UPDATE: In response to the article below, we have had the following message from Rob Reed, Environmental Scientist, Archaeologist, and Chief Operations Officer at Sea Shepherd UK:
“In 2013 (a year when there was no Sea Shepherd campaign) the Faroe Islanders killed 1,534 pilot whales and dolphins (the over 1000 you were thinking of) comprising of 1,104 pilot whales and 430 Atlantic White Sided dolphins.
In the following year (2014) Sea Shepherd launched ‘Operation Grindstop’ and a total of just 48 pilot whales (though every 1 is 1 too many) were killed in Grindadrap hunts.
In 2015 Sea Shepherd launched ‘Operation Sleppid Grindini’ in the face of new Faroese anti-activist laws as well as strong opposition from the Danish Navy and the Faroe islands killed 492 pilot whales.
The figures come straight from the Faroe Islands government and the statistics are available to the end of 2015 at www.whaling.fo.”
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Here is the original article:
As I opened a copy of Diver magazine’s February 2016 issue it was with great sadness and dismay my eyes fell on an article by Jo Caird entitled ‘Away from the Grind’. The article was based in the Faroe Islands in the North Atlantic and basically recommends we travel to the Faroe Islands, ignore the Grind and go diving.
For those who have never heard of the Grind or are unsure of what it is, let me briefly explain. Wikipedia states that the Grind is ‘Whaling in the Faroe Islands in the North Atlantic and is the hunting and slaughter of mainly long-finned pilot whales when they swim near the islands, and has been practised since about the time of the first Norse settlements on the islands’.
Exact figures of how many Pilot Whales and Dolphins are slaughtered every year are hard to obtain. In 2014 it was over 1,000, in 2015 it was 800. But whatever the figures are it is true to say that every pilot whale that passes the islands is considered good for killing.
Cetacean pods and family groups of whales are driven to the shallow waters where they are impaled in the head or blowhole with a large metal hook and then dragged closer to the shore where people saw through the dorsal area to cut the spinal cord. If you are in any doubt about how much stress and pain these animals go through them simply watch one of the many videos on YouTube.
Cetacean family groups, swimming in blood, panic and scream as they watch and wait their turn to be killed. They listen to the death throws of others. We know scientifically that whales feel the same emotions that we do, pain, fear, hunger, happiness, exuberance and more. They are completely sentient.
Yet Jo Caird asks that we ignore all this just to go diving in a new location and explore the islands. She says that the Grind is a tradition and should be treated as so. Well, beheading, burning, hanging, crucifixion of people all used to be traditional but we have moved on since those barbaric times. Yes it still happens in parts of the world even today, but does that make it right? No of course not.
Cruelty to animals exists in most cultures but that does not make it justifiable. Cruelty in the name of tradition and sport makes it abhorrent.
In case you are still not sure about the Grind take a look at some of the images on the web from this so called ‘humane and traditional’ social event. Young or old, it makes no difference – all the whales die. Perhaps you can ignore the Grind – I know I can’t.
The Faroese claim the whales are a gift from God, but they do not belong to the islanders. The whales annually swim past my Cornish coastline and on up the west coast to Scotland and beyond. Historically we also used to kill whales but times change and the need for this resource has now passed and the brutal killing is no longer necessary.
As for Jo Caird’s article, well it left me cold, and as for the photos that went with it, as far as I could see, there is much better diving to be had here in the UK.
For me as a diver, the seas and marine life are to be shared and marvelled at. The wonder and exhilaration of experiencing communication with any marine species is unique and special. If ancient and bloody traditions such as the Grind continue to get support or are ignored, then we are all responsible for destroying a wonder of evolution as well as systematically destroying an environment that supports much of human life.
We are often outraged at the loss of man made things such as art or antiquities. A painting of an animal can become so much more valuable than the animal itself. These synthetic things are replaceable, life is not. When the last whale has gone there will never be another.
If you would still like to visit the Faroes to try the diving, make sure to visit one of the underwater graveyards where the whale remains are dumped. There is a short video on YouTube here.
Image from video of underwater graveyard
If you are more interested in seeing whales alive, as in these photos by Chris Walter, then take at look at his site.
Perhaps even book a dive holiday with one of the many tour operators to other parts of the world where you can see them for real.
If you would like to know more about the importance and state of our oceans and our wildlife in general then have a look at the last report from WWF here.
Photos: Sea Shepherd
WWF supports trophy hunting! Please do not refer to these cons in conservation!
WIll you dive in other countries that klls other animals or will you boycott the whole world? Or are you just another speciest who cares more about the life and welfare of cetaceans than of the animals you Brits eat?
Your name appears everywhere there is a pro whaling article with the same old ,` you eat meat` arguments. This is called `whataboutery` when people change the subject because they have no real arguments to debate the case at hand. you are a Troll.
The question is to the author of this article. Not you.
You are a TROLL.
Says the person calling people names without adding anything to the conversation.
What was the definition of “troll” again?
HA HA HA what an idiotic comment!!
We can start with the ones that butcher the most sentient ocean creatures first. If we are ever to get those butchers to stop, then we can address the next level of sentience.
Why does sentience matter? How does that make them more important for the environment than your average fish? Is this about environmentalism or individual animal rights?
Well then, why not eat people?
In all seriousness, I believe in the human race in stopping its plunder of the seas, and that includes fish. But you have to start somewhere. Do you think if the grind or the Taiji ends that people would say “okay, we’re done.”
Will you dive in countries that kills other sea creatures? Isnt a codfish, salmon or herring as much of a “wonder of evolution” (as you expressed it) as a pilot whale?
Yawn…another internet troll called Magnus. Please allow me to adjust your name accordingly to suit your ideas. Let’s start by taking away the M for man…because you ain’t a man. Then lets take away the G. Isn’t that better ANUS?
Full name is Magnus Paul Hans Petersson, but I use my shorter name for internet discussion boards. Magnus means Great in Latin by the way
I know what it means – ‘Great Anus’
And typically all you have is your ability to resort to childish insults.
ha ha ha, is that all you got?
No, but apparently it’s all you have.
Yawn…only saw this little primate comment now. Like, I said, is that all you got? Apparently yes.
And again you demonstrate all you have is insults. And again, typical.
And again, is that all you got? What a joke.
With this article Jo Caird and the Diver Magazine is endorsing The Grind, an immoral massacre of cetaceans that turns children into insensitive sadists. They say it is a tradition, well so was slavery and other horrendous practices. These highly intelligent and sentient animals live in family groups and see each other being stabbed to death in a sea of blood.
What a load of selfrighteous claptrap! The grindaráp is a sustainable harvest that has been carried out for nearly a millennium. Your comments about children reveal your ignorance, your misanthropy, and your effete judgmentalism, and are the most offensive part of your bigoted diatribe. Why not turn your attention to real conservation issues and leave these poor people alone? They do not deserve your ignorant, ill informed, overly romanticized, Pixar and Disney based judgment.
Killing for fun is not a worthy tradition, and certainly not necessary. You seem like a very angry and calloused person, certainly not a sentient being.
The Grind is not done “for fun”.
It sure as hell isn’t necessary.
There are a lot of things that aren’t “necessary”. Who are you to tell someone what they can or can not eat? Why don’t you mind your own business?
“There are a lot of things that aren’t “necessary””.
That is a completely irrelevant statement and based upon your response, you have the stance “I wanna kill and eat meat and cannot think about anyone but myself?”
Who the hell am I? Well, someone who believes that the oceans are being threatened by the human race, that it must be protected, that especially species that are intelligent and social like whales (orcas for example, have a more developed emotional centers of their brains that people). And I’m also someone trying to figure out how I can personally participate in disrupting the grind in a way where I might not get caught. And if I’m arrested, I can deal with that.
“That is a completely irrelevant statement”
No, it is specifically relevant to your comment.
“someone who believes that the oceans are being threatened by the human race, that it must be protected,”
The death of a few pilot whales in the Faroe Islands isn’t going to “threaten” the oceans.
“(orcas for example, have a more developed emotional centers of their brains that people)”
According to whom?
“I’m also someone trying to figure out how I can personally participate in disrupting the grind”
So you are ok with being a criminal?
No it is not relevant. Here is why. We are talking about killing intelligent, social, sentient creatures.
The problem with your view that killing a few pilot whales is not going to threaten the ocean is a common viewpoint ones by people who are not well informed on the death of 1000 cuts that is going on. Everything has an impact.
About the developed emotional centers of the brain that exceeds ours, you obviously have not seen the documentary Blackfish, where they talk about the results of the MRI scans that have been conducted on orcas. Google “mri scans orcas” and look for the link “Neuroanatomy of the killer whale – Wiley Online Library”. The article might be over your head, but if you make an effort, you will understand the gist of it. So this is according to science. If you wish to refute science, well, there is absolutely no point in continuing this conversation.
“So you are okay with being a criminal?” Would you have asked Dr. Martin Luther King this question? I have no problems having a criminal record for breaking an immoral law. It is not like I am conducting fraud, burglary, assault or other immoral crimes. To break such a law is a moral action. If moral action results in a criminal record, then yes, I’m okay with it.
Bullshit – if you break the law in the Faroes you get arrest, go to court and deported. Easy. And that make you a criminal, just as the guru you try to act under. How stupid, ignorant and without knowledge can people be?
You only get arrested, go to court, and deported IF and ONLY IF you get caught. You obviously are not a diver.
And being convicted of an immoral law is not a bad thing. I admire the people who have been convicted of such “crimes”.
No, I am not a diver, but that has nothing to do with getting caught or not. If you dive here, people will know and follow you. And you WILL be caught.
Seems you are more stupid them allowed to be, sorry.
Not if you are dropped off a boat out at sea. You see, with a good dive scooter and a rebreather, you can be underwater for hours. There are no bubbles. And with the scooter you can travel well over 20 km on a single charge.
You are simply unaware of what technology exists for underwater. I never said I’d enter the water from shore.
good for you to ignore the ocean around our islands, good luck when it floats hard for you. And good luck breaking Faroese laws. No doubt you will be noticed somehow. No doubt you will have your ass kicked badly haha
Haha. You idiots will likely never know I was even there. I do have experience in ocean currents. So this will be fun. You won’t be laughing when you see the video I upload.
This will be a team effort. Multiple divers, multiple boats off in the distance. Doing, as far as you know, nothing
“Who are you to tell someone what they can or can not eat? Why don’t you mind your own business?”
This shows the reason we are having this discussion. The reason why someone can support the Grind. Let me ask you the question in a different way: Who are you to decide that you can take the life of a whale to eat? Why don’t you mind your own business and leave the whale alone? Hard to answer? Maybe not for you. And the reason why:
‘Speciesism’ is the idea that being human is a good enough reason for human animals to have greater moral rights than non-human animals. …a prejudice or bias in favor of the interests of members of one’s own species and against those of members of other species.
You’re not the king of Earth because you’re a human. You have absolutely no priority in the survival race because of your species. You stand in the top of no hierarchy. You can believe otherwise all you want, it’s not news that humans love to live mass illusions.
” Who are you to decide that you can take the life of a whale to eat? Why don’t you mind your own business and leave the whale alone? Hard to answer?”
Not hard to answer at all. I don’t take the life of a whale to eat. I don’t eat whale. Where I live it would be illegal for me to kill a whale, to possess whale meat, to buy or sale whale meat.
I did notice that you didn’t try to answer the questions though.
The point of my observations were not to apply them to you specifically, but the the mindset of those that do eat whale meat. That’s where I want my answers from. I also do notice that you want desperately to make seem that I’m running away from your questions. I don’t see any questions, ask me.
Killing for fun??? You cannot be serious! And your pompous denial of my sentience is quite amusing. If I do not agree with your idealistic, ignorant attitude towards rural people, I am not sentient? Thank you for demonstrating something I have perceived for a long time: the assumption of an undeserved sense of moral superiority is a powerful driving force behind the actions of animal rights industry workers. It is particularly amusing that you can support the use of lies, slander, misinformation, hate speech, and fakery in the unjust demonization of innocent people and still think yourself morally superior because it is in support of your ill informed and idealistic attitudes towards the natural world, a world I’d venture to bet you are far separated from. Do you live in a fishing culture? How closely do you depend on the marine environment for your survival?
We do not ‘harvest’ animals we harvest crops. You are using big words but get the Basic English wrong. Your hysterical comment really does not deserve an answer. Anybody can watch the glee on the faces of the killers and children playing on top of murdered whales with their fetuses aborted after slaughter.
BTW the Faroese are not poor people, most have Danish citizenship and have one of the highest standards of living in the world, except of course their health, not so good considering they consume mercury from the murdered cetaceans.
What an ignorant, obnoxious bigot!
Thank you for showing your true self. When there is no argument just go on a mini rant.
The force of tradition that justifies the herding, capturing and slaughtering of dolphins is a flimsy one. Many past cultural practices, such as slavery, bordellos and beheading were stopped for ethical reasons. Tradition and culture are forces that change in accordance with new scientific understanding and evolving ethical standards. You are living in 19th century my friend.
“slavery, bordellos and beheading were stopped for ethical reasons.”
You think these things have stopped?
I guess you don’t watch the news much do you?
Fuck you for making assumptions about me. I read, watch,listen and absorb the news on an hourly basis. Slavery etc is NO longer government sanctioned in most cases. Sure use the outlier of Saudi beheadings as an argument if you wish. People (except you seemingly) move on and evolve with knowledge. These drive hunts are directly supported by the governments responsible. The method of slaughter of wild animals roaming free would not be allowed in any slaughterhouse in the so-called civilized world. An NO, even if there were a way to accomplish that (and there isnt), i STILL would oppose it vehemently. Faroe and Japanese dont need this dolphin meat to survive and in Japan is it financed by the captive aquaria shows. Stop being so ignorant and educate yourself. I will no longer engage in discussions with an obvious troll based on the many comments you have left.
So, you read, watch and listen? What and who you listen to? The criminal Paul Watson? It sure sounds like that. What you state here shows me that you not know anything at all about Faroe Islands and our way of living. Who to be educated except you? Jesus for knowledge
“Slavery etc is NO longer government sanctioned in most cases. Sure use
the outlier of Saudi beheadings as an argument if you wish.”
“in most cases”? Does that mean that is hasn’t stopped?
How can I use any beheadings as an argument if they had stopped?
I also notice you didn’t have a followup on the bordellos part of your argument, I guess you realize that they too have not stopped.
Sleeping with the Thesaurus again, Ford?
No need to, I learned to speak English at my mother’s knee.
How sad too see this sort of cruel callous killing for nothing more, than so called sport tradition or fun …very sad ??
Its not a sport and certainly not for fun.
It’s unecessary and causes suffering..end of!!!
What’s unnecessary is ignorant foreigners sitting in judgment on people whose footprint on the environment is far lighter than their own.
Was wondering when one of you would show up. Please enlighten us, how ignorant is this foreigner that you speak of? Tell us how this foreigner does not know anything about something that he has dedicated his entire life to. Go ahead.
What’s sad is that your pseudo-ecologist attitude sits on nothing but blood and cruelty. How serious do you want the “ignorant foreigner” to take you, really…
It’s unecessary and causes suffering…am I not allowed an opinion on anything that happens outside my country of birth ..? It’s a shame you define yourself by your nationality and not as an individual.
It no more causes suffering than the slaughter of the farm animals your culture eats regularly. Your discomfort at seeing blood in the water does not make it cruel. As to necessary, how does that even enter into it? It’s not necessary to eat broccoli, either, there’s lots of other green vegetables, yet we would all agree that it’s silly to argue that people ought not eat broccoli because it isn’t necessary. It is a sustainable humane harvest of a natural resource, nothing more. The idolatry surrounding cetaceans in countries where consuming them is foreign leads to this kind of cultural imperialism. If this were a threat to the survival of pilot whales, I would be against it. It is not. How arrogant that you think the world should be guided by your particular culture’s attitudes. I do not claim you cannot have an opinion, merely that your opinion be guided by fact and not ignorance and emotion stemming from your own cultural blinders. Your “individualistic” disrespect of other cultures is not different from the disrespect for other cultures exhibited by the European colonialists of a couple of centuries ago. The Faroese have relied upon the ocean for their survival for nearly a thousand years. I submit they know more about their local marine environment than you do. I would venture to bet they live far closer to the environment than you do, as well, and are far more aware of the threat to their culture of marine environmental degradation.
You make a lot of wrong assumptions here, Ford …and a lot of incorrect statements..Get into the here and now..stop living in the past..and quit the racism please!
Bullshit, they love doing this. There is even a recording of a Faroes man saying “I hate whale meat, I just kill for the fun”. Get your ignorant facts straight.
Okay, so one man represents the entire Faroe Islands of 50,000 people. Wow, impressive. Not.
The point is that the ‘one man’ is not alone. There are many more and I used but one of many examples. Be honest (If you can), if it is not ‘fun’ to them, then why does the whole town rush to watch and why do the small penis-ed men stand in the red blood soaked water and laugh and chat after they kill helpless whales. OMG, some people…..
Just like a whole village may rush to the beach to see someone who has catched a really big fish. Cause its big, spectacular, out of ordinary. Of course people watch. As for going on the defensive, that’s part of the Nordic culture. Heard of the Jantelagen? The 11 unwritten rules of the attitude is as follows, as applies to the Nordic mentality
1. You’re not to think you are anything special.
2. You’re not to think you are as good as we are.
3. You’re not to think you are smarter than we are.
4. You’re not to convince yourself that you are better than we are.
5. You’re not to think you know more than we do.
6. You’re not to think you are more important than we are.
7. You’re not to think you are good at anything.
8. You’re not to laugh at us.
9. You’re not to think anyone cares about you.
10. You’re not to think you can teach us anything.
11. Perhaps you don’t think we know a few things about you?
I never said anything about going on the defensive…got a guilty conscience there? Comparing one big fish to 200-300 whales being bled out is while alive says a lot about your mentality.
THEY ARE NOT BLED OUT ALIVE you fucking idiot, they are dead far before that. All arteries to the brain are severed along with the neck severed from the spine, causing instant death for the whales. Yes, I compare it as: animal as animal. To give you a better example, in Sardinia, Italy there is an annual tuna fishing festival called Mattanza where tunas are netted and taken to the harbor and turned into food, its a major event and the whole town comes watching. Its not for fun, but because its exciting and out of the ordinary, and big. Are they too a bunch of mindless psychopaths without heart or what? Things that are out of the ordinary does attract an audience, thats perfectly normal! And I judge animal as animal, and therefore the grindadrap is no different than a tuna fishing event
Did I cause you a hemorrhoid? Poor little magy…shame. Anyway, again you are clueless. I have seen footage of these whales being bled out while alive. How do you explain that? OOOps you can’t. Read some books on it, you may actually learn something.
Ever heard of cadavric spasms? For example if you chop off the head of a chicken, it moves and twitch even after its dead. Same with whales.
Yes I have, just never heard of it being associated with the mammals screaming. Try looking further into what you seem to be trying to be an expert on.
Now you just declared yourself as stupid, and ignorant. Whales, much like fish, don’t have any vocal cords. Therefore they can’t scream. What does a whale scream sound like? God knows. Send me an actual real life recording of a whale scream and I’ll give you 100 kronor.
Are you saying that whales do not make sounds?
I am saying they dont scream. As I said, send me an actual real life recording of a whale scream and I’ll give you 100 kronor. With all those stupid emotional anti-whaling videos around, you ought to find at least one where a fucking whale screams, if they can (they don’t). I am responding to the dumbass “robinfist” who allegedly hears this. As I said, send me a recording of one of those damn swimming sacks of organs screaming and I’ll give you 100 Swedish kronor.
Sacks of organs? Wow. You sir, are simply inhumane. I get it. You want to support your lifestyle, eat whatever you want, and care nothing of the ethics (or lack there of) to sustain it.
Whales cannot scream. Many of them do communicate, as surely you accept. You can read plenty about that here: www dot whalesbermuda dot com slash all-about-humpbacks slash whale-behaviour slash 54-whale-song lash 66-humpback-whales-are-well-known-for-their-songs. But they do feel pain. Orcas, while not a whale, do feel pain, which was recorded when one became stranded on the coast of British Columbia in Canada. If you Google orca stranded on rocks in canada, and click on the link “See the Incredible Rescue of a Stranded Orca – ABC News”, you can see I’m not making this up.
Now earlier, you questioned my statement about the emotional centers of orcas being more developed than that of humans. If you followed my links and made even a slight effort, you would have learned that that statement is scientific fact.
I invite you to watch Blackfish, particularly the interviews with the men who captured the orcas, about what they saw and heard as a result of their actions.
Seriously though I don’t see you as making any such effort to enlighten yourself. I actually pity you. And I wish people like you to get off this planet, as the world becomes a better place. With that, I bid you adieu.
Thats off topic. I said to this idiot Robin that the whales are killed quickly, and that they do not bleed to death but are dead before the bleeding. Then he said that some are movng, then I said, its cadavric spasms, then he said the most stupid thing: “just never heard of it being associated with the mammals screaming”, in order to make me look like a fool. Even though whales are mammals, they do not scream, to say they do is a complete lie. For me, in my view, whales are no better than the animals Americans eats for lunch
In terms of cruelty, you are correct. There is no difference. The factory farming in the United States is deplorable. Both sources of meat have an environmental impact.
Yet there is still this difference: whales are not born in captivity and raised for food. You are taking free animals from the wild, where they should be left to to their own devices.
Meat is unnecessary for nourishment. All nutritional needs can be met through a balanced, vegan diet. It takes the willingness to look beyond oneself, to recognize the immorality of eating meat, as well as recognizing the environmental impact from either raising or extracting meet. It is a much healthier diet, but it does require a mind shift. Most people lack the enlightenment to make such a change.
All I have presented is all on topic: namely the immorality of hunting whales. Surely you recognize how intelligent these creatures are. Surely you recognize that it isn’t only humans who feel emotions. Do you think that the whales go into the coves of their deaths feeling no stress?
I do not think that any statements by Robin are required to make you look like a fool however.
well said KK
shove your blood money where the sun don’t shine you low life.
I never said they had vocal chords dummy. They have specialized organs in an odontocete that make sounds. Anyway, you seem to miss the point every time, take you 100 Kronor and buy a book. I have no need for anyone’s money, i have more than enough.
Jesus! How thick can you get???
By this same mind set, I assume that if someone who took offence to the grind and starting the kill the people there, they would just be killing animals would they? And this would be acceptable would it? After all we humans are just another animal aren’t we? I didn’t think so. wanton slaughter of any animal that is wild is wrong. If you want food then farm it like our ancestors did thousands of years ago. Don’t bleat about needing food and it being sustainable, when you are killing pregnant females too! what a crock of shit you pro whaler’s are putting forward as your argument…
when someone has no good explanation for what they do, they call it ‘tradition’ or culture.’ this part of your culture is stupid. yes we are better than you when you do stupid pointless cruel things. what a dumb ass 11 unwritten rules. conceited idiots. did you say the same about the freakin’ Nazis? lots of old cultures have have very bad aspects to them. culture is what you should rebel against, not suck up to. grow up.
You just pulled a straw man argument, didnt say it was good just because of culture, I agree with these unwritten rules cause I think they are good. Godwins law as well (look it up)
Because it’s a blood party. And deeply indoctrinated psychopaths tend to enjoy such demonstrations of lack of compassion and respect for Nature.
Good point mate. Also a growing number of Faroese are against this shameful slaughter. Are those to be represented as well? Or they should be quiet because they’re getting in the way of your blood party? “It’s like the circus came to town”- words of a Faroese local, describing the feeling during the Grind. A few words show a lot.
The ignorance in this article is incredible. for a start, numbers are incredibly easy to come by, and at documented for centuries. Literally centuries. I assume you are just uninformed and not deliberately spreading lies and slander.
It’s sad that you feel so strongly about something you clearly know very little about. Maybe you should visit so you at least can see the truth before you condemn the indigenous people for their way of life. Our maybe you have stopped eating and feel righteous enough to condemn others?
Your ignorance is what’s truly sad. Hopefully one day you will see the light.
He won’t see the light, he can’t even spell the word ‘or’. These butchers are not the smartest people around, I think we all know that by now.
There’s no place for such cruelty in the XXI century my friend. And the necessity argument is a non-argument, it’s a weak excuse to continue this shameful slaughter. The Faroese people have one of the highest standards of living in the planet! They can access all kinds of food, the shelves in supermarkets are much more endowed than most countries in the world. So no…. sorry Uni, but I can’t ignore the Grind. That’s not the planet where I want to live in, and you don’t need to have a lot of empathy to understand how wrong the Grind is. If animals had religions, the devil would be pictured in the human shape. And I wouldn’t blame them…
Meat sold in Faroese stores has been factory farmed abroad. Do you think its more humane to eat that, than the meat of pilot whales? A life on a factory farm vs. life in captivity? Whats the most humane? Whale I say, is by far, the most humane choice.
Not to mention that such factory farmed meat has to be transported to the Faroe Islands, thus increasing pollution, etc.
You can’t blame and use the incapable food system as an argument to slaughter highly intelligent sentient beings. That’s nothing but an excuse. I don’t support any factory farming whatsoever, I don’t support the stealing of lives for food in any possible scenario. There are many food producing technology that the Faroese have access too to produce local high quality organic food. The Grind has little or nothing to do with feeding the Faroese people, you can stop already with the false argument, absolutely no one believes in it anymore, not even most Faroese. The Grind “it’s like the circus came to town” (words of a Faroese local). It’s a sad spectacle of blood, violence, and children participate in this madness. In many countries parents would be arrested if they subjected their children to such demonstrations of cruelty, such lack of compassion, all in the name of a good old slaughter. Not to mention the recent reports produced by Faroese doctors that show how lead and mercury contaminated whale meat is reducing Faroese children IQs and creating major health issues. I wonder what’s going to be the Faroese future. Tourism will be soon ruin because no one in their right mind will support your economy when you create such criminal acts against Nature (tourist companies are already removing the islands of their offers, airliners will drop the destination, cruisers won’t go there anymore, etc). The population, if fed with whale meat, will be mentally incapable. What future do you want to your children? That’s the question that you have to ask yourselves. A future where the Faroes are directly connected with an horrendous crime against Nature, where your population is sick and handicapped, with a country isolated from the world? If that’s what you want, that’s what you’ll get. Just continue doing the Grind.
Why does it matter if they are “highly intelligent”? In what way does that make them more important for the ocean environment than an average fish?
It doesn’t. I have respect for all forms of life and I create no value hierarchies. The “intelligent” factor only piles up on all the other factors that define practices of animal cruelty. A whale can even die of depression for loosing a family member. Its huge brain allows them to develop strong sense of family and community, allows them to create true emotional connections with other members of their species. Connections that are not so binding in let’s say “a golden fish”. Whales are extremely important in the food chain, they help regulate the health of the ecosystems, you can use them as a measure for the ocean’s health. To disrupt it all for nothing but “a circus that’s coming to town”… it is a crime against Nature, period. Maybe it’s hard for you to realize that. Maybe you don’t even understand the connection between the oceans health and your sons and daughters future. Maybe all of that means nothing to you. But it means to me and all the others that oppose the Grind and all other activities of animal exploitation. So you can keep your pride, your indoctrination and your gruesome costumes. Your only achievement will be the further Faroes isolation to the world (the Faroes economical death sentence), the increasing of mentally handicapped population (at least the ones that consume toxic whale meat), the world’s population is boycotting Faroes as a whole (people refusing to travel to the Faroes, refusing to buy your products, etc). You don’t need to be very smart to understand that your economy will be in big trouble the moment people associate it with pools of whale blood and suffering. In fact, the economy is already showing the consequences.
And as a final comment, because I had this discussion several times and the “arguments” trown at me are always the same… I’ll leave with a very important definition. Where we strongly differ in what defines us as human beings part of the human family.
‘Speciesism’ is the idea that being human is a good enough reason for human animals to have greater moral rights than non-human animals. …a prejudice or bias in favour of the interests of members of one’s own species and against those of members of other species.
If you really understand this, you might realize how gruesome and irrational, brutal and absolutely unnecessary the Grind is. Or you can keep living the mass illusion that being a human itself makes you above all other animals on Earth. If that’s going to be the case, the human family can all expect deserved extinction.
First of all, I am not Faroese. It even says Sweden in my user name. I live in Sweden. It does concern me that you seem to be very uneducated about the Faroe Islands in general. Tourism is an extremely small fraction of Faroese economy, they do not in any kind of way rely on tourism, it is maybe 1 or 2% of the economy and most of those tourists comes from countries where people dont give a shit about whales. It is the fishing industry that is pretty much the entire economy, and fish eaters are meat eaters so vegans can’t have any effect at all. The fish is being exported to places like China and Russia, and to Scandinavia, NOT to politically correct southern European and American countries with whale huggers. ANY losses in Faroese economy, is repaid in subsidies by the rest of Scandinavia in the Nordic Council. They are obliged to do that, so that the Faroe Islands can never become poor. I have whale meat in my freezer and I love it, the taste, the texture, all of it.
I was ready to take your reply in a serious manner and actually confirm some of your statements. But your last comment shows an unnecessary provocation that I won’t bother following through.
All my statements are 100% true. I live in Scandinavia and I know how it works here. You live far away and has no experience. The last part was to show that its not only in the Faroe Islands where people eats whale meat in Europe, thats not a provocation. The Faroe Islands are not by any means whatsoever dependent on tourism, it is by far, the least visited Nordic country. And the Nordic Council will through subsidies make sure that the Faroe Islands never gets poor anyway.
“All my statements are 100% true.” the owner of absolute truth. You should start a religion!
Tourism represents 11% of Faroese economy, that’s a very significant percentage for any economy. Those same subsidies are what make the Faroe’s economy completely dependent and weak. And you should know what happens when they stop coming, it happened in the past and for sure it will happen again. Just wait until the international pressure on Denmark will really kick in and it doesn’t matter how much of an economic bully Denmark wants to be, they will see the consequences and they’ll finally impose the european and international laws that ban whaling as the shameful practice it is. You call it tradition (a strange metaphor for a blood party), Denmark will call it economic fall down and public opinion crash. And you know what happens when money starts making the rules again…
Did you know that according to the Faroe Home Rule Treaty, Denmark does not have a right to interfere with Faroese domestic local law-making? The Faroese Parliament has the last word on every thing that relates to Faroese local laws and they cannot be overruled by Denmark or any foreign authority.
You forget a very important detail. Actually, two. Although The Faroes are not part of the EU as a member state (good for the Faroes!), needless to say that the Faroes are deeply controlled economically by both Denmark and the EU (power blocks, both locally and geopolitical speaking). The Faroes will do as they are told just like any other EU member state. From July 2013 until August 2014 the EU imposed sanctions on the Faroes (guess because of what? Fisheries policies…….. go figure..), and during one year the EU banned Faroese vessels carrying herring or mackerel from all EU ports, including Denmark, Sweden and Finland. This was a major blow to the fishing industry in the Faroes. Luckily for that industry, with a lot of lobbying and corruption involved, the sanctions were lifted and the Faroes quota was actually increased significantly (one more license to rape the oceans…). You trust too much in your sense of political security. You don’t have any, only traces of national sovereignty at the most.
And secondly, the power of information beats all others. I’m from a country far far away and still I’m involved in this controversial debate, just like thousands of other people that are aware of the gruesome practices that are taking place on the Faroes. Welcome to the world of internet and information. So if you think this doesn’t have an impact on the Faroes as a country, as an economy, you are very naive. I would love to visit the Faroes, it is a beautiful country with amazing natural wonders, I would be happy to get money in your economy. But knowing what I know? No way, I won’t visit the Faroes, I won’t buy products from the Faroes, I’ll do everything on my reach to inform people of the Grind and not to support it (that can have many forms, economical and political boycott, destruction of the “country’s” public image, etc), I will extend my protest actions to supporting countries (Denmark being number one for being complacent with the issue), I will support conservations organizations that are fighting the Grind in the Faroes (you know their names). Maybe I’m the owner of a big brand that actually employs some Faroese people and brings some money in the economy. Maybe I don’t want my brand to be associated with the Faroes anymore while the oceans are being turned into pools of blood and cruelty. Maybe you will understand sooner than later, sooner than having a country in economical and political shambles because a small group of people was too indoctrinated and proud to realize that what they are doing is wrong, it’s a crime against Nature. Maybe then…
My country? My culture? My national sovereignty? I AM NOT FAROESE! Just a mainland Scandinavian showing support for other fellow Scandinavians, I will always do that regardless whatever it will be about, regardless whether its about animal or human rights, I don’t care. If a Scandinavian country is under attack then they have my support.The only Faroese product of any importance is fish, that you vegetarians and vegan idiots dont eat anyway. The vast majority of tourists in the Faroe Islands are from Norway, Iceland, Sweden, Denmark and Finland where most people dont care about cetaceans any more than they care for deers and farm animals.
ahahahah you’re such a indoctrinated moron that it even hurts. Supporting a country and all that comes attached just because they are Scandinavian… that’s VERY intelligent and makes ALL THE SENSE in the world. LOGIC is for sure your strong side. Brain capacity might be what you need to work on. Society is the best factory that humans were able to design and build, it produces some weird shit, literally. Usually human mindless robots that accept everything as it is because their numbed down brains cannot conceive any of their own ideas. Oh well…. I’m feeling kinda bad here, for a while I thought it was possible to have intelligent conversations…. it’s the fucking internet… it’s widely inhabited by these humans that come from these social fabrics…. what was I thinking. Over and out…
Thank you for helping me so much make my points. Your mindset will be soon be extinct (yes, because intelligence, rational and compassion always top it at the end) and the oceans will have again a change. Or maybe not… and you’ll be the responsible for their death. And when the oceans die.. we die. Simple right? Now it’s on you.
“develop strong sense of family and community, allows them to create true
emotional connections with other members of their species.”
These are assumptions, based on anthropomorphism of observed behavior.
“the world’s population is boycotting Faroes as a whole”
No, just a few people, like you. As a whole, the “world’s population” probably doesn’t even know where the Faroe Islands are.
I also noticed you didn’t answer my question about what YOU eat.
“These are assumptions, based on anthropomorphism of observed behavior.
No they are not. Go study biology and animal behaviorism. Don’t ask me for references, it’s not my job to educate you.
As a whole, the worlds population is getting very aware. The fact that we are discussing it right here, right now, it’s the proof of the world realizing and getting ashamed of what happens in the Faroes.
I eat a complete vegan diet. If you’re going to use the “you’re killing plants” “argument” then I rest my case and please don’t expect any other reply from my side….
“No they are not.”
Of course they are. An animal can’t tell you that it’s sad, or happy, or depressed or angry. You can only ASSUME what emotions they are experiencing by equating their behavior with what you THINK their emotions are.
See a baby seal with tears in it’s eyes: Oh it must be so sad that it’s mother got hit in the head with a club.
No, it has tears in it’s eyes as protection from the cold. They all do.
Again, go study the basics of animal behaviorism and you’ll understand how wrong you are. No wonder that you see animals as objectified pieces of emotionless meat. Society did its job quite well apparently.
Relevant animal studies (by the thousands!) show the nature of animal behavior and rational. If you want to drop your TV and internet daily intake of shit and want to learn something for a change, maybe to stop spreading ignorance all over the internet, I recommend Robert Sapolsky work with baboons, he’s a pretty interesting professor/researcher, you might even enjoy it. Or you can keep your obsolete mindset and mischaracterization of the natural and animal world and act accordingly. It’s on you now.
The ONE AND ONLY airline that flies to the Faroe Islands is the Faroese state owned Atlantic Airways. Good luck on getting them to avoid their own country. Haha. Also the vast majority of tourists in the Faroe Islands are from other Scandinavian countries, where the hunting of cetaceans is publically accepted
No it’s not. That’s what you think, but you’ll see how wrong you are. Just like you might think the majority of Faroese agree with the Grind, but the reality is that many oppose it. And the only reason they aren’t more vocal about it it’s because of fear of consequences for them and their families. Anyway, your close mentality will be the end of the tourism sector of the Faroes. You can’t rely only in Scandinavian countries to have a sustainable tourism sector. My country also has a deep connection with bull fighting. For centuries bulls where played with and killed for the amusement of socially blinded and indoctrinated masses. But that changed. Actually it changed quite quickly. In only a few years the vast majority of the population now opposes bullfighting (over 95%) and the government is under constant pressure to stop subsidizing these shameful practices. Political parties were born and grew into the parliament only on the basis of animal welfare. Bullfighting is now illegal in many cities and it will soon be completely banished. No tradition can justify violence and cruelty.
This does not make it right though!!!
“I don’t support the stealing of lives for food in any possible scenario”
Then what do you eat?
“Tourism will be soon ruin”
Actually tourism has been steadily increasing thanks in part to groups like Sea shepherd.
“Just continue doing the Grind”
Sorry, but I am not continuing anything.
anyway if the faroans want to follow their traditions, they shouldn’t use motorboats,nor sonars,nor helicopters. They should do it following the ancient traditionnal navigation
Do you know that with the old methods they actually killed many more whales than today? Some of the greatest catches ever, was in the 1800’s. So if you think less are going to be killed by using old methods, you are wrong.
So tell me, Mr. Peterson, how many more whales do you think were around to be killed in the 1800’s as opposed to now? Oops … forgot about that part, didn’t you?
See for your self – statistics back to 1584 – read and learn
http://heimabeiti.fo/default.asp?menu=97
Great point of view Jeff and I agree that the Faroe Islands should be boycotted until they stop the grind.
This is something that Ravisha and I wrote on the topic about my personal experiences in the Faroe Islands: http://ireport.cnn.com/docs/DOC-1267407
Hi Matt, Good article.
Says ”No, the Faroese whalers have not changed how they kill whales” – well, then you have not done your homework well enough upfront for the article.
“bays do turn bright red with the blood” – what do you expect when blood is in the
water? Try to cut a finger and put it in a glass of water and see what happens.
“extremely violent” – holy shit. Does that not depend on the eyes looking? Or a total
ignorant’s view and words?
Where the hell have you been since you see this as “violent chase”. “hit the baby whales” are you crazy? “target on the babies” – you must be truly insane. Nothing
happens as described here – holy shit for a sick mind to write this to hit on
people you not know anything about.
3 months in Faroes and you did not find out what is going on? You sure is one of the total ignorants.
Politics you also are a sharp head – OMG. You copy paste what you have head from your guru – and all is proven wrong.
How could you meet several local Faroese people when you were trying to hide in your watch out car on strange viewpoints hiding in the hood? If Faroese people tried
to contact you you just turned away and hide in the cars, scared that they should frighten you – how silly, but so true. No, silly boy, nobody is forced to eat whale meat and blubber (not flesh as you call it).
Why don’t you tell people what you really did here in the Faroese – and be honest. Let’s have some facts and truth instead of lies and copies of statements from the criminal Paul Watson.
What a crock of shit Far….
Is there any way for divers, say on rebreathers and dive scooters, could interfere with the Grind?
has been done before and the criminals got arrested and deported (see Sea Shepherd’s campaign in the Faroe Islands last year). So the answer is yes, you could, if you wanted to commit a crime.
I have been following it, and as far as I could see, they were not using divers on rebreathers and dive scooters.
I have no problems breaking an immoral law. The key is, is there a way that a diver could divert the whales from the coves? Would be interesting.
The force of tradition justifies the herding, capturing and slaughtering of dolphins is a flimsy one. Many past cultural practices, such as slavery, bordellos and beheading were stopped for ethical reasons. Tradition and culture are forces that change in accordance with new scientific understanding and evolving ethical standards.
IF you like dolphins and want to stop the slaughter of 20,000 dolphins a year, (yes per YEAR!) in Japan, you CAN by appealing directly to the Japanese people. Just 10 minutes a day. PLEASE we need your help https://www.facebook.com/groups/dolphin.angel/ to make a difference. Each individual CAN do something to reach the Japanese people who are the only people to have a chance to change their governments mind! I just joined 2 month ago and already have 2700+ followers and that will grow exponentially to millions of Japanese citizens IF you join us. We need to get the word out! PLEASE do it for those that have no voice. WE collectively ARE their only chance. Thank you
Wow that’s a lot of meat! Hopefully it does not go to waste. It’s a shame to see all of the bones not being utilized for their calcium and other potential uses. It seems a lot of people in these comments base their outrage on their feeling for a species other than their own, rather than having the life experience of having to hunt for their meals from somewhere other than a market. It is a gruesome bloody scene of dead sea creatures, but it is also a scene of benefit and rejoice for a community that lives off the bounty of the sea. Picture something you really want or need, wealth, happiness, security, just washing up on shore for you to have, and that is the emotion of these people, joy of a bountiful supply of what they want and or need always being provided to them once a year. Toss a thousand helpless humans to hungry whales and the whales will happily eat them too. That is how nature works, feelings are a luxury for those not in need.
Maybe what we need is a new tradition, we should have a tradition where any Faroese that ‘migrate’ beyond their own lands are herded into an alleyway and have their legs sawn off with a blunt saw to expose the femoral artery which can then be cut so they bleed to death, while doing this we could line up the rest of them to watch it happening while we all dance about on their dead bodies rejoicing in a job well done..
It will be a sustainable tradition of course, we only take the ones that have the audacity to feel like they have any right to travel or migrate anywhere..
It is the 21st century for fecks sake, it’s time these people joined us in it!!!
I see a few of the usual Pro whaling people names trying to defend this brutality.
You will never convince compassionate people that the grind is anything but inhumane, unnecessary and outdated.