So the Canadian seal hunt is on, again; lefties and animal lovers are complaining, again; pictures of those cute and cuddly baby seals are being shown on television ,newspapers, and the web, again; and those pictures are triggering shock and empathy, again; which is leading to some nice fundraising for anti sealing groups, again.
Let's examine some of these anti-sealing websites shall we? I've only picked three, there are dozens.
Heading over to www.canadiansealhunt.com we see pictures of white baby seals, sealers using hakapiks, and lots of blood and guts. It asks you to boycott all Canadian seafood, travel to Newfoundland, certain fashion labels, specific seafood companies, and herbs made from seals.
On IFAW's Stop the Seal Hunt site, we also have some of the same pictures and information. This site also claims that the seal hunt is unsustainable, implying that seal populations are declining, while citing their own reports. There's also a very prominent Donate link.
On Boycott Canadian Seafood, we see a prominently displayed baby whitecoat, and more of the same. My favourite words on this site: "Help put an end to the commercial slaughter of baby seals. Make a donation today."
Now, let's examine the facts.
Fisheries and Oceans Canada, the federal government's ministry, has a seal hunt fact sheet. Hey look at fact #1, hunting whitecoats has been banned since 1987. Could this mean that each and every one of these anti-sealing websites are trying to take advantage of your empathy by showing you the cutest seals and implying that they're the ones being hunted, when in fact they are not hunted? Nah...they couldn't be that blatantly dishonest could they? The fact sheet proceeds to dispel myths about seals being skinned alive (they're not), the hakapik being a cruel instrument (it's not), and that seals are being killed to preserve cod (they're not).
Fact #5 states something very, very, important. The seal hunt is NOT unsustainable as many environmental groups claim. The harp seal population has been growing steadily and is now triple that of the 1970s.
Fact #6: "Seals are a significant source of income for some individual sealers and for thousands of families in Eastern Canada at a time of year when other fishing options are limited at best, in many remote, coastal communities. Sealing also creates employment opportunities for buying and processing plants."
Let's bolster this fact with something from Newfoundland and Labrador's own seal hunt fact sheet: the industry is worth $55 million to the provincial economy, and the money is crucial to eastern Canadians with limited employment opportunities.
I'll bring in my final (and favourite) link, Terry Glavin's article in The Tyee. He is an environmentalist, and is sickened by the disinformation being spread by anti-sealers. If you read nothing else, read that article. It has a lot of good information, and it's too much to repeat here.
Let's move into my opinions.
The anti-sealing movement is full of liars, idiots, and hypocrites.
They're liars because they tell you that the cuter ones are hunted, that it is unsustainable, and that it has no economic value. The unemployment rate in Newfoundland & Labrador is approximately 14%. Canadians that depend on this for a big chunk of their income need the money. It's easy to ask them to do something else, when there are no other jobs available.
They're idiots because their lying and hypocrisy is making the animal rights and environmental movements look bad. I have no problem with this, since I despise most animal rights activists (yeah that's right, I said it).
They're hypocrites because they have a problem with the cruelty in killing seals, but they say nothing about the cruelty in killing cows and chickens in slaughterhouses. I'm looking at economic benefit here. Cattle ranchers and chicken farmers are also responsible for a lot of slaughter. But then you might say, but isn't there a difference between killing cows/chicken to eat them versus killing those cute widdle baby seals? Well it's not just the pelt and oils that are sold, so is the meat! I don't eat it, and maybe you don't, but there are people that do.
I refuse to accept that the welfare of animals is more important than those of people. These morons are audacious enough to (try to) hurt Canada's economy by banning our seafood exports. It hasn't worked, but it still pisses me off.
I'll end this post by requesting that you eat seafood, and lots of it. Don't stop there, beef, pork, chicken, and other meats are oh so tasty. You won't just enjoy a hearty and delicious meal, you'll also piss off animal rights activists, which, for me atleast, is an added bonus.
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Very well presented.
ReplyDeleteI was not aware at all. They do show all the cute whitecoats that we love so much. And the point comparing the seals to the cows and chickens is bang on.
Great post!
I agree in almost everything you sad, but one thing. Cows and chickens are raised all over the world with the purpose of getting eaten by someone. I don't think you can apply the same to wild seals. If a mistake is made, this "sustainable" practice may lead to this species extinction.
ReplyDeleteA good example is whale hunt. Centuries ago, whale hunting wouldn't extinct them. Today, with better hunting ways, this is what's happening.
I like your point of view though.
In theory the seals are meant to be dead before skinning, however, the point of many protests is that, in practice, they aren't. In practice seals will occasionally regain consciousness. This has nothing to do with the hakapiks, per se. Rather it is from incompetence on the hunters part, in that they don't use the hakapiks effectively and often have to take two or three strikes just to finish the seal off.
ReplyDeleteFor the record, I am not against the seal hunt. I just don't see anything wrong or damaging about the recommendations given to hunters to be better trained with the hakapiks and/or bleed the seals out before skinning to insure they're dead.
Just found your article, being a Newfoundlander, I love it! Have to reply to another few posts here, the fact that cows & chickens are "raised" to be eaten, is humane? At least seals are found in the wild & hunted like deer. Try to stop deer hunting in Michigan! Also, common sense says it's easier to skin a dead seal than a live one! The club with the hook makes so much more sense that a gun: ricocheting bullets, seal carcasses sinking below the ice & being wasted, etc. Oh, and we don't knock a cow over the head, slit its throat & bleed it out before we skin it? Also, every part of the seal is used. As you stated, this is a way to add a little income; a dangerous, but traditional way of life for people on the East coast of Canada. Those Holywood/California types have their heads you know where. The state doesn't even have a budget and are trillions in debt and they condescend to give the rest of the independant, working word guidelines on how to live on this earth! As I said, I am a Newfoundlander & we love to eat seal meat, wish it was available when I go home.
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