Canada To Protest Seal Product Ban
CTV News reports that Canada will launch a formal protest with the World Trade Organization over a ban on the import of seal products approved by the European Union. Entire CTV Article Here
Before you say that this news does not impact you think twice. It cuts into the jobs of the 12,000 Canadian sealers who exported $3.5 million in products to the EU. In an economy where jobs are already scarce, this hits North Eastern Canadian communities very hard.
The media and EU nations have been sucked into the hype of bright red, bloody seal images (against white snow backdrops) that litter anti-seal hunt groups propaganda. The kind of bloody images you don’t see when you buy your hamburger meat, chicken wings and veal from the grocery store shelf.
The anti-sealing group, HSUS, claims the hunt is not done humanely. Their claim seems to fly in the face of science and other concessions made by seal hunting participants and Canadian Government officials.
The Canadian Veterinary Medical Association (in 2002), has already determined the hunt to be humane. Their report states,
The conclusion is that the large majority of seals taken during this hunt (at best, 98% in work reported here) are killed in an acceptably humane manner. However, the small proportion of animals that are not killed effectively justifies continued attention to this hunt on the part of the veterinary profession. Entire Sealing Report Here
The second reason you should pause and consider this ruling is the question, “What is next?“.
Anti-sealing groups are also anti-animal killing groups. It will not be long (actually they already are) until these groups target fishing, hunting, cattle meat processing, chicken farms, and turkey farms. If they can twist their message for a seal product ban – you can expect that turkey dinner, chicken wing nights, and fishing off the dock will become extinct and banned as well.
I would like to thank HSUS, PETA and EU officials for putting the lives of a non-threatened seal population before the jobs of some Canadian communities. I know the seals aren’t capable of thanking you.
I doubt the Canadians looking for work will either.
AR – Your response should certainly help stir the pot…
You already know what I think of animal rights. At lesat the animals are smart enough not to have sex with each other… My God, Bill this is insane. I just had a shocker thot… upper Cook Inlet is being closed to fishing – “bad run-year”. Why do I not believe it?
You may have known already about Calif. and no water to grow food but save the fish that was fine all these years. d’You Canadians have a major break-out from the mental hospitals over there or is that HSUS?
Pathetic Gov. Arnold SWhats-in-another-life and two others look over the desimation of this man’s life-work proclaiming their agreement that it is a tough problem. The regulations are really tough. and they go home.
Phew, that was tough, huh? The fish will be fine the trees are fine the animals all over the globe are fine.
They left the man “out standing in his field”. Now a dust bowl. I doubt he even got one head twist or a “tsk, that’s too bad” from anyone. But the gov. of the state of calif. went back to town and made everyone reduce comsumption – the regulations are tuff – by 20%. And let’s not forget the water police omg.