60 Minutes Anderson Cooper visits Cuba's Islands of the Queen

Doc · Dec 18, 2011

Tonight Anderson Cooper visited what was referenced as the most intact reef in the Caribbean. Due to its long standing status as a protected zone, I would certainly agree. They lie far off the Southern shore of Cuba.

Mr Cooper clonked one barrel sponge with his dangling SPG, stood for several scenes on/within the corals, held onto coral, thrust his hand out at a Shark and a bunch of other stuff that made us cringe.

Likely, the rest of the non-SCUBA public was impressed as well they should be- with the message delivered. This reef seems to recover from bleaching and other maladies with great speed... possibly due to the large number of natural critters.

As to AC's diving skills vs. the reef? Well, sometimes you gotta take a hit for the team.

Dan G · Dec 18, 2011

As I was watching and AC grabbed that piece of coral, all I could think was, "Oh boy, AC's gonna get flamed on SB."

Still, it was great to watch, and we DVR'd it for our 8 year old daughter who states that she "wants to be a commercial diver when I grow up," even though she is not totally clear what that means.

Question: What was that cylindrical creature that looked like a jellyfish on one side and was fleshy on the other side? It flipped itself over and propelled itself away.

Chugwhump · Dec 18, 2011

It was pretty neat to see there is something left in the sea down there.
My Cuban pals down here tell me that there are wide swaths of the Cuban sea that are ecological wastelands.
I am unfortunately quiet cynical, but also correct, in assuring the world et al, that if and when "La Revolution" ends down there, we will all see hotels, condos, sewage, and Dios knows what else down there in short order...especially if the Miami Cubano Expats have anything to do with a potential post Castro government.

Chug
Wants to know if the Lion Fish are taking over the joint down there......

Thiad · Dec 18, 2011

The site of the lionfish broke my heart.

And yes, what was that jelly like critter?

beaverdivers · Dec 18, 2011

They gave the impression that the sharks were there naturally. They forgot to show the bait bag.
However, it was a positive plug for the oceans!

Jim Lapenta · Dec 18, 2011

If he'd been diving a plate and wing with a long hose he would not have been all over the place like that and needed to stand and kneel on the coral as well as having all those danglies.

:popcorn:

RonFrank · Dec 19, 2011

Yes, as we all know that a BP/W corrects all sorts of bad habits!

I am surprised they could not do a second take, or maybe they realized that would be 2x as bad for the environment.....

Doc · Dec 19, 2011

Thiad:
And yes, what was that jelly like critter?

Dan G:
Question: What was that cylindrical creature that looked like a jellyfish on one side and was fleshy on the other side? It flipped itself over and propelled itself away.

That is (no kidding here) an upside-down jellyfish. They like shallow sandy areas and have a very very mild sting, if at all.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cassiopea

lv2dive · Dec 19, 2011

Don't you wonder, when someone trained him, why they didn't say... "Hey, if you don't want to look like a dolt, stay off the coral?" and then explained WHY? I mean, AC is a smart guy and I really think if someone had just given him the most simple of explanations, he would have made a concerted effort to respect the environment.

On a related note, I believe that a not-insignificant portion of the "vacation divers" who are damaging the reef are doing so out of ignorance rather than malice... while malice might be a strong word - what I mean is, I know there are some people who know they are grabbing/damaging/kicking the reef and don't care, but I believe there are more who simply haven't been taught to be as aware as they should be, of their surroundings.

Davemohio · Dec 19, 2011

Thiad:
The site of the lionfish broke my heart.

And yes, what was that jelly like critter?

Agreed about the Lionfish. I had evil thoughts..

My girlfriend asked me what the upside down thing was..I said I have NO clue!

60 Minutes Anderson Cooper visits Cuba's Islands of the Queen

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