The leftist British newspaper The Guardian carried the headline of the weekend:
Surge in fatal shark attacks blamed on global warming
Four recent fatal shark attacks pushed the media to contact the shark-bite gurus to find out what could be causing the phenomenon, and it must be the humans' fault for being too active at the beach and too willing to drive SUVs, apparently:
'The one thing that's affecting shark attacks more than anything else is human activity,' said Dr George Burgess of Florida University, a shark expert who maintains the database. 'As the population continues to rise, so does the number of people in the water for recreation. And as long as we have an increase in human hours in the water, we will have an increase in shark bites.'
Some experts suggest that an abundance of seals has attracted high numbers of sharks, while others believe that overfishing has hit their food chain. 'I'm not saying it doesn't happen, but it's a convenient excuse,' Burgess said. Another contributory factor to the location of shark attacks could be global warming and rising sea temperatures. 'You'll find that some species will begin to appear in places they didn't in the past with some regularity,' he said.
So the headline could be "Experts guess wildly at what could be causing shark attacks, but it's clearly the fault of the humans." Then when liberals and leftists start mocking how conservatives lack compassion, let's consider this statement late in the story from Dr. Burgess:
'It's the equivalent of stepping on to the plains of the Serengeti when you step into the water,' Burgess said. 'It's not like a swimming pool. This is a wilderness experience and with it comes a certain amount of risk.'
On its face, this statement is obvious, but one can also read into it a certain contempt for humans, that they're completely ignorant of danger and they arrograntly think the world is their swimming pool. Environmentalists often give off the vibe that the animals are much more worth saving and caring for than that menacing species known as the Tourist.
—Tim Graham is Director of Media Analysis at the Media Research Center
















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Ahh, this is rich. Man has
May 5, 2008 - 07:32 ET by RESTLESS 1Ahh, this is rich. Man has only recently tagged and followed the movements of sharks. We are now only learning their migration patterns and such. For most of our history, sightings were the only way we could verify shark movements. Now we have GPS satellite technology on the case. So the assertion that sharks are going where they normally don't is somewhat boneheaded. We are now only finding out for sure where they go.
Oh, and when and where in the ocean does a shark swim? My guess is whenever and wherever the shark wants.
Everything is the result of
May 5, 2008 - 07:33 ET by taterEverything is the result of global warming, high gas prices, Rev. Wright's statements, the pain in my elbow. If something is causing trouble you can bet global warming is behind it.
Keep up the hysteria you Algorebots, you will soon be exposed.
"They need to have a course in college called common sense and everyone should take it. Problem is there isn't too many people that could pass or teach it." -my grandfather
Wow, Tim
May 5, 2008 - 07:41 ET by BlondeYour last statement:
Environmentalists often give off the vibe that the animals are much more worth saving and caring for than that menacing species known as the Tourist.
Well, as a native Floridian, I don't mind the sharks scaring that menacing species, the Tourist (see Carl Hiiasen's excellent Tourist Season). Good one!
As for the rest of the article, oh the embarassment that someone at my beloved UF would say something like this. Here is the guy's short bio. Including his e-mail addy.
David Gregory, do you know which damn network you lie for? ~ Uncle Jimbo, @Blackfive
We all have a cross to carry.
May 5, 2008 - 08:23 ET by danboAfter all my alma mater. The old war school. Also gave us David Duke and James Carville.
I'll trade you those two for a stupid biologist anyday.
BTW My understanding is the sea creature most likely to kill a person wasn't sharks. But jelly fish. But then the AGW that's been called off till 2015 is also to be the cause for that.
"There is a clear attempt to establish truth not by scientific methods but by perpetual repetition."
- Richard S. Lindzen, Ph.D. Professor of Meteorology, MIT
LOL, Blonde!
May 5, 2008 - 12:51 ET by Alabama...I don't mind the sharks scaring that menacing species, the Tourist ...
I thought the same thing when I read that!
As for the statement about going into the ocean being like walking onto the Sarengheti or whatever, it is kind of similar. I don't necessarily think it was meant in a way to insult stupid humans. I've grown up on the Gulf Coast, and like many others who also have, I exercise common sense before charging into the surf. A lot of people (mostly tourists, to be honest) tend to think that the beach is no different from an oversized wave pool. That's why, if you watch the news at the end of a "red flag" day, you're almost guaranteed to see a bit about some tourist drowning or nearly drowning. Same goes for shark attack news bits-- most of the time it's someone who was swimming near people who are fishing, or swimming in murky water around dawn or sunset.
As for global warming causing shark attacks? Give me a break. Does anyone else remember "The Summer of the Sharks?" (It was national news for a couple of weeks) It was the summer of 2000, or 2001, I think. They were just as clueless as to what could be causing it then as they are now.
Alabama. I also spent a
May 5, 2008 - 16:25 ET by danboAlabama. I also spent a lifetime on the gulf coast. And remember the periodic attacks.
I also had a question on the seals. I've never seen or heard of a seal along the Gulf. Manatees and whales occasionally. Even that whale shark last summer. (He made a commotion.) But never a seal. The only place I've seen them in the wild is on the west coast or the northeast. (Forgot. When the seals got out of the Gulfport aquarium during Katrina.)
If they're here. They're rare.
Are they present in the gulf? Maybe other areas of the gulf? The Florida east coast?
"There is a clear attempt to establish truth not by scientific methods but by perpetual repetition."
- Richard S. Lindzen, Ph.D. Professor of Meteorology, MIT
*off topic* This might've
May 5, 2008 - 08:00 ET by Killgrave*off topic*
This might've been already occuring for some time, but I noticed yesterday that Snore's "Inconvenient Truth" is in the bargain bin at the bookstore. One can only hope this is a sign that this idiotic fad is losing steam.
I wonder what Gore's next stunt is going to be. Because this whole farce had nothing to do with "saving the earth". It had everything to do with Gore getting people to pay attention to him. Maybe we'll see him on that celebrity dancing show.
The headline was silly.
May 5, 2008 - 08:42 ET by JerThe headline was silly. But the analysis of Dr. Burgess sounded reasonable, credible, and straightforward. I don't know the gentleman, but if he has an agenda, it wasn't apparent in his quoted remarks. Nor did there seem to be any subliminal "contempt for humans".
Jer
Unfortunately, up and until
May 5, 2008 - 09:10 ET by voodoodaddyUnfortunately, up and until the assinine statement "Another contributory factor to the location of shark attacks could be global warming and rising sea temperatures. 'You'll find that some species will begin to appear in places they didn't in the past with some regularity" he may have been reasonable, credible and straightforward. But, once he uttered the words "Global Warming", reasonable or credible went out the window.
I still believe it was a
May 5, 2008 - 09:26 ET by JerI still believe it was a reasonable analysis. Note that he only stated global warming could be a [lesser] contributing factor. Even then, he didn't inject the "man-made" warming issue into the discussion.
Jer
I just emailed the dope
May 5, 2008 - 09:08 ET by Jack BauerI just emailed the dope at:
rluscombe@guardian.co.uk
Where's My Warming?
May 5, 2008 - 09:10 ET by Hunter12Another week of below average temperatures here in the Midwest. And speaking of sharks, what does it say for Fidel's Cuban Utopia when the people are willing to chance shark-infested water in homemade boats to leave it?
"An appeaser is one who feeds a crocodile, hoping it will eat him last." - Sir Winston Churchill
Strange Timing
May 5, 2008 - 09:47 ET by dboThe whole timing of the story is a little odd considering just a couple of weeks ago NASA came out with data telling us that the ocean's have cooled since 2003.
Used to be everything was
May 5, 2008 - 10:18 ET by marpelUsed to be everything was blamed on George Bush. Now, everything is blamed on Global Warming. At least the President is off the hook...Oh wait a minute, Global Warming is Bush's fault, right?
nevermind...
Man bites Shark
May 5, 2008 - 11:38 ET by CobraManSharks have been "attacking" humans for millennia, ever since mankind first stepped into the water. That's the thing about sharks, when their feeding they'll bite anything that moves, including each other, and few things that don't.
As for the reason sharks “cruse” the beaches; Sharks follow their prey. When the pray moves towards the beaches, so do the sharks. Humans are not the preferred targets; they’re just in the way. That’s why there are so FEW human attacks. Sharks prefer smaller, more plentiful prey like fish.
It's over population of fish
May 5, 2008 - 11:56 ET by CobraMan"Some experts suggest that an abundance of seals has attracted high
numbers of sharks, while others believe that overfishing has hit their
food chain."
It's not 'over fishing,’ that's for sure. It’s most likely ‘under fishing’ that is causing a problem. The abundance of seals would indicate that. Just like sharks, seals rely on fish as a food source. If the seals are abundant, then the fish they prey upon must be abundant as well. If the fish are abundant, then ‘over fishing’ can not be to blame. I would blame the over population of fish, especially along the coastline, as a possible cause since fish are the sharks (and seals) primary food source.
You want to keep the sharks away from the beaches? There‘s a simple solution, put fish netting up a quarter mile or so away from the beach. If the fish can't get to the beach, then the sharks won't follow them in and pose a danger to Humans. I’m surprised these “experts” haven’t figured that out. But then again, I bet these “experts” have never been fishing before ether.