2011
State of the Superorder Address
February
26, 2011
United
States Shark Blogger 'Calvin Requin'
CALVIN REQUIN:
Members of TGSI, friends, enemies, distinguished guests, and fellow
hominids:
The
Constitution of the United States of America declares that from time
to time, the President shall give to Congress information about the
state of the union. The leaders of the United States have fulfilled
this duty for more than 220 years. They've done so during periods of
prosperity and tranquility. And they've done so in the midst of war
and depression; at moments of great strife and great struggle. After
hearing great accounts of what is happening globally to the oceans I
have decided to speak with you tonight to discuss the state of the
superorder Selachimorpha.
I know
that I am not an expert on marine biology or foreign relations.
However, every day I read the tens of articles, view the numerous
pictures, and feel the state of our oceans and superorder through the
attitudes and tones of friends and enemies alike. Every day I see the
atrocities that humans bear on our sharks; I also see individuals of
the same species as those ignorant beings express their
dissatisfaction with the way that others treat sharks. They fight
diligently without ever accepting compromise. As we move on into the
future I hope that others will join the growing number of thoughtful
citizens of this planet against the exploitation of our sharks.
For every
atrocity there is a success in the effort to ensure that these unique
animals survive into the next century. There are consistently people
like Bucky Dennis, Vic Hislop, Tom Coburn, Leland Yee, and others who
do not see sharks in the same light as my friends and I do. More and
more sources are stating and sourcing the horrifying prediction that
the oceans will be void of edible fish by the middle of the century.
Statistics are showing that two thirds of oceanic shark species are
threatened with extinction. Shark populations are declining albeit
they have been slaughtered to more than ninety percent of their
original population. Ecosystems and the delicate balance of the
predator-prey relationships in the oceans have been drastically
disturbed. The North Atlantic Bluefin Tuna is expected to become
extinct from overfishing while their breeding grounds were soiled by
the BP TransOcean spill in 2010. Our oceans are failing to keep up
with our increasing demand for fish. Bycatch is indiscriminately
killing tons upon tons of animals. Humans fear sharks more than
chairs yet less people are killed by sharks than chairs annually. The
public is continually barraged by the media with fear and hatred
against sharks.
I know of
the difficulties and struggles and anxieties that the defenders of
the oceans face every day. These struggles are not stemmed from
everyday citizens, but their actions can exacerbate even the minor
details on oceanic dealings. I would not be discussing these
struggles with any of you if I was one of the enemies of the ocean.
They are the weak ones who are making the troubles for everyone else,
although we are all part of the problem and solution to oceanic
policies. A colleague of mine once explained to me that every day
ninety percent of their work is with the worst ten percent of people;
most of those reading this are part of the ninety percent of people
who follow rules and do good without incentive. It's when I realize
this that I am hopeful about the future of the oceans and our
superorder.
Within
this year I hope to make my blog, Shark Links, fully functional
giving you up-to-date information, articles, petitions, and
objectives on the conservation of our superorder. I will provide
resource materials for anyone to use; everybody has the right to be
able to preserve the superorder, and we all need to be able to have
what is necessary to carry out our thoughts into actions. I will be
adding a page on education where anyone can become a 'shark expert'
by learning more about our unique, important, misunderstood, and
awesome superorder. I will ask the pro-shark community on their views
on such things as how to confront restaurants serving shark fin soup,
the best way to educate the public, the all-to-familiar Shark Week by
the Discovery Channel, the controversial chumming issue, and others
so that we all can reach a consensus and become united against the
exploitation of sharks. We can be hopeful about the future of sharks,
but we must face a reality.
We cannot
continue to think that we are out of this pit that we have been
thrown into by the media, traditions, hatred, and bigotry. We have
yet to win the battle against misinformation. I know for certain that
my brethren are strong. They will fight until either there is nothing
left to fight for or for an eternity. We cannot sit on the sidelines
waiting for someone else to go into battle to fight and win the war.
We will not give up, and we will not quit. As Margaret Mead states,
“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens
can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.”
Even if the people of this blue planet all realized the true power,
mind, spirit, and importance of the shark and even fought for their
lives, we would still be in a conundrum. Sharks are meant to
reproduce slowly. They were meant to live long lives. Humans have
slaughtered sharks mercilessly to the point where it will take years,
decades, and possibly even centuries for some shark populations to be
restored. That is only if we act now. Now is the time to save these
awesome creatures! Save them before even they cannot save themselves.
To think that we are contemporaries with some of the greatest animals
in the world only to be the ones inflicting a great massacre on them
is absolutely shameful, horrifying, and rueful.
We are the
human race and we can ensure that these species survive. Not saving
sharks is not only self-centered. It's suicide. Humans cannot risk
finding out how important these apex predators are. There should be
no debate over whether or not to protect a species.
When I say
'humans' I do not just mean those affected directly by sharks. We the
people of this planet own the oceans. Never forget that. We all have
the responsibility and willpower to determine their future—our
future. We will, we can, and we must do everything we can to save the
sharks. It has been demonstrated in many cases from the banning of
shark finning in Hawaii to Guam, the increasingly important finding
by Sharklet that the properties of shark skin can be replicated to
stop the spread of germs, the actions of individuals from TGSI to the
Shark Finatics, and the mass organization of individuals to help stop
the slaughter of sharks including the Facebook activity of going Red
for the Chinese New Year.
I have
seen the power of the human spirit. It is great, overpowering,
sacred, and has an attitude that says, “We can do anything we want,
but what we want to do is make this the best world possible.” It is
because of our people that our future is hopeful. It's when I realize
this that I am hopeful about the future of the oceans and our
superorder. Let us start this decade fighting harder and more than we
ever did before. We must ensure the conservation of our oceans and
our superorder. They are our oceans. Fight for them not only because
it is right for the continuation of species, but fight for our oceans
and sharks because they belong to us. I will not quit fighting for
the oceans. We will never quit fighting for them. Even if our race
fails to preserve our world, our world will endure. We are not going
to save the planet; we are going to save ourselves and preserve the
planet.
The state
of the superorder is improving, and it will forever improve if you
join me and others in the fight for the conservation of our oceans,
our superorder, and our planet. Thank you for reading, may our planet
prosper, and may we all do our best to preserve the state of the
superorder.
---> Calvin Requin <---
---> Calvin Requin <---
