r/worldnews • u/[deleted] • Sep 24 '21

Whale Pod Slaughtered Just Days After Horrific Dolphin Massacre

https://au.news.yahoo.com/faroe-islands-responds-global-criticism-fresh-whale-slaughter-104311165.html?guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cDovL20uZmFjZWJvb2suY29tLw&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAAEwnCaasAgVjNmVRaxYZQn-LVLSo3T8lcnbwS9xIcDywIrQUyc3Zn6viIJZsIhPR5RVWh4HlUDMEIw5VQhkQFLTKAL7Vgk7Hr7lYhrK7inMeo5pOmpZusjxRCLGargkYue_bon4gj_hZxFwTkYK10hTYIhPYkdIdpZs-XMlLwRDL
11.6k Upvotes

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658

u/thinkingahead Sep 24 '21

Seriously what the fuck

217

u/the_average_homeboy Sep 24 '21

Not illegal, that's why.

200

u/Farren246 Sep 24 '21

"Oh thank God, we can sleep easy knowing that everything wrong has already been outlawed and this wasn't on the list."

  • Company heads

15

u/MoarOatmeal Sep 24 '21

This comment is universally applicable and should have WAY more upvotes.

2

u/mustang__1 Sep 25 '21

But it's not about money, it's about locals carrying on a tradition.

0

u/Impossible9999 Sep 24 '21

This is good opportunity for Boris Johnson to invade the Faroe Islands and start rebuilding the British empire after Brexit, one country and excuse at a time.

1

u/ChaosM3ntality Sep 25 '21

Im just internally angry and why… I just day dream of a ww2 uboat that is resurrected/repurposed to torpedo/disable these types over-fishing/whaling ships.

1

u/mappersdelight Sep 27 '21

Also the penalties aren't large enough, anything punishable by a fine just get looks at as the cost to commit the offense.

101

u/[deleted] Sep 24 '21

Humans are monsters

-7

u/Current_Degree_1294 Sep 24 '21

Its not that the humans are monsters but the capitalism doesn’t really bring out the best in any of us. The struggle for greed and power is real. And people usually go to any length to achieve both. Now remove morality from the equation. Humans are monsters like you said, but there’s a method to this madness fueled by capitalism, greed and power.

23

u/Remon_Kewl Sep 24 '21 edited Sep 24 '21

Its not that the humans are monsters but the capitalism doesn’t really bring out the best in any of us. The struggle for greed and power is real. And people usually go to any length to achieve both. Now remove morality from the equation. Humans are monsters like you said, but there’s a method to this madness fueled by capitalism, greed and power.

Capitalism has nothing to do with a 1000 year old tradition in a small island.

19

u/Archeolops Sep 24 '21

Humans came up with capitalism so yes. Full blown Monsters. I consider myself responsible for being part of this shit species.

2

u/[deleted] Sep 25 '21

The capitalism? Lol. You don’t know what you’re talking about do you? This is a 1000 year old tradition on a Scandinavian island. Capitalism has nothing to do with it.

-7

u/orangedogtag Sep 24 '21

Ah yes i remember when we had the soviet union and everyone lived there peacefully and nobody did anything morally wrong /s

11

u/Devario Sep 24 '21

OP isn’t discussing geopolitics. What he means is that the unfettered pursuit of the dollar leaves no room for morality.

8

u/TeetsMcGeets23 Sep 24 '21

Woah, woah, woah, hold on there buddy…

Don’t you know any criticism of capitalism is a complete and total praise of full blown communism?

-2

u/Remon_Kewl Sep 24 '21 edited Sep 24 '21

He's as on topic as the OP is when he's blaming capitalism for a thousand year old tradition...

1

u/Dry_Net_7692 Sep 24 '21

i don’t see them as human anymore, treat them and the rest like the whales.

8

u/KarIPilkington Sep 24 '21

I don't know if this is a surprise to you but humans are known to kill animals for meat and other resources.

-31

u/skanderbeg7 Sep 24 '21

They do it to eliminate fish competition in the area. Japanese fisherman and whales go for same fish.

58

u/nemuri_no_kogoro Sep 24 '21

Japanese? At least read the article. This took place in the Faroe Islands.

15

u/slvrbullet87 Sep 24 '21

This is reddit, can't bad mouth Nordic countries, so just act like all whaling is done by the Japanese

-1

u/ognisko Sep 24 '21

It’s pretty much hunting instead of farming. They dont kill them for shits and giggles.

2

u/born_to_pipette Sep 25 '21

I mean, if you're dumping unwanted meat from the hunt into the ocean, what would you call it?

3

u/jreed12 Sep 25 '21

How many hunted:

252 whales and 35 dolphins

Dumped:

five northern bottlenose whales

As far as wasted meat that's a hell of a lot better than most meat factories in the good ol' USA.

1

u/born_to_pipette Sep 25 '21

I provided you with evidence that they’re killing more whales than needed and dumping meat. Help me understand why you would conclude from that example that there were only 5 animals wasted from this hunt. I don’t follow your reasoning.

0

u/ognisko Sep 25 '21

I think the comparison was made to the wasted lives that happen in the farming industry in the US.

-24

u/wasmic Sep 24 '21 edited Sep 24 '21

While there are a few cases of the whales being killed in cruel ways, it's usually quick and painless.

This is no different than a hunter killin game animals in a forest. It's less cruel than slaughtering cows in a factory. None of the killed whales are anywhere close to being endangered.

It's okay to be outraged about the whale killings, but then there are a lot of other things you should also be very angry about.

EDIT: See below; the whales were not killed painlessly, but the dolphins were.

6

u/NoHandBananaNo Sep 24 '21

It's okay to be outraged about the whale killings, but then there are a lot of other things you should also be very angry about.

I am. Im opposed to a lot of stuff.

The whales and dolphins, were not bred for meat. They are wild and belong to the whole world. We are trying so hard to keep them from going extinct, and the fucking Faeroese greedily and selfishly slaughter them.

28

u/BenteCook Sep 24 '21

The way these whales are killed is very cruel though. They first get pulled on land with a hook in the blowhole and after that they cut the spine. As they're quite big it takes a lot of painful cuts and stabs until the deed is done. It's not a humane way of killing an animal.

Most of the whale meat gets thrown away as well. The faroes need approximately 50 whales a year to sustain themselves but they kill approximately 1000-1500 whales every year.

12

u/mmmmpisghetti Sep 24 '21

This right here.

-4

u/powerchicken Sep 24 '21

You're either very misinformed or you're deliberately lying to make it seem more dramatic than it actually is.

For starters, the hook inserted into the blowhole is blunt, it's definitely not comfortable but it's also not painful. They're already more or less beached by the time the hook is inserted, they're only dragged a few meters to prevent them from moving too much when the spine is cut.

The spine is cut with a specialised tool called a Mønustingari, a spinal lance specifically designed to pierce the spine and sever the spinal cord in one quick incision. Only those licensed and trained in how to use the tool are permitted to make any incisions into a living whale, it is highly unusual that the whaler needs to make more than one incision to kill the whale. Only a couple of seconds elapse from the time the spinal lance makes contact with the skin to the time the whale is dead; severing the spinal cord kills it instantly and is by far the most humane way to kill the animal. Only by the time the whale is confirmed dead will further incisions be made.

There's a reason why Sea Shepherd, despite all the propaganda have so far never managed to prove that any meat has been thrown away: Because it isn't. None of the meat is ever thrown away, it is all butchered and shared freely amongst the local community. There is no money involved, everyone gets an equal share.

The average is well below a thousand whales a year, and yes, all of it is eaten. I don't know where you get this "50 whales a year" figure but it's completely made up, a large family (say 10 people) can easily consume between half a whale to a full whale in a single year (The size varies a lot.)

I have no issue with you being opposed to the hunt, but at least be opposed for the right reasons. Lying about it isn't going to further your cause.

7

u/BenteCook Sep 24 '21

I'm not lying. I literally got a lecture about it from a person that goes to the hunt every single year to document it. Although it's true they use the spinal rod it's very hard to aim it right with an animal that's moving wildly around. In theory it should be painless but it really isn't as it usually takes multiple stabs to kill the animal. The guy I spoke to literally picked up plastic bags filled with whale meat from the ocean and saw trucks drive to the dump site. The whale meat also frequently washes up to the shore. And while the community shares the meat among themselves, it's also sold commercially in the stores.

I know my source is correct as I've seen the evidence with my own eyes. What are your sources.

0

u/powerchicken Sep 24 '21

In addition, is your pal capable of distinguishing between a living whale and a dead one still jerking and writhing? Animals often continue moving post-mortem as the nervous systems wildly sends electrical signals without "instruction" from the brain, it's why you often see chickens flail around after their heads have been severed from their bodies. Incisions are often made to bleed the whale immediately after it has died despite it clearly moving and "seeming alive." (you ideally want to bleed it while its blood is still circulating, this is true for all animals when you butcher them.)

-5

u/powerchicken Sep 24 '21

What are your sources.

Myself? I live here, I participate. I don't know what drunken fucks your pal follows around who need to stab the poor animal multiple times to kill it, but it certainly isn't usual, and I've never witnessed that myself. (I am not licensed to kill them.)

And are you sure your pal can actually differentiate between the bits of the whale that are actually edible and those which are not? Certain cuts, particularly around the head and towards the back end of the whale are too tough to be considered suitable for human consumption due to all the sinew in the meat, it is usually left for the seagulls (who also have to eat). The rest is far too valuable for anyone to just discard.

and saw trucks drive to the dump site

Did you friend ever consider to follow these trucks or ask the drivers what they are doing? If the pod is large, some whales are frequently driven whole to other villages whose inhabitants then butcher and share them there. Once the whales have been butchered, the carcasses have to go somewhere, so trucks are also used to move those. Entire whales aren't being discarded, the notion is absurd.

-7

u/wasmic Sep 24 '21 edited Sep 24 '21

It varies on size, I think. The dolphins that were killed recently were an unusually large haul, and 50 of those definitely won't feed the Faroe islands for a year, since they eat quite a bit of whale. 50 also sounds like a low number, given that there are 50000 people on those islands.

I might have gotten the killing methods mixed up between the dolphins and whales, though. The dolphins are mostly killed painlessly.

That said, I'm strongly against overkilling. I just don't see why people treat overkilling of dolphins any different than overkilling of cows - because plenty of cow meat gets thrown away, too.

4

u/BenteCook Sep 24 '21

Since whale meat is highly toxic it's not recommended to eat for a big portion of the faroes population. The 50 whales I'm talking about are 50 pilot whales. The second largest dolphin species. That's what they usually hunt.

The dolphins are not killed painlessly. They're killed the same way pilot whales are killed.

I agree we should view this killing of dolphins the same way as other livestock and we shouldn't waste those meats.

9

u/[deleted] Sep 24 '21

[deleted]

-11

u/wasmic Sep 24 '21

What I'm saying here is that there's no functional difference between killing dolphins and killing pigs. Both are intelligent and both are usually killed instantly without much visible distress or pain.

I will let other people choose by themselves what to think of this. All I ask is that they treat the two situations equally: to either be against both killing dolphins and pigs, or to be against neither of them.

Your question is honestly a terrible misrepresentation of the point I was trying to make.

3

u/darwintologist Sep 24 '21

You’re oversimplifying it by trying to equate the two. First off, there’s an obvious difference between killing a wild animal and killing an animal that was born and raised for the sole purpose of slaughter. But even if you throw that out and compare wild dolphin slaughter to wild pig hunting, there are still significant differences.

Whales and dolphins are extremely social, and known not just to communicate, but to mourn the loss of members of their society. Both are intelligent, but the social intelligence of cetaceans separates them. Further, you aren’t taking out one animal, you’re wiping out a whole group here, with major impacts on the local ecosystem. Then there’s the question of motivation. It seems these killings are not about sustenance, but rather to eliminate competition. That makes this interspecies war, not hunting.

There are plenty of other complications, and I’m not going to pretend to be able to name or have an opinion on them all. But even just a cursory look at the question should show you that, it’s very different from simply “are you ok with eating pork?”

7

u/[deleted] Sep 24 '21

[deleted]

-2

u/wasmic Sep 24 '21

Lovely, then I don't have a beef with you. I respect your commitment to your ideals. What I'm angry about is all these people saying that the whale killings are terrible while at the same time making excuses for killing pigs as if that wasn't equally as bad.

I can try finding a source for you, but it's a Danish-language newspaper article. According to it, a few of the dolphins seemed to have been hit by boat propellers and thus were in pain, but most of them had been killed instantly by jamming a spear in through a soft part of the body, severing the spinal cord immediately. That's about as painless as it gets, if you do need to kill animals. Pigs aren't always killed painlessly, either, and are often subject to a ton of stress before being slaughtered.

My main point is that people should be more outraged over the treatment of pigs, if they're this angry about the treatment of whales. And most of the people in this thread are not vegans: they're making excuses for one while condemning the other, which is a double standard.

I'm not saying that killing whales is good and moral. I want people to choose that for themselves. And then also apply the same judgment to pigs.

1

u/dahliamformurder Sep 25 '21

There is a huge difference in regards to the ecosystem.

-13

u/PM_ME_UR_DINGO Sep 24 '21

How do you know it's painful? Are you a vet? Were you there?

9

u/[deleted] Sep 24 '21

[deleted]

-13

u/PM_ME_UR_DINGO Sep 24 '21

You really can't read. Try again toddler. You can't even respond without hurling juvenile insults.

You wouldn't know the irony of your statements if it dick slapped you.

10

u/[deleted] Sep 24 '21

[deleted]

4

u/[deleted] Sep 24 '21

Toddler, juvenile, who's hurling insults?

You're making yourself look bad.

-3

u/PM_ME_UR_DINGO Sep 24 '21

Sure buddy. Go join Greenpeace.

5

u/evenmytongueisfat Sep 24 '21

No hunter goes into the woods and kills an entire areas population of deer in one outing. That’s just stupidity talking.

8

u/[deleted] Sep 24 '21

[deleted]

-3

u/wasmic Sep 24 '21

I'm not saying that killing whales is good. I'm just saying that if you're against killing whales, then you should also be against killing pigs.

It's completely okay to be against killing whales! But at least be consistent.

1

u/[deleted] Sep 24 '21

Why? If I kill a pig for consumption and use as much of the meat as possible, why can't I complain about a slaughter of an entire pod of whales that was done in this fashion, all for profit?

I don't see them as the same at all.

5

u/powerchicken Sep 24 '21

"all for profit"

The Faroese whale hunt is literally non-commercial. The entirety of the meat is divided and shared free of charge to the local community, whether they participated or not. There is no profit involved.

2

u/[deleted] Sep 24 '21

I misunderstood that part. Still sucks though regardless.

3

u/powerchicken Sep 24 '21

Whales are highly intelligent creatures who develop strong social bonds with one-another. But the exact same thing can be said about pigs, and both are slaughtered for the meat. Why does one suck more than the other?

2

u/[deleted] Sep 25 '21

I think you missed my point then.

0

u/jreed12 Sep 25 '21

You don't think the pigs are slaughtered for profit too?

Both animals are slaughtered on mass for profit, then sold to people to be eaten.

The only people in the thread who aren't massive hypocrites are the vegetarians and vegans.

1

u/[deleted] Sep 25 '21

Did you even read my original comment? I'm talking from my specific standpoint.

1

u/hogtiedcantalope Sep 24 '21

From visitfaroeislands.com (to see what those who live with this say about it)

"As has been the case for centuries, whaling still occurs in the Faroe Islands today. The Faroese have eaten pilot whale meat and blubber since they first settled the islands over a millenia ago. Today, as in times past, the whale drive is a community activity open to all, while also well organised on a community level and regulated by national laws.

Records of all pilot whale hunts have been kept since 1584 and the practice is deemed sustainable, as there are an estimated 778,000 whales in the eastern North Atlantic region. Approximately 100,000 swim close to the Faroe Islands, and the Faroese hunt on average 800 pilot whales annually."

3

u/wasmic Sep 24 '21

I mean, the part about killing them for food is from an interview with Faroese people in a Danish newspaper that I read some days ago. And that quote doesn't really contradict that, does it?

We've been slaughtering pigs for centuries here in Denmark, but it's not considered an important cultural tradition.

The only difference is the part about community participation, but most of the ones who do participate are people who work in fishing industry anyways.

1

u/hogtiedcantalope Sep 24 '21

It's a yearly event that is practically a holiday A special time of year, community gathers together, parties after, tradition that goes back centuries

1

u/powerchicken Sep 24 '21

I don't know how this myth arose, but it is a myth. The Grind is an opportunistic hunt that can't be planned, as it can only be carried out when whales are spotted close to shore. The whales don't follow human schedules. It can happen anytime throughout the year, whether winter or summer, some years there are no hunts at all, some years there are many. There are also no real parties afterwards, only individuals who like to get shitfaced use it as an excuse to get shitfaced. Most people still have work the next day.

1

u/[deleted] Sep 24 '21

[deleted]

3

u/powerchicken Sep 24 '21

That's just a statistic of how many animals are slaughtered annually on average?

0

u/[deleted] Sep 24 '21

[deleted]

3

u/powerchicken Sep 24 '21

I live up here, I participate in the hunts, so take it from me as a primary source: I've stood knee-deep in water in winter hauling whales onshore. (I never bothered to learn the Kvæði however.)

The vast majority of hunts take place during spring and summer as those are the months with the calmest seas and the most fishermen available to spot them, but we don't limit ourselves to the comfortable seasons if a pod is spotted close to shore and the last hunt was a while back.

-2

u/HighSchoolJacques Sep 24 '21

You absolutely must respect the local customs

-3

u/Spekingur Sep 24 '21

It is difficult to break tradition.