Western Australian Shark cull

[Wingy]

http://www.change.org/petitions/the...pt&utm_medium=email&utm_source=share_petition

You will find this petition with references perhaps less sugar coated for your tastes? I prefer to rely on scientic evidence rather than baiting thus luring in sharks and then shooting them four times with a single barrel shotgun. The salary of half a mill (reportedly) for the rest of the summer season to the guy doing the south west culling must be attractive.

 

[Jude Reilly]

If the aforementioned lion (or a shark) wanders into your living room... by all means, shoot it. Its YOUR living room and it shouldn't be there. However if you wander into the lion's domain, he's quite within his rights to eat you, his domain, YOU shouldn't be there. Same with the ocean, it isn't our natural habitat, it belongs to the creatures, plant life and organisms that live there. We, as humans, may be at the top of the evolutionary pyramid but that does NOT give us the right to decide who or what lives where just to facilitate our own recreation.
The solution is simple, if you cannot deal with wildlife with respect in its natural habitat, then don't be anywhere near it. You can preach politics and statistics until your head explodes, the fact remains, people like you are deadlier predators than sharks could ever be. Point final!

 

[underH2Oman]

In my opinion putting baited lines in the water will only draw more sharks to the table. After all if you look at many organized shark dives it is common that they chum the water at a specific site and over a period of time more sharks visit the area. If the goal was to get the sharks away from the beach, perhaps they should not entice them in.
I think it will lead to more sharks in the area down the road.

The government is spending the Australian peoples money and if they think it is a good idea (even if it is not) It is theirs to spend. I will not be traveling to the area while this plan is in place. After all the best way for me to say I do not agree is to not support them financially. I am sure there are some people that will curtail spending there vacation dollars in an area that has this program in place. It will have a impact (perhaps a small one) on the tourism industry.

I already emailed West Australian Premier Colin Barnetts office to voice my opinion.

 

[Foxfish]

http://www.change.org/petitions/the...pt&utm_medium=email&utm_source=share_petition

You will find this petition with references perhaps less sugar coated for your tastes? I prefer to rely on scientic evidence rather than baiting thus luring in sharks and then shooting them four times with a single barrel shotgun. The salary of half a mill (reportedly) for the rest of the summer season to the guy doing the south west culling must be attractive.

I think any 'scientific evidence' offered as support for the Greenies position should be treated with deep suspicion. But okay, pick out one aspect of the article that you find particularly compelling and post it on the thread for all to see.

---------- Post added January 28th, 2014 at 12:23 PM ----------

If the aforementioned lion (or a shark) wanders into your living room... by all means, shoot it. Its YOUR living room and it shouldn't be there. However if you wander into the lion's domain, he's quite within his rights to eat you, his domain, YOU shouldn't be there. Same with the ocean, it isn't our natural habitat, it belongs to the creatures, plant life and organisms that live there.

So if you went to a friends place with a big dog and the dog attacked and killed your child that would be okay?

We, as humans, may be at the top of the evolutionary pyramid but that does NOT give us the right to decide who or what lives where just to facilitate our own recreation. The solution is simple, if you cannot deal with wildlife with respect in its natural habitat, then don't be anywhere near it. You can preach politics and statistics until your head explodes, the fact remains, people like you are deadlier predators than sharks could ever be. Point final!

Evolutionary theory asserts that we got to the top by killing off our rivals. Survival of the fittest. Why stop now?

 

[Wingy]

My own personal viewpoint is this simple..i like diving. If i end up shark food, then better than ten years spent staring at a ceiling. Fully prepared to take responsibility for the perceived risk, happy to go in the ocean knowing they are there and glad they are from a purely ecosystem p.o.v.

Thats the stat that matters to me.

 

[Hank49]

If the aforementioned lion (or a shark) wanders into your living room... by all means, shoot it. Its YOUR living room and it shouldn't be there. However if you wander into the lion's domain, he's quite within his rights to eat you, his domain, YOU shouldn't be there. Same with the ocean, it isn't our natural habitat, it belongs to the creatures, plant life and organisms that live there. We, as humans, may be at the top of the evolutionary pyramid but that does NOT give us the right to decide who or what lives where just to facilitate our own recreation.
The solution is simple, if you cannot deal with wildlife with respect in its natural habitat, then don't be anywhere near it. You can preach politics and statistics until your head explodes, the fact remains, people like you are deadlier predators than sharks could ever be. Point final!

We humans have figured out a way to get food from the sea. We marvel at apes using tools to catch ants or termites to eat but we're overstepping our boundaries when we develop tools to hunt in the sea? If we saw dolphins somehow crawling up on beaches and catching birds, are they bad because they're out of their habitat? No, we'd marvel at the ingenuity.
Why is it ok for Orcas to kill white sharks? Maybe they do it to protect their young?

When I first lived in Hawaii in 1977 the most recent fatal shark attack then was Billy Weaver, attacked and killed at the Moku…leas'? "the Mokes", off Kailua in the 1950s. Then everyone said they must stop hunting and killing large sharks, which was done to protect tourism. By the middle to late 80s a lot of 8 foot tiger sharks had grown to 15 feet and the number of shark attack fatalities has increased dramatically.
Point being, hunting big sharks probably didn't hurt the populations of them. It just created a bigger mass of 8 footers. And the big ones came right back after hunting stopped.

Hunting a few large sharks isn't the problem. Rampant shark finning, long lining, gill nets….that's what's hurting shark populations.

 

[Foxfish]

My own personal viewpoint is this simple..i like diving. If i end up shark food, then better than ten years spent staring at a ceiling. Fully prepared to take responsibility for the perceived risk, happy to go in the ocean knowing they are there and glad they are from a purely ecosystem p.o.v.

Thats the stat that matters to me.

It's easy to say that kind of thing sitting in front of a computer. I'd be more convinced if you said it after you'd lost a family member, a leg or watched a close friend get eaten by a big white pointer. I hope that is something you never have to deal with.

And yes I always wear a Sharkshield and would recommend anyone thinking of coming over to dive here to get one and be informed about the risks of a shark attack. I dive with too many tourists who are completely oblivious to the risk. It is real!

 

[Wingy]

Im aware of the risk. Im also aware of a family member and a friend witnessing fatals - many years ago - but I am far from completely oblivious.

 

[Vegan Shark]

Isn't Foxfish the resident troll of Scubaboard? That was my impression from other threads, at least. Probably not worth getting worked up over his/her responses.

That said, this cull is truly tragic and despicable.

 

[Foxfish]

Isn't Foxfish the resident troll of Scubaboard? That was my impression from other threads, at least. Probably not worth getting worked up over his/her responses.

That said, this cull is truly tragic and despicable.

That would depend on how you define 'troll' and what you consider to be the purpose of this forum. Among other things I view it as an opportunity for divers to discuss the merits of conflicting ideas. I wouldn't call people who do this sincerely while at the same time offering sensible comment to defend their position a troll.

To me trolls are the people who make little or no attempt to sensibly define and substantiate their position. They prefer instead to stir up antagonism toward those who have a position that is opposite to their own. They can do this by attacking them personally.

What do you think?

Did you come here to discuss this issue? Assume for a moment that there has been a big increase in white pointers along our coast and that they pose a serious threat to human life. Is culling them still tragic and despicable? Why do you think that to be the case?