylder!

That only the fins are generally eaten is the biggest problem.  Many sharks that are hunted are hauled on board ships, their fins are cut off, and they're pushed back into the water.  They are no longer able to swim or hunt and soon die.  Of the sharks that are kept, they are only hunted for their fins; the delicacy called shark fin soup nets profits.  The rest of the meat, which is too toxic and unsavory to eat, is wasted.
Those of you who want to eat sharks might as well buy an elephant tusk or a rhino horn; you're doing the same thing to a different species.

I agree, and was actually going to say something like that.

Here's a metaphor that is (hopefully accurate): You are at your house, minding your own business. Suddenly, some aliens - who are way more powerful than you - break in and haul you into space. They then proceed to cut off your limbs before dumping you back onto the sidewalk and zooming away. You have no idea why, but it's because the meat is tasty according to their species.

Granted, I've never eaten shark. Maybe it does taste good. But is it good for your body? Or for the environment? I don't think so. Humans (me included) really need to get their priorities straight.

[Delthion]

But humans are not the same as sharks!!!! Sorry not wanting to start an argument. But that kind of allegory is so overused and is one of the worst allegories in the world!

(Again, not wanting to start an argument.)

[Mhera]

(Speaking to Del, guys, so please don't jump on me if you're not a Christian. Or at least do it in a PM.) Correct, Del. That metaphor can easily be stretched to fit any animal even though it's okay for us to eat them (after all, if killing sharks is bad, then why is killing other animals okay?). However, we're called to be good stewards over the earth, and hunting sharks to extinction in a cruel manner doesn't exactly fit the description.

[Jetthebinturong]

But humans are not the same as sharks!!!! Sorry not wanting to start an argument. But that kind of allegory is so overused and is one of the worst allegories in the world!

(Again, not wanting to start an argument.)

Right so because they're not human we don't have to kill them humanely? We're allowed to just torture them for fun? People don't kill the sharks that they take the fins from, they just rip them off and then throw the shark back in the water. That is absolutely disgusting and those people should be thrown in after them. Animal cruelty is the most pointless form of abuse ever. "Oh look I'm so cool because I disabled a helpless shark, now let's laugh as we watch it drown!" If I ever met someone who did that I would punch them in the face repeatedly until they were at least unconscious.

Also shark culling is totally pointless, shark attacks are exceedingly rare. I mean like, what's the point? Just because of Jaws people are scared of sharks for no reason? You know people swim with sharks right? They're beautiful, relatively harmless creatures so why can't we just darn well leave them alone?

[The Skarzs]

ENOUGH.

This topic is not for arguing or discussion the morality of hunting animals; it is for talking about things that might be interesting about one's self. Unless you really want a mod cracking down here, then I suggest using your common sense and ending this pointless debate.

[Izeroth]

 What? How did this... Nevermind.

[James Gryphon]

Mod: It's time to remind y'all of some of the rules.

1.  Respect everyone's opinion. Everyone has the right to have their opinion. If you don't agree with someone, then it's okay to say what your opinion is as long as you respect theirs.

2.  Everyone is entitled to their own belief in politics and religion, and that must be respected. But because of the volatile nature of these discussion topics, please refrain from posting topics about controversial subjects (ie: politics, religion, etc..). These subjects are not banned in general conversations, however, they will be heavily moderated to ensure that they do not get out of hand. The forum staff reserves the right to judge to determine whether a topic or discussion falls under this rule.

11. Don't do back-seat moderating. If you see that someone has done something that you think is against the rules, please use the "Report to moderator"-button. Sometimes people can sound somewhat unfriendly when they tell others what not to do and sometimes they're wrong. A moderator will look into it and make a decision.

...

3.  Conversations in topics must maintain a natural flow.  Going off, even way off the original subject is allowed, as long as discussion of the original subject led you to that point.  "Way off" is defined as a conversation not loosely related to the original subject.

Although it is not against the rules to discuss hunting sharks in the old topic, I've decided nevertheless to split this into a new topic. If y'all feel the need to continue talking about hunting sharks, then you may do so here.

I hope this clears everything up.

[SoranMBane]

As you can see, I am fervent about this subject. Maybe I would feel differently if I got attacked by a shark But here are 11 animals than kill more people than our big-toothed friends: mosquitoes, deer, hippos, dogs, ants, jellyfish, horses, rattlesnakes, spiders, cows, and bees.

Actually, according to just about every statistic I've seen, spiders kill fewer people than sharks do. In Australia alone, the country where "everything is trying to kill you," there have been zero observed spider-related deaths for over two decades (about since antivenom was invented). Spider deaths aren't much more common in other counties (I don't think anyone's even died from a black widow bite in the US ever since antivenom was invented, and most "brown recluse bites" are actually misdiagnosed).

So, spiders are just as misunderstood as sharks; both are awesome and ecologically-vital animals who, despite their scary reputations, are actually very non-aggressive and rarely kill humans.

But a least we haven't pushed most spiders to to brink of extinction the way we have with sharks. And at least the people who needlessly kill spiders usually do it quickly, rather than dismembering them and then leaving them to wallow helplessly and die a slow, painful death like they do with sharks. (Can you tell this stuff upsets me too?)

[Luftwaffles]

Sharks are misunderstood. Most people think they're brutal killers, while in reality shark attacks are very rare.

And most of those attacks are provoked because the sharks tend to confuse the erratic movements people do in the water (or at least that's what I heard).

[Cornflower MM]

Hey, guys, this is kind of off-topic here, but I'm still confused. Deers kill people?! How-? I seriously don;t get this. For ten years, I lived in a place where white tail deer were in abundance. I'd hand feed them (Things like fruits and veggies, people! Not stuff that could hurt them.), pet them, heck, one time I even played with one!
And now I see that deer kill people? I'm. . . . . . Confused, to say the least.