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Abstract

2 hours and it still hadn’t died. Dragging sharks until they die is illegal in Florida. Why am I not surprised that NOAA has not taken any action against him for promoting and engaging in illegal activity?As a result of NOAA's policies, people have been finding ways to kill sharks. In one now-viral video, two men are <a href="https://www.fox35orlando.com/news/video-florida-men-seen-dragging-shark-onto-beach-stabbing-animal-in-head">dragging a shark</a> onto the sand, stabbing it to death apparently just for fun. Their meat is too high in mercury. Ingesting it would likely cause multiple symptoms including brain damage. Or maybe these dudes do eat sharks, and that's the reason for their dumbassery.Instead of promoting shark-killing tournaments, NOAA should be promoting protecting the declining populations and promoting ways humans can coexist with them.Our tax dollars are not being used to prosecute jerks, or stop shark-killing tournaments, instead, they're being used to threaten divers who rescue suffering animals.The message is clear: killing, organizing tournaments, and incentivizing killing are good and legal. Rescuing sharks in distress is bad, illegal, and punishable by 5 years in jail. Do you want to be supported by NOAA? Just kill a few sharks or let them die by starving to death.<h1 id="708e">NOAA's Mission</h1>One of NOAA's missions, as stated on their website, is "to understand…the ocean and coasts." But their activities instead demonstrate their abyssal ignorance of the Ocean and coasts. All species, including sharks, play a role in keeping our planet balanced.Nor is it necessary to harm sharks to understand them. Many leading shark researchers capture their data — and specimens — without supporting shark-killing tournaments or capturing them with long lines in the Ocean. Scientific research can be done humanely without killing the subject. There isn't any reason for NOAA to kill or endanger sharks in the name of research.Another of NOAA's missions is "to conserve and manage marine ecosystems and resources." It's unclear how supporting Shark Killing Tournaments with our tax-payer dollars is helping conservation. In fact, conservationists have <a href="https://www.change.org/p/noaa-fisheries-end-shark-tournaments">collected over 175,000 signatures</a> on a petition asking for the shark-killing tournaments to be ended.<p id="a2a

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e">Most sharks hunted in these tournaments are designated as endangered to near-endangered. And a federal agency with a mission to conserve promotes events intending to reduce the population. Currently, <a href="https://www.americanoceans.org/facts/sharks-killed-per-year/">humans kill over 100 million sharks each year.</a> We've already managed to get most shark species on the red list. What's the point of making the remaining ones suffer?How can a federal agency whose mission is to conserve put its name on a page for a senseless tournament that invites people to kill declining species? Both the fishing line that was left unattended for days and shark-killing tournaments are barbaric, unnecessary, and damaging to our Ocean. And yet, NOAA signed off on both of them.<h1 id="04b0">What if they weren't sharks?</h1>Many readers will think — "it's just sharks," or even "no one likes sharks." What if it were dogs?If instead of sharks, these were dogs, and instead of a long line in the vast Ocean, it was a chain in the hot sun killing the dog without food or water, the research excuse would not even be uttered, let alone published.This is a country filled with animal rescues and shelters. Thankfully there are laws written to protect dogs and cats from being treated barbarically. Instead of harming sharks, agencies like NOAA should be writing laws that are protecting them. NOAA should get behind shark awareness campaigns to clear the misunderstood animals' stigma. They should be out at hunting and fishing shows, emphasizing the need to protect the declining species. Harming creatures in the Ocean is as pointless and senseless as harming cats and dogs.To recap the craziness — NOAA is using tax-payer dollars to sue two divers who found distressed sharks in the Ocean, freed them, and took the proper course of action. Somehow, NOAA wants us, tax-payers, to support the idea that shark-killing tournaments and unmarked lines in the Ocean are a better way to achieve their mission to understand, protect, and conserve than rescuing trapped marine animals.Instead of understanding, protecting, and conserving, NOAA sends a message: "don't touch or rescue suffering animals."If there ever was a law to rebel against it would be these kinds of dumbass laws and policies that incentivize animal cruelty and harm the planet are a great place to start.</article></body>

Our Tax Dollars Are Used to Support Animal Cruelty

A government agency is suing divers devoted to rescuing animals in distress

Ever wake up all enthused to challenge an unjust law or rebel against a ridiculous policy? If so, you'll discover countless laws in our great nation you can take on. Environmental laws, especially, are a goldmine when it comes to ridiculous policies. I'm impressed by how many laws allow the cruel treatment and suffering of animals while also harming our planet.

One example? The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and two divers. Two Florida divers released trapped and distressed sharks from what looked like an abandoned fishing line. Once back on shore, the divers called the authorities and told them about the unmarked line and the sharks they released. It turned out the line was intentionally left out to catch sharks under an NOAA-issued research permit. In turn, NOAA sued them on federal felony charges punishable by up to 5 years in prison.

There is no publicity or news about this case aside from a few people who've posted on social media. Too bad there wasn't a Sharky Kardashian caught on the line to increase ratings!

NOAA is no friend to sharks. Every year, a controversial Florida shark-killing tournament gathers crowds of people wanting to kill sharks. Florida law mandates one shark per person or two sharks per boat maximum. However, enforcing laws in the open Ocean is far from precise, especially with the added number of vessels for the event. Multiple unreported shark deaths have been caught on camera by environmentalists and conservationists. NOAA promotes these tournaments on its website and claims to obtain some data for research. One of the organizers sits on NOAA's advisory board. Participants are caught on video after a tournament exclaiming "Keep killing them." They tell their followers not to report the kills so they can bypass quotas. One participant is heard declaring how they drug a shark for 2 hours and it still hadn’t died. Dragging sharks until they die is illegal in Florida. Why am I not surprised that NOAA has not taken any action against him for promoting and engaging in illegal activity?

As a result of NOAA's policies, people have been finding ways to kill sharks. In one now-viral video, two men are dragging a shark onto the sand, stabbing it to death apparently just for fun. Their meat is too high in mercury. Ingesting it would likely cause multiple symptoms including brain damage. Or maybe these dudes do eat sharks, and that's the reason for their dumbassery.

Instead of promoting shark-killing tournaments, NOAA should be promoting protecting the declining populations and promoting ways humans can coexist with them.

Our tax dollars are not being used to prosecute jerks, or stop shark-killing tournaments, instead, they're being used to threaten divers who rescue suffering animals.

The message is clear: killing, organizing tournaments, and incentivizing killing are good and legal. Rescuing sharks in distress is bad, illegal, and punishable by 5 years in jail. Do you want to be supported by NOAA? Just kill a few sharks or let them die by starving to death.

NOAA's Mission

One of NOAA's missions, as stated on their website, is "to understand…the ocean and coasts." But their activities instead demonstrate their abyssal ignorance of the Ocean and coasts. All species, including sharks, play a role in keeping our planet balanced.

Nor is it necessary to harm sharks to understand them. Many leading shark researchers capture their data — and specimens — without supporting shark-killing tournaments or capturing them with long lines in the Ocean. Scientific research can be done humanely without killing the subject. There isn't any reason for NOAA to kill or endanger sharks in the name of research.

Another of NOAA's missions is "to conserve and manage marine ecosystems and resources." It's unclear how supporting Shark Killing Tournaments with our tax-payer dollars is helping conservation. In fact, conservationists have collected over 175,000 signatures on a petition asking for the shark-killing tournaments to be ended.

Most sharks hunted in these tournaments are designated as endangered to near-endangered. And a federal agency with a mission to conserve promotes events intending to reduce the population. Currently, humans kill over 100 million sharks each year. We've already managed to get most shark species on the red list. What's the point of making the remaining ones suffer?

How can a federal agency whose mission is to conserve put its name on a page for a senseless tournament that invites people to kill declining species? Both the fishing line that was left unattended for days and shark-killing tournaments are barbaric, unnecessary, and damaging to our Ocean. And yet, NOAA signed off on both of them.

What if they weren't sharks?

Many readers will think — "it's just sharks," or even "no one likes sharks." What if it were dogs?

If instead of sharks, these were dogs, and instead of a long line in the vast Ocean, it was a chain in the hot sun killing the dog without food or water, the research excuse would not even be uttered, let alone published.

This is a country filled with animal rescues and shelters. Thankfully there are laws written to protect dogs and cats from being treated barbarically. Instead of harming sharks, agencies like NOAA should be writing laws that are protecting them. NOAA should get behind shark awareness campaigns to clear the misunderstood animals' stigma. They should be out at hunting and fishing shows, emphasizing the need to protect the declining species. Harming creatures in the Ocean is as pointless and senseless as harming cats and dogs.

To recap the craziness — NOAA is using tax-payer dollars to sue two divers who found distressed sharks in the Ocean, freed them, and took the proper course of action. Somehow, NOAA wants us, tax-payers, to support the idea that shark-killing tournaments and unmarked lines in the Ocean are a better way to achieve their mission to understand, protect, and conserve than rescuing trapped marine animals.

Instead of understanding, protecting, and conserving, NOAA sends a message: "don't touch or rescue suffering animals."

If there ever was a law to rebel against it would be these kinds of dumbass laws and policies that incentivize animal cruelty and harm the planet are a great place to start.