SICKENING FINDING IN HONG KONG

THOUSANDS OF SHARK FINS
DRYING ON HONG KONG ROOFTOP

www.grindtv.com - The number of shark fins set out to dry like the morning laundry on a Hong Kong factory building rooftop is staggering. To look at the accompanying images and video, revealing perhaps 10,000 fins, and to grasp that sharks are being slaughtered at a furious pace so their fins can be used to make soup, one cannot help but wonder how many years will pass before at least some shark species are banished to extinction. Shark conservation movements are growing, especially regarding the cruel practice of finning, but the striking imagery supplied by photojournalist Alex Hofford illustrates that conservation efforts, while they have made progress, have a long away to go toward stemming the killing of sharks for their fins. Though it's not illegal to posses and sell fins in China, most traders keep their operations at least somewhat private to avoid bad publicity.

Asked how he was able to obtain his vantage point Hofford responded, via email: "Evading security guards, running up and down dusty stair cases, climbing up rusty ladders, and general low-level paranoia!" The photojournalist blogged: "The front line in the war against the shark fin trade has shifted from the sidewalks to the roof tops. The theory goes that after being exposed at street level, they have now sought to move their activities out of the public eye to avoid further backlash." Shark finning, which involves the removal of fins from captured sharks and the tossing of shark carcasses overboard, is increasingly under fire. The practice is illegal in some areas, including the U.S., and many U.S. states have banned the sale and possession of shark fins. But scientists estimate that up to 70 million sharks are killed each year, solely for their fins. Most of them end up in China, where shark-fin soup is a delicacy enjoyed mostly by the affluent. It's not clear whether the fins in Hofford's images were from sharks killed only for their fins, but it's easy to draw that conclusion.

Environmentalists are outraged after approximately 18,000 shark fins were discovered drying out on a rooftop in Hong Kong, hidden from public view. The images represent a fraction of the expected 75 million sharks killed each year to keep up with the demand for the fins. Hong Kong is one of the world’s biggest markets for shark fins, which are used to make soup that is an expensive staple at Chinese banquets. The delicacy, often used in soup, and consumed mostly by rich people, is very popular in China. But the practice of fisherman removing the animal's fin and throwing it back into the sea to die, and the over-harvesting of sharks, has begun to change public opinion. We should reject anything that cause pain to other creatures or is harmful to our health and general health of the planet.

WHAT DO THE VEDIC TEACHINGS TELL US? 

Life is also present within the nonhuman species, and it is no less qualified than the human position, but in the course of the evolutionary movement of the soul, it is thrown into such a condition as the result of karma. Wherever life is present, the soul is there within. ...  Jesus told them, "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you." That is also good. But not only is the soul present there; God is also there, and everywhere. The lower species are also feeling pain and pleasure. In animals it is quite clear that when they are killed, they feel pain. So, there is life. The vibration of pain is there, consciousness is there, and the soul is a unit of pure consciousness. But the persons to whom Jesus preached were not so qualified as to extend their knowledge that far. They are not prepared for such a great amount of sacrifice in their practices.

Śrīla Bhakti Raksaka Sridhara Mahārāja :
"The Search For Sri Krsna - Reality The Beautiful"
Chapter 7 : "Do Unto Others" Includes Animals"
1989 - Sri Chaitanya Saraswat Math
http://www.scsmath.com/books/Search_Sri_Krishna.pdf

Published by dasavatara das - "Vedic Views on World News"
http://www.vedicviews-worldnews.blogspot.com.ar/