Species collection in the Phillippines

[Adam]

Unfortunately without something very bad happening that drastically reduces our global population or possibly even wiping us out there's not going to be much left of this world after this century. There just no easy solution.

Look at China. Yes it's a superpower but 70% of there population is basically a 3rd world nation. That's nearly a billion people, 3 times the US They strip every resource available everywhere they go. Anything they think will cure or fix something they will use up till its gone. Rhino tusks, sharks the list goes on and on. The latest is manta rays, millions of them, just for their gills. The rest basically gets discarded. You think the topic we're discussing makes you feel bad just search Manta Gill plate trade in Google Images. That will make you physically sick.

Chinese fishing boats are in every ocean and sea right now as I type this. There routinely getting busted on both sides of South America. Hell even both attic oceans. Every year there's massive algae blooms at every point a river leaves their country. Everywhere in the world where there's "Ignorance" this is happening.

How do you fix it?
I can think of only one thing...

 

[civics14]

Annihilation of the human species?

 

[Adam]

Or **** close to it.

 

[civics14]

omg!! I just googled it like you said, that is disgusting about the manta rays!! this whole thing goes back to the looking for this magic cure that will cure cancer, diseases, etc. etc. Desperate people are gullible.

great article on that

 

[hzheng33]

I think there's ignorance on both fronts. some people over there are ignorant of the impact they're making to the environment due to one reason or another. there's also an ignorance here where people feel that they're preaching the correct solution yet have no real understanding of the real life beyond the borders here in this country.

maybe because I was born in China, I have at least an understanding of what Victor and Adam are talking about. heck, I have even seen things they're referring to and the craziness that come with it.

in order to reach the solution, we really need to have both sides sit down and have a discussion. man, I really sound like a politician and it's really beyond my control.

anyhow, I totally understand the intent behind jenns comments but I don't think my statement was wrong.

those shark fin soup and manta ray gill dish don't really sound appetizing if you ask me.

 

[jennm]

Obviously it's a simple problem with complicated solutions.

As for banning the trade - oh it's been tried. Plenty of times. PIJAC is the entity that goes to bat for the pet industry. Some of the ridiculous attempts at legislation by suits in offices... the most recent one I remember would have banned the import of ALL fishes, except goldfish. I'll see if I can find that one - it was insane.

Ironically, when a PI fisherman is provided proper netting and taught proper methods - like Steve Robinson and Ferdie Cruz were teaching local divers, a fisherman can actually do better than with cyanide.

Unfortunately there are as many 'politics' in play as there is 'ignorance'.

As for TCM - Traditional Chinese Medicine, yeah we might find some of the remedies 'unlikely', but if something has persisted for thousands of years, we are arrogant to discount it completely. That doesn't mean I think it's OK to hunt something to extinction - especially now that Western medicine likely has a suitable remedy for. I don't necessarily think that all traditional medicines are fake either.

I remember when I opened my shop - my logo was a seahorse. Wild seahorse populations are now threatened - mainly by TCM. The aquarium trade gets some blame, but the trade only accounts for a small fraction of specimens collected, and TCM accounts for the vast majority. A neighbouring shopkeeper came in - he's originally from Viet Nam. He looked at the seahorses in my tank and said, "Fix back pain, 3 days." He was dead serious. He went on to say that liver, kidney issues would also be fixed.

I joked and said he couldn't have any of my pet seahorses for his tea...

There are plenty of medicines derived from plant and animal matter. I think it's very arrogant to dismiss the notion that there is medicinal value in these.

And yeah, there will always be people just willing to write a fat check (watched, "Tanked!" lately?) You can't fix that. You can choose not to do business with that sort of customer - I have.

Jenn

 

[jrhunter0000]

Wow the spear fishing looks like that takes skill!