"It is of interest to note that while some dolphins are reported to have learned English - up to fifty words used in correct context - no human being has been reported to have learned dolphinese.”
"The Cove" Extended Clip w/ Japanese Subtitles from Dolphin Project on Vimeo.
We are a species who has pressed on through nearly every trial the Earth has thrown upon us, yet we can't seem to grasp the importance of preserving other species through the endless trials we throw upon them.
We are humans. We strive to learn about every corner of our planet, every inch of our bodies, every aspect of our mind, yet rarely do we seek to understand the minds of the other species that inhabit Earth with us.
Yet, there are those few people that do try to seek out the other organisms, that do struggle to grasp what they are feeling and set aside their own to preserve that. I believe that as human beings who have inhabited and also destroyed this planet for Lord knows how long, it is our job, our very purpose, to do what is right.
Yet, more often than not, we are too ignorant to do so.
Stuck in our ways, we continue to destroy the last frontiers of Earth. We continue to strip the rights of existence from other species, from the smallest, to the largest.
And yet, we still continue to insist we are more human.
However, as I write this personal message, I must stress that I have also been ignorant in some of my ways, and we can all improve.
But, this isn't about every animal, or the environment, or reducing, reusing, recycling;
This is about the dolphins.
It has been one of my upmost concerns in terms of the ocean, and the ecological issues that string across our globe. I have done essays, projects, petitions, donations, studies, everything I can possibly cram into my mind I have crammed, just to understand how people could slaughter thousands of dolphins a year for the sake of profitable gain.
I've told the story hundreds of times, so here I will display it from another source:
"In Japan, the hunting is done by a select group of fishermen.[6] When a pod of dolphins has been spotted, they're driven into a bay by the fishermen while banging on metal rods in the water to scare and confuse the dolphins. When the dolphins are in the bay, it is quickly closed off with nets so the dolphins cannot escape. The dolphins are usually not caught and killed immediately, but instead left to calm down over night. The following day, the dolphins are caught one by one and killed. The killing of the animals used to be done by slitting their throats, but the Japanese government banned this method and now dolphins may officially only be killed by driving a metal pin into the neck of the dolphin, which causes them to die within seconds according to a memo from Senzo Uchida, the executive secretary of the Japan Cetacean Conference on Zoological Gardens and Aquariums.[7] It is not clear if this ban is strictly enforced however, as eyewitness reports of similar throat-slitting and evisceration style killings were reported as late as October and November 2006" - Wikipedia
The scale of this issue is unprecedented: 2,000 dolphins are slaughtered annually.
In ratio to the dolphin population, that's a great loss.
So how does it affect you?
"As briefly mentioned above, occasionally, some of the captured dolphins are left alive and taken to mainly, but not exclusively, Japanese dolphinariums.[9] In the past, dolphins have also been exported to the United States for several parks including the well known SeaWorld parks.[10] The US National Marine Fisheries Service has refused a permit for Marine World Africa USA on one occasion to import four False Killer Whales caught in a Japanese drive hunt. In recent years, dolphins from the Japanese drive hunts have been exported to China, Taiwan[11] and to Egypt.[12] On multiple occasions, members of the International Marine Animal Trainers Association (IMATA) have also been observed at the drive hunts in Japan.[13]"
When you watch dolphin shows, visit dolphinariums, swim with dolphins in parks, and other similar activities, you are supporting the unecessary slaughter of thousands of dolphins every year.
What's worse? It also encourages the consumption of thousands upon thousands of pounds of dolphin meat every year. The video below explains the consequences concerning that.
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