Kill Shark says Australia Scuba Diving Associate Director

[Greatwhite70]

This disturbs me to no end.
As a diver myself and like others we are aware of the inherent dangers associated with diving. Divers are taught to respect wildlife and the inhabitants of the ocean. To make such a public statment is damming the industry. For one to catch the shark is really nigh on impossible, these animals roam great ranges and rarely stay in the same place for long periods of time.

Secondly the amount of people that die in the diving industry is around 70 a year in the U.S alone. Australia has had 2 fatal shark attacks in 8 months. Loss of life is a terrible tragedy, if you choose to participate in a sport or location known to have predation, is at your risk!


ADELAIDE, Australia (26 Aug 2005) -- A leader of Australia's scuba diving industry has called for authorities to kill the shark that attacked a marine biologist scuba diving off Adelaide.

Scuba diving industry association director David Oliver called for a "rapid response plan" to track down and kill the shark that attacked 23-year-old Jarrod Stehbens.

"We are active in water sports and while the shark remains in the water there is the prospect that danger still exists," Oliver told reporters. "Our public would feel a lot safer if that shark was removed from the water."

Many in the diving community disagree with Oliver's "kill the killer" mentality including the parents of the shark attack victim who said their son would have been appalled at the notion that sharks should be culled.

"He's a marine biologist; he wouldn't want anything killed like that," Stehbens' father told reporters.

Cyber Diver Society (CDS) president Evan T. Allard said he was also shocked and disappointed to hear a dive industry official calling on authorities to kill a shark.

"It is a terrible tragedy that a bright young scientist died before he was able to teach Mr. Oliver and his colleagues in Australia's scuba diving industry why killing sharks for doing exactly what nature designed them to do is the essence of human ignorance," Allard said.

"The day is coming when there will be no more shark attacks," Allard added. "Young Jarrod Stehbens, his colleagues, marine scientists around the world and the vast majority of the global scuba diving community all understand that is the only shark problem that really matters."

[Blairs]

Can't believe that someone would want a shark killed for going to work that day. If the skuba divers don't like the prospect of shark attacks go in cages or if this doesn't appeal, stay out of the water.

If a sahrk were to attack a person in Woolworth's store you would have a right to complain, if you are in its sea and he is hungery, then I think you have put yourself at risk and must face the music. Hopefully, the shark will not end up with indigestion from eating sour grapes and bitter and twisted divers.

[smackC4]

Originally posted by Blairs:
Can't believe that someone would want a shark killed for going to work that day. If the skuba divers don't like the prospect of shark attacks go in cages or if this doesn't appeal, stay out of the water.

If a sahrk were to ...

Hopefully, the shark will not end up with indigestion from eating sour grapes and bitter and twisted divers.

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">If you're THAT in love with the Great White "sahrk" why don't you go swim with them? Maybe take a gift of half a horse with you...

[mallycat]

As a non diver, but the partner of an avid diver, I can't beleive that anyone would be so stupid............has man not learned anyting in it's time on this planet. Still we've wiped out quite a lot of species so far, so why should the shark be any different. What's the old phrase......"if you can't stand the heat.....!!

[Greatwhite70]

Absolutely correct we don't learn! I recently did a radio interview with ABC in Australia on swimmer safety and Shark Attacks. We take attacks as if they were some demonic animal that targeted us and now we must take vengence. Great Whites are not mindless killers and are quite complicated and not always predictable. We share our oceans with other species, simply entering the water and we can be taken as a threat by an animal that is in that area.