Some cultures will eat anything...

[GBtortoises]

GB.... your neighbors are the swamp people on tv?...

How cool is that ?...


JD~

Uh, no. My neighbors, most of which are a minimum of a half mile away, consist of dairy farmers, a Llama farmer an ENCON officer, a retired doctor, an equipment operator a barber and two HVAC technicians. No swamp people here that I am aware of. But it would be okay if there was, they're very welcome here.

 

[Katherine]

Ermmm not trying to be rude at all, but humans from ALL parts of the planet kill and eat all kinds of wonderful animals. If you disagree with this practice it is easy not to partake in it. Unfortunately judgement is not the answer here; if it was we would have fixed the problem with this thread alone ; )

 

[tortoises101]

Too bad those darn chinese aren't civilised like us. http://www.9news.com/news/story.aspx?storyid=114673&catid=222

Rattlesnakes are not endangered.

---

Eating turtles is part of Chinese culture.

We cannot use culture alone to argue for whether something is acceptable or not. Is it okay to mutilate the genitalia of children, just because it's a tradition? Is it okay to own people, just because it's a tradition? Is it okay to beat a wife if her skin is visible? Is it okay to torture bears, just because it's a tradition? No. Some cultural practices are worth preserving, and some aren't. Keeping endangered animals in a drum until you kill them is not one of them.

I did eat a turtle once while staying in a South American village, but the turtle was not endangered, and it was not kept cruelly in a drum until I ate it.

---

I am fully aware of the things you mentioned; I'm of a Chinese background myself and I don't support the things you mentioned. I was implying the extent of exploitation, not using culture as a defense for myself (or any other turtle-eating Chinese person). Just because one Chinese eats tortoises doesn't mean another one does. Does this clear up any misunderstanding???

 

[Yvonne G]

I'm trying real hard to keep this thread clean. Please be careful how you respond. We won't allow any racism. We can't throw stones at the Chinese culture when they are not the only people in the world eating turtles. Every culture has some bad individuals who give no thought to whether a turtle is endangered or not. I think the "endangered" part of this thread is what we should all concentrate on, and not the fact that turtles were eaten.

 

[GeoTerraTestudo]

I am fully aware of the things you mentioned; I'm of a Chinese background myself and I don't support the things you mentioned. I was implying the extent of exploitation, not using culture as a defense for myself (or any other turtle-eating Chinese person). Just because one Chinese eats tortoises doesn't mean another one does. Does this clear up any misunderstanding???

I think the reason some people are "China bashing" on this and similar threads is that Chinese culture, although like all cultures contains both beautiful and objectionable practices, has recently become infamous for its cruelty toward animals:

Two TFO threads on "live key chains" in China, in which fish, newts, or turtles are sold alive in tiny plastic containers:
"OMG!! I have seen it all now!!!! Live Turtles to Die in Keyrings??"
"Get Real! This Can Not Be Happening!"

Moreover, Chinese traditional medicine, in addition to prescribing herbal remedies, also promotes the poaching of tigers for their penises and rhinos for their horns to be used as "aphrodisiacs" (which is, of course, a bogus claim), as well the torture of Asian black bears for their bile on "farms." It is for instances of exploitation such as these that has given China a bad name when it come to animal welfare.

Again, China is by no means the only perpetrator of crimes against animals. People poach endangered wildlife all over the world, illegal whaling persists in Japan and Norway, and agriculture in the US is notorious for its abuses against livestock. So, China is not alone. But when it comes to callous disregard for animal welfare, China is, unfortunately, a well-known offender.

 

[Kerryann]

I would say this is not pro or anti China since some Buddhists wont even hurt bugs. This comment is about having too many societies and a cultures which aren't concerned with polluting the planet to the point where animals or humans can't inhabit it. I have traveled all over and many cultures don't kill or eat animals responsibly and humanely. I am not a religious person at all but I pray every night that the suffering the people and animals ends.
I am also not a green freak, but I think we need to balance out preserving nature with living. Protecting endangered species is a vital part of protecting the environment. I am sure the Chinese nationals in this example weren't starving to death since acquiring endangered animals is more expensive if you are getting them in mass like it sounds like they had done. I am sad that the worst of the offenders get is deportation.

 

[Neal]

GB.... your neighbors are the swamp people on tv?...

How cool is that ?...


JD~

You watch Swamp People too JD?

That's cool! "Chootin' Gators"

---

Now lets try to live one day in the peoples shoes that are eating tortoises. Lets stop and think what these people make in a year. If you made the amount of money they do you would probably be eating tortoises to. If you made 100.00 a year and you saw a tortoise and it was your only meat supply that month what would you do. Im just saying that we have no idea what they are gong thru

Good point.

Having lived on an island where sea turtle was eaten frequently, I can understand the cultural side of the argument. However, having just skimmed the article, I did not gather that the killing of these tortoises was actually necessary for survival.

 

[N2TORTS]

GB.... your neighbors are the swamp people on tv?...

How cool is that ?...


JD~

You watch Swamp People too JD?

That's cool! "Chootin' Gators"

---

---

LOL .... Neal...." Pa ching" Shooot jeestt go ..get dem gators!

 

[Zamric]

Turtle taste good. Aligator taste good. Snake... it's edible (might just be the way it was prepared).

That being said. We as humans are capable of raising/breeding all the food we need without preying on endangered species.

I have eaten 2 or 3 types of Turtles and Aligator as well as crocidile....To me, turtle taste like turtle and aligator taste like crocidile. I doupt "endagered" turtle taste any differant than a snapper! (this is speaking from the point of view of a Chef, who has "Educated" tastebuds... I very much doupt that "Joe Public" can taste any differance either)

 

[GeoTerraTestudo]

I would say this is not pro or anti China since some Buddhists wont even hurt bugs. This comment is about having too many societies and a cultures which aren't concerned with polluting the planet to the point where animals or humans can't inhabit it. I have traveled all over and many cultures don't kill or eat animals responsibly and humanely. I am not a religious person at all but I pray every night that the suffering the people and animals ends.
I am also not a green freak, but I think we need to balance out preserving nature with living. Protecting endangered species is a vital part of protecting the environment. I am sure the Chinese nationals in this example weren't starving to death since acquiring endangered animals is more expensive if you are getting them in mass like it sounds like they had done. I am sad that the worst of the offenders get is deportation.

Great post! But (there's always a "but"), I would add only one thing.

Evidence is mounting that war and resource abuse are not new phenomena, and have been going on for 200,000 years or longer. Humans have been hunting animals to extinction ever since we left Africa some 50,000 years ago, and it's still going on today. Yes, the population explosion and habit infringement are making matters worse. But none of these problems are fundamentally new.

I don't say this to sound cynical or resigned. On the contrary, I think we're finally in a position to do something about this. With research, education, and policy we can finally help each other get what we need, so we don't have to kill endangered animals for need or sport. Those of us who do flout the law should face the consequences.

 

[HLogic]

It's much closer to home than we'd like to admit and there are many more that do it than we hear about. Here is one that is sure to please...

Pastel de morrocoy

Be forewarned, there are images that might be unsettling.

 

[GeoTerraTestudo]

It's much closer to home than we'd like to admit and there are many more that do it than we hear about. Here is one that is sure to please...

Pastel de morrocoy

Be forewarned, there are images that might be unsettling.

 

[HLogic]

...and just for good measure, let's bring it home to the good ol' USA! (in the section "Poaching...")

Gopher Tortoise

No pictures on this one but...

 

[GeoTerraTestudo]

...and just for good measure, let's bring it home to the good ol' USA! (in the section "Poaching...")

Gopher Tortoise

No pictures on this one but...

Once again:

 

[tortoises101]

I would say this is not pro or anti China since some Buddhists wont even hurt bugs. This comment is about having too many societies and a cultures which aren't concerned with polluting the planet to the point where animals or humans can't inhabit it. I have traveled all over and many cultures don't kill or eat animals responsibly and humanely. I am not a religious person at all but I pray every night that the suffering the people and animals ends.
I am also not a green freak, but I think we need to balance out preserving nature with living. Protecting endangered species is a vital part of protecting the environment. I am sure the Chinese nationals in this example weren't starving to death since acquiring endangered animals is more expensive if you are getting them in mass like it sounds like they had done. I am sad that the worst of the offenders get is deportation.

Great post! But (there's always a "but"), I would add only one thing.

Evidence is mounting that war and resource abuse are not new phenomena, and have been going on for 200,000 years or longer. Humans have been hunting animals to extinction ever since we left Africa some 50,000 years ago, and it's still going on today. Yes, the population explosion and habit infringement are making matters worse. But none of these problems are fundamentally new.

I don't say this to sound cynical or resigned. On the contrary, I think we're finally in a position to do something about this. With research, education, and policy we can finally help each other get what we need, so we don't have to kill endangered animals for need or sport. Those of us who do flout the law should face the consequences.

Humanity as a whole thinks of itself as safe as long as it's on the second step, no matter how far down the staircase they've gone. Our short term thinking is destroying the preciously little natural resources we still have. We live in an anthropological era; even if people can change their ways of thinking, population growth and rate of development will still leave less and less space for the natural world. Not to sound pessimistic, but there are just too many humans.

 

[dmmj]

How do you propose to deal with the " to many humans problem"?

 

[tortoises101]

How do you propose to deal with the " to many humans problem"?

Birth control would be a great place to start.

 

[dmmj]

Forced?

 

[tortoises101]

Forced?

Good point, but besides birth control (which would only work for developed and certain developing countries) I don't think there's any other option.

 

[N2TORTS]

.

Great post! But (there's always a "but"), I would add only one thing.

Evidence is mounting that war and resource abuse are not new phenomena, and have been going on for 200,000 years or longer. Humans have been hunting animals to extinction ever since we left Africa some 50,000 years ago, and it's still going on today. Yes, the population explosion and habit infringement are making matters worse. But none of these problems are fundamentally new.

I don't say this to sound cynical or resigned. On the contrary, I think we're finally in a position to do something about this. With research, education, and policy we can finally help each other get what we need, so we don't have to kill endangered animals for need or sport. Those of us who do flout the law should face the consequences.

Humanity as a whole thinks of itself as safe as long as it's on the second step, no matter how far down the staircase they've gone. Our short term thinking is destroying the preciously little natural resources we still have. We live in an anthropological era; even if people can change their ways of thinking, population growth and rate of development will still leave less and less space for the natural world. Not to sound pessimistic, but there are just too many humans.

VERY WELL SAID!!!!!!

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Forced?

YES!!!!!!.....Humans by far are the most selfish beings on the planet. Figure 100-200 years back , large familys were raised with the intention of working the farms. These days it's more the status quoe' and which little barbie or tommy boy is the cutest , well dressed trophy at school. I didnt want to jump into this but .... oh boy .. it's common sense, which most dont get. Why there are staggering numbers of unemployment , uneducated, more diseases and early deaths.....why ?.... ITS TOO CROWDED!
at close to half a century myself I have seen and gone thru the baby boom 1st hand .. and heck I firmly belive it's worse now!