We've inadvertently slipped into a conservation theme this week. I just finished watching the Making of Sharkwater, the first film attempt by Canadian Rob Stewart. From an old-school environmentalist at the helm motoring their ship away from the machine-gun toting Costa Rican Coast Guard and an all-star musical score and soundtrack, this film looks to be a must-see.

The ecological impact of shark hunting could potentially be huge since they are one of the ocean's top predators and have been since before dinosaurs even existed. But what makes shark hunting different than any other type of fishing?  Shark Fin Soup.

In some parts of the world Shark Fin Soup is considered a delicacy and a sign of wealth. The fin adds almost nothing to the dish besides texture and it is not feeding starving children or even everyday working-folks. It's a status symbol to serve at weddings and big social events.

And that's not the whole tragedy. The worst part is this: the fin is the only part of the shark that is used. They literally capture sharks by the hundreds, cut the dorsal fins off and dump the bodies. There is really no excuse, no up-side to consider. It's a vulgar abuse of nature and there's not much more to it than that.

Unfortunately, in international waters there aren't many laws and there are even fewer people willing to go to bat for sharks, who are still viewed by many as man-eaters at-worst and pests at-best. Luckily there are some real dedicated folks, some of them willing to go to perhaps-insane extremes (like Paul Watson) in order to fight the "good fight" and some of them were involved with this film

Keep an eye out for this film, it's supposed to be in theaters soon.

- one 

When I saw a video on the "secret" annual Japanese dolphin slaughter I'll admit, I felt a little twinge but I was all set to skip the story until I saw it involved Hayden Panettiere (of Heroes).  I'd never really pegged her as a Paris/Britney Bimbo type but I certainly didn't credit her with being a hardcore environmental activist either.

Shocking as it was to discover this teenage actress was in Japan to protest the killing of dolphins, when I watched the video I was completely astounded to see her in the water attempting to reach (and free) a pod of trapped dolphins with a group of others at risk of their own lives (the Japanese fishermen kept interjecting their boat — along with it's outboard propeller — between the swimmers and the dolphins).

To be perfectly clear, for those that have no idea what this dolphin slaughter business is all about, it's this in a nutshell: Japanese eat fish, Dolphins eat fish, so once a year in a couple of fishing villages on the Japanese coast the fishermen literally gut their competition by netting, herding, and slaughtering dolphins. The idea is that fewer dolphins = more fish, and the logic is sound.

What's more, this really isn't that out-of-the-ordinary. We (humans) have been killing competitive predators for eons. Farmers to this day will kill wolves and wild dogs they see nearby in order to protect their sheep, goats and chickens. The only thing that makes this situation unique is that the predator is cute, possibly cuddly, and certainly intelligent.

So I'm torn. On the one hand my heart goes out to the dolphins, but on the other hand the fishermen are just doing essentially the same thing as farmers worldwide have done and will continue to do. There is no easy answer here, so as tempting as it is to side wholeheartedly with the environmentalists (after all, they're the ones who aren't killing anyone/anything) it's also important to recognize that fish is an important part of the Japanese (and worldwide) diet and smaller catches (due to dolphins running wild and stuffing themselves) could lead to human deaths from vitamin deficiencies or starvation — not that it justifies killing dolphins, but it's just not a simple situation to resolve.

The Japan Sea is certainly over-fished and the islands are crowded.  Perhaps the real answer lies in human population control, or maybe even a more humane method of dolphin population control. Whatever the case, I felt it was important to recognize responsible idealism and bravery because there isn't enough of it in the world. Thank you Hayden, for setting a great example. Most people don't like to think of themselves as a "role model" but too bad, you've proven yourself to be a great one so far.

In closing, here is a YouTube video set to the song by LIVE that gives this post its title and here is another that is a bit more painful to watch.

- one