I had many lavish dinners in restaurant with relatives and friends this Chinese New Year. Of all dishes, the one I enjoyed most is the infamous shark fin soup. Loved by me, detest by some.
While some people swear that it is the apex of cruelty (some even say it is despicable and shameful) to cut off their fins and throw them back into the ocean still alive, I’d say it is the way to do it.
“Why only eat the fins? Why don’t you eat the whole fish?” I heard a loud scream of disagreement from someone.
“Why don’t you try some shark meat?” I screams back.
Don’t you dare pretend you know about sharks when you have not even tasted it. I’ll bet you haven’t even seen a real shark finning footage in the process. National Geographic’s post WW2 grainy black and white footage don’t count. People got finned too back then.
You just swallow and believe everything the ultra conservationist WWF says in their ask-for-donation-save-the-sharks-they’re-losing-their-fins pamphlets. Pictures on the internet shows finning of shark fins averaging the size of an A4 paper. I always wonder why the fins in my soup comes in the size of my nose.
Sharks feed on other small marine animals, they are at the top of the food chain. Sharks can sense blood from a mile away. Sharks thrown into the ocean after finning feed their hungry brethen. This is also a way to prevent them sharks to attack other endangered species like the penguins, baby sea lions and notably the sea turtles.
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