Mystery Group of Humans May Have Populated the Faroe Islands Before the Vikings

Researchers found sheep DNA at the bottom of a Faroese lake that dates to several hundred years before the Viking settlement.

By Isaac Schultz

The lake on Eysturoy in which centuries-old sheep DNA was found.

Centuries-old DNA collected from the bottom of a lake on the Faroe Islands is turning back the clock on human occupation of the archipelago. Vikings arrived there around 850 CE, but a team of researchers has deduced that some unknown group of humans must have arrived at these North Atlantic islands several hundred years earlier, around 500 CE. The team’s research is publishedtoday in Communications Earth & Environment.

“Our findings provide evidence that people had occupied the Faroe Islands and introduced livestock at least 300 years prior to the accepted settlement timing for the Norse,” said William D’Andrea, a paleoclimatologist at Columbia University’s Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, in an email to Gizmodo. “Of course, it is also possible that people were there even earlier.”

The lake on Eysturoy in which centuries-old sheep DNA was found.

“There is still quite a bit of uncertainty concerning the history of exploration in the North Atlantic, due in part to the fragmentary nature of archaeological sites,” D’Andrea added. “Our study shows that for the Faroes, that history extends at least three centuries before the Norse lándnam, or colonization period.”

The Faroe Islands are a remote archipelago about 200 miles northwest of Scotland. They are rocky and windswept, meaning that little in the way of archaeology has stayed intact on the surface. So the researchers turned to a less-altered part of the islands: the relict sediments at the bottom of a lake, on the large island of Eysturoy.

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Getting to the Faroes isn’t easy, especially with 6th-century technology. But some group—the team isn’t sure exactly who, as they haven’t analyzed the human DNA found in their samples—made it there before the Vikings with a whole lot of sheep in tow. They know sheep arrived alongside those humans because of the copious sheep DNA and fecal biomarkers in the sediments.

The lakebed has acted as as a catchment area for centuries, as surrounding material like soil has washed into the water. Everything in that soil—including the DNA of the island’s inhabitants and things like lipids from their guts—ended up preserved at the lake bottom. 

Faroese sheep like these left their mark on the environment over 1,500 years ago.

The sheep DNA and biomarkers indicated a likely arrival date between 492 CE and 512 CE, but it could have been as early as 370 CE. (For reference, that’s only 50 years after Constantine split up the Roman empire.) These dates were determined based on the depth of the sediment layers—a layer of ash from a volcanic eruption known to have occurred in 877 CE provided a distinctive timestamp. 

Past research has turned up other clues to humanity’s history on the islands. In the 1980s, researchers found that a weed commonly associated with human movements appeared in the Faroes around 2200 BCE. But that weed could’ve been dispersed by the wind, as so many plant seeds do. But in 2013, a study found charred barley grains under a Viking longhouse on the island of Sandoy. That indicated pre-Norse arrivals to the islands but was only one piece of evidence. Lorelei Curtin, a co-author of the new paper and an earth scientist at the University of Wyoming, said that the new research certifies that the Vikings were not the first people there.

As to who those early explorers were, the team said they could have been Celts, but it’s not certain. They did find human DNA in the sediment, but it may have been modern contamination and was not investigated further. (The team knew the sheep DNA was older because of how fragmented it was, and thanks to a DNA extraction method that helps rule out contamination.)

“We are still in the process of developing records of past climate and human activities from additional sites around the Faroe Islands,” D’Andrea said. “The great thing about lake sediments is that they hold information not only about human activities, but also about natural changes in the past climate and environment.” 

D’Andrea and his colleagues have ongoing projects around the North Atlantic and the Arctic, he said, so more discoveries about long-ago human travels may be yet to come. 

This blog was updated to include information about how the team knew the sheep DNA was not modern.

Link to article.

Simon Spies om sælunger

Simon Spies medvirkede sidst í 70`erne i et program hos DR “spørg bare”.

Et af spørgsmålene var hvad Spies syntes om at sælunger blev aflivet.

Simon svarede: Ja, jeg er imod drab på små sælunger, jeg synes, der forfærdeligt synd for dem, de ligger der og ser så søde ud.

Jeg er sådan set også meget imod drab på små grise, de elsker at blive kløet bag øret… og med krøllede haler. For ikke at snakke om køer der har store, bedende øjne, der kigger på en. Jeg synes, det er væmmeligt.

På den anden side så elsker jeg en bøf! Og flæskesteg med svær, det er noget af det bedste, jeg ved, og inden jeg fik råd til minkpelse, har jeg faktisk også foræret nogle sælhundpelse væk, så jeg kan godt se, det er sådan lidt selvmodsigelse i mit standpunkt der … jeg vil da også godt tilstå at min morfar var slagter, han var et af de sødeste mennesker, jeg har kendt, så der er vel ikke andet at sige til det, end at vi må indrømme, at vi er rovdyr, der lever af at slå andre væsener ihjel og æde dem, selvom vi har vanskeligt ved at acceptere det.

Synes at det er meget oppe i tiden, nu Færinger bliver beskyldt for både det ene og andet mht hvalfangst og grindedrab.

Simon Spies havde et IQ på over 140!

Whalehunting

The fundamental principle of the animal rights movement is that animals have basic interests that deserve recognition, consideration, and protection. Let ́s respect that.

Besides let ́s also respect the nature given us, which for instance requires that the survival of the human is by killing the animals for food.

We must respect the nature. Live with it, from it, and therefore we must do the hunting with respect for the sustainability. Sustainability are values which Faroes whalehunting build its hunting on. Though Sea Shephard claims the opposite.

We are aware of the whale stock, which recognized research tells us is not threatened. Though Sea Shephard claims the opposite.

And we don ́t hunt more whale than we eat! Though Sea Shephard claims the opposite.

Some are against killing whales other against killing cows. We respect that though we will not copy it.

Ironically against-whale-hunting-people ignore the big problems animals around the world are in, and put all their focus on the sort which gives blood-pictures. The argument seems to be that whales are so cute and so intelligent. Does such logic say that we must treat creatures depending on how sweet and intelligent they are? That ́s scary! But if we stay with that view, we allready know that many animals are more intelligent than the whales.

And some scientists research even tells us, that some animals are even more intelligent than human beings. We just do not understand each other.

Allthough all this I don ́t think we shall treat neither animal nor people after their intelligence nor their cuteness.

I will not live after Sea Shephards view on how we ought to live. It is unnatural. I think whales as well as other animals have both moral and legal rights. Therefore we must avoid all animal killing from suffering. But we can ́t avoid killing animals.

I ́ve noticed you think human beings should not eat animals. Only fruit and vegetables. I disagree with that.

Human beings as well as other creatures on earth are made for each other. The ecosystem is a food chain, which order is where the different organisms eat each order.

We, the human beings are a part of this chain, though some will take us out of it.

I ́ve noticed that you on Sea Shephard homepage yell at the Faroese people and shout “give them Hell”. I can tell you, that you give the whales in the oceanes Hell every day. You might forget, that it is not our whale hunting, but your way of living that is the biggest threat for the whales alive. Your lifestyle contaminates and even poisons the whales – and you don ́t seem to care. That is what threatenes all the whales in all the oceanes every day. Why don ́t you do something about that?

I tried to say my opinion on one of Sea shephards homepage yesterday. But, God, the opponents. Here is a small portion of it:

• “…you barbarian you have already lost some brain cells and have no soul.”

• “You are utter scum”

• “Annita the difference is cows are not as intelligent creatures with feelings and love for their baby’s.”

• “Anita. In short you make no sence and your people are barbaric monsters”

• “You defend the slaughter? If so your nothing but a monster! An evil monster!”

If this way of talking to other people is representative for Sea Shephards, I must admit my sceptical view on you as an animal pretender. Can such people understand fundamental principle of the animal rights. Animals have basic interests that deserve recognition, consideration, and protection. Those values are hard to find among those who throw so much hatred to dissidents.

Ps this letter was set in as a comment on Sea Shephard homepage.

Annita á Fríðriksmørk

Heilsufremjandi selen í tvøsti

Tvøst inniheldur serliga nógv selen, sum er evnafrøðilig bundið í samrunar, ið hindra niðurbróting av lívstýðandi mýlum og reinsar kroppin fyri eiturevni. 13.09.2011Hóraldur Joensen Dálkingarevni í grindahvali væl kend Grindahvalurin í norðurhøvum er vorðin illa dálkaður ta seinastu hálvu øldina. Henda vanlukkuliga støða er væl kend millum manna orsakað av, at tey ymsu og mongu heilsuringu dálkingarevnini eru kannaði og umtalaði í stóran mun. Øðrvísi er við teimum heilsugóðu evnunum. Hesi eru minni væl kend, og nakað, hóast alt ov lítið, hevur verið gjørt her á landi fyri at kanna hesi evni. Heilsugóð evni í tvøsti Grindahvalurin í norðurhøvum verður stórt sæð einans gagnnýttur til matna av okkum føroyingum, og áttu vit tessvegna sjálvi skjótast møguligt at fari í lag við gera neyðugar framkomnar føðsluvirðis- og heilsukanningar. Her á landi er ongantíð fíggjarlig orka sett av til at gera eina heildarheilsumeting av fyrimunum og vansum av at grind og spik. Fleiri kanningar, flestu gjørdar uttanlands, vísa tó, at mong heilsugóð evni eru at finna í tvøsti. Hesi umfata fleiri evni, eitt nú carnitin, taurin og fleiri selen-samrunar. Selen-rík siðbundin føði Í Grønlandi hevur fólkið higartil fingið nóg mikið av heilsufremjandi seleni gjøgnum tann siðabunda marina matin umfatandi hval, kóp, fisk og fugl. Men føðsluserfrøðingar bera ótta fyri, at verðandi selen-ríka føðin verður troðka burtur av dygdarverri selen-armum kosti, nú land inuitta spakuliga verður europuserað og amerikaniserað. Selen í hóskandi nøgd (55 mikrogram/dag) er neyðugt fyri mannakroppin. Selen virkar móti krabbameini, økir livialdurin, styrkir immunskipanina, mennir mentalt virksemi, hjálpir móti hjartasjúkum, avmarkar ovurfiti, verjir móti virus, fær endocrinar kertlar í javnvág, mennir sáðkyknuframleiðslu og nøringarevni, minkar møguleikan fyri burðarsliti, mótvirkar astma, gikt og cystiskari fibrosu. Selen-trot kann harafturat føra til serligan form fyri dvørgvøkstur. Tvøst inniheldur nógv selen Sammett við fleiri aðrar matvørur, so sum fiskur og ymsir fiskaúrdráttir, høsnarungi, lambskjøt, neytakjøt, svínakjøt, ymisk korn- og grón-sløg, mjólk, ostur, egg, aldin og grønmeti, so er innihaldið av seleni serliga høgt í tvøsti. Mátingar vísa, at rátt toskaflak inniheldur 28 mikrogram/100g av seleni og feskt tvøst 185 mikrogram/100g. Selen-innihaldið í tvøsti er altso áleið sjey ferðir hægri enn í toski. Verjandi virkningur av selen Selen í tvøsti er bundið í evnafrøðiliga samrunar av ymsum sløgum so sum Se-cystein, Se- methionin eins og hópin av selen-proteinum og selen-enzymum. Millum teir týdningarmestu kveikarnar er glutathione peroxidasa (GPx), ið er eitt antioxidant enzym. Hetta enzym forðar fyri oxidativari niðurbróting av lívstýðandi mýlum. Harafturat vísa súgdjórakanningar, at selen-rík føði førir til selen-ríkaðan vevnað, ið virkar ímóti eitran av methyl-kyksilvur. Úreitringin umfatar mong reaktiónstrin, eitt nú demethylering, ger av kyksilvur-selen complexinum, HgSe, og savning av hesum í lysosomunum í livrakyknum. Haðani fer hetta complexið gjøgnum gall-gongina og út í tarmarnar. Umleið 95% af upptiknum kyksilvuri verður skilt út við skarninum og einans 0,05% við landinum. Úrskiljingin varar í vikur. Skaðiligt ikki at eta fisk Í 2010 kunngjørdi WHO og FAO kanningúrslit av fyrimunum og vansum av at eta fisk og fiskavørur. Orsøkin til hesa kanning var stóri ivin um, hvussu heilsugóður fiskur er, eftir at gransking ferð eftir ferð hevur víst, at flestu marinu fiskasløg eru meira og minni dálkaði við eiturevnum. Ùrslitið av hesum drúgva rannsóknararbeiðinum var hetta: tað er skaðiligari ikki at eta fisk enn at eta fisk. Mentalt menningartarn Kanningar í Englandi hava víst, at kvinnur, ið hildu seg frá fiski og fiskamati meðan tær vóru tvílívaðar, fingu børn við mentalum menningartarni, sum er mett at vera 60 ferðir verri enn ringasta grand og brek av at eta grind og spik í Føroyum (Raymond L. J. og Ralston N. V. C., 2009). Orsøkin til at kvinnurnar ikki vildu eta fisk var óttin fyri dálkingevnum, ið kundu elva fosturinum mein. Náttúruvísindadeildin skipaði fyri verkstovu NVD á Fróðskaparsetur Føroya søkti um og fekk fígging frá AG-fisk, til eina verkstovu um fyrimunir og vansar av at eta hval og kóp í norðurhøvum. AG-fisk er vísindabólkur undir Norðurlendska Ministararáðnum. Verkstovan varð hildin í Keypmannahavn í januar í ár. Luttakararnir komu úr Norðurlondum, Canada, WHO og FAO. Endaliga viðgerðin og frásøgnin er ikki liðug enn. Heimildir Raymond L. J. og Ralston N. V. C., 2009. Selenium´s importance in regulatory issues regarding mercury. Fuel Processing Technology, 90, 1333-1338. Les greinina á Science Direct (Krevur hald) Link

Hóraldur Joensen á starvstovuni á Náttúruvísindadeildini. Trý ymisk ‘sløg’ av selen.

Pamela Anderson spredte løgne på Færøerne

Shannen Doherty, der blev verdenskendt i Beverly Hills 90210, vil ligesom Pamela Anderson tage til Færøerne for at stoppe grindedrabene.

Pamela Anderson på Færøerne omgivet af medlemmer af Sea Shepher

Pamela Anderson er kommet på glatis på Færøerne, hvor hun efter besøget i København drog til for at stoppe de årlige grindedrab sammen med organisationen Sea Shepherd.

FAKTA:
– IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature) anfører at den færøske hvalfangst sandsynligvis er bæredygtig for bestanden.
– Der estimeres at være en bestand af 128.000 grindehvaler alene i det nordøstlige Atlanterhav. Færøerne fanger i snit 800 grindehvaler om året.
– Selve drabet foregår ved en speciallavet kniv, som føres ned gennem ryghvirvlen og afskærer blodforsyningen til hjernen. Kun færinger med licens må udføre drabet.
– Grindekødet deles gratis ud til lokalsamfundet og udgør omkring 30 procent af den samlede lokale kødproduktion på Færøerne.
Kilde: whaling.fo

Ved et pressemøde efter ankomsten til Torshavn pointerede hun, at dem, der dræber grindehvaler, er ‘rå og psykotiske’, ligesom hun har argumenteret for, at grindedrabene finder sted for morskabens skyld.

Direkte adspurgt om hun kender til proceduren ved grindedrab, lød svaret ifølge den færøske nyhedsportal portal.fo.

– Det ved jeg ikke, forhåbentlig bliver der ikke fundet nogen grind.

At grindedrab sker for morskabens skyld kunne ikke være mere forkert, fastslår den danske hvalekspert Carl Christian Kinze.

– Det er bare ikke sandt, siger Kinze, der betegner Sea Shepherd som rabiate, og fortsætter:

– Kritikken er gået på, at bestanden er dalene og aflivningsmetoden. Men de to ting har man jo fra færøsk side gjort noget ved. Bestanden kan sagtens tåle færingernes hvalfangst.

Talsmand for Sea Shepherd Paul Watson kunne tirsdag på Facebook oplyse, at Shannen Doherty, der spillede rollen som Brenda i Beverly Hills 90210, vil følge i Pamela Andersons fodspor. Men på Færøerne tager man ikke kendis-effekten så tungt, fortæller kommunikationsrådgiver i Lagmandskontoret, Páll Holm Johannesen.

– Sea Shepherd har prædiket usandheder om os i så mange år, så at de nu får kendte som talerør, det ændrer ikke noget for os. Det går ind ad det ene øre og ud af det andet. Vi godtager deres ret til at komme herop for at demonstrere, men de skal også respektere vores ret til at fange grind, fastslår han.

Link

Eitt líti hint, fyri at skilja tað føroysku skattaskipannina.

Lat okkum ímynda okkum, at hvønn dag møtast 10 vinir fyri at drekka eina øl, og at samlaði kostnaðurin av tí er 100 krónur.

(Hesar 100 krónur eru bert fyri at foreinkla útrokningarnar)

Hvør av teimum skal gjalda 10 krónur.

Allur 10 vinirnir søgdu: “Lat okkum gjalda hetta, sum vit gjalda okkara skatt!“

Úrslitið var hetta:

• 4 teir fátækastu, gjalda einki.
• Tann 5 gjaldar 1 kr.
• Tann 6 gjaldar 3 kr.
• Tann 7 gjaldar 7 kr.
• Tann 8 gjaldar 12 kr.
• Tann 9 gjaldar 18 kr.
• Tann seinasti (ríkasti) gjaldar 59 krónur.

Teir 10 vinirnir møttust hvønn dag, fyri at drekka teirra øl, og teir vóru væl foreintir við átækið.
Intil ein dag, tá eigarin segði við teir: “Av tí, at tit eru nakrir sera góðir kundar, havi eg avgjørt við meg sjálvan, at eg vil geva tykkum 20 krónur í avslátturi so tit nú nú gjalda 80 kr. í staðin fyri 100 kr.”
Allir 10 vinirnir søgdu: “Lat okkum í fyrstu atløgu gjalda hetta, sum vit gjalda okkara skatt!“

Men, hvussu skuldu hinir 6 (teir gjaldandi) deila avslátturin uppá 20 krónur rættvíst?

Teir funnu út av, at 20 krónur býtt við 6 var 3,3333 kr.

Og um so var, so komu vinir 5 og 6 fáa pening fyri at drekka øl.
Vertshúseigarin segði: “tað hevði verði meira rættvíst, at minkað rokningina fyri tann einkulta prosentvíst“.

Teir funnu roknimaskinuna framm aftur, og kom til hesa niðurstøðu:

• Tann 5 skuldi einki gjalda  (enn ein fátækur var føddur).
• Tann 6 skuldi gjalda 2 kr. Ístaðin fyri 3 kr. (33% avsláttur).
• Tann 7 skuldi gjalda 5 kr. Ístaðin fyri 7 kr. (28% avsláttur).
• Tann 8 skuldi gjalda 8 kr. Ístaðin fyri 12 kr. (25% avsláttur).
• Tann 9 skuldi gjalda 14 kr. Ístaðin fyri 18 kr. (22% avsláttur).
• Tann 10 skuldi gjalda 50 kr. Ístaðin fyri 59 kr. (16% avsláttur).

Hvør av teimum seks “sum goldu” skuldu gjalda minni enn fyrr (og har var entá ein komin afturat, sum drakk frítt) og teir fýra fyrstu, skuldu halda á framm at drekka frítt.

Men tá teir vóru komnir út av vertshúsinum, fóru teir at samanlíkna teirra fíggjarstøðu:

“Eg fekk bara 1 krónu í avslátturi“, segði nr. 6, og meðan hann peikaði á nr. 10 og legði afturat: “Men hann fekk heilar 9 krónur í avslátturi!”

“Ja”, segði nr. 5, “eg fekk eisini bert 1 krónu út av hasum“.

“Tit hava rætt“, segði nr. 7, “hví skuldi nr. 10 hava 9 krónur í avslatturi, tá eg bert fækk 2 kr. tað er órættvíst, at bert tey ríkastu fáa tann stórsta avslátturin!“

“Bíða“, segði nr. 1: “vit fýra fingu einki í avsláttur! Hetta systemið útnyttar tey fátakastu!”

Teir 9 vinirnir fornermaðu tann 10 so nógv, at hann ikki kom við at drekka øl næsta dagin, so teir vóru noyddir at drekka ølinar, uttan hann.

Men tá gjaldast skuldi, funnu teir út av einum: Teir høvdu ikki pening nokk, enn ikki til helvtina av rokningini.
Hetta er tann nágreiniliga ummsetingin av skattaskipannini: tey sum gjalda mest, fáa meira út av avslátturinum.

Men, tey, sum bert gjalda lítið (ella einki), føla seg snítt.
Topskatta tey ríkastu, ákær tey fyri at verða nøkur svín, og tey váða sær ikki at visa seg longur, og drekka sínar øl onkra aðrastaðnar.

Moralur:

– Tey sum skilja hetta, er eingin frágreiðing neyðug.
– Tey sum ikki skilja hetta, er eingin frágreiðing møgulig.

Shame on you

Written by: Kajfinn Hammer

– You, whose countries pollute the air, shame on you!

– You, whose countries pollute rivers, lakes and oceans, shame on you!

– You, whose countries pollute animal life in the oceans, including our whales, shame on you!

– You, whose countries pen up stressed up animals by the millions for the purpose of mass production of genetically manipulated meat, shame on you!

– You, whose countries barbarically kill your own children by the thousands in their mothers’ wombs, shame on you!

– You, whose countries down through history have occupied, pillaged, exploited, sucked empty, enslaved, oppressed and murdered aboriginals and other humans by the thousands, shame on you!

– You, whose countries have caused one war after another costing millions of innocent human lives, shame on you!

– You, whose countries in barbaric fashion have tortured and burnt at the stake Christians, Jews, Gypsies and others by the thousands, shame on you!

– You, whose countries for profit sell weapons to merciless, undemocratic governments, terrorregimes etc., shame on you!

– You, whose countries have given sodomy and religions of hate such as Islam and other heathenism a free pass, even support, shame on you!

– You, whose countries have sold their origin, christian cultural heritage and identity, their own soul for less than 30 silver coins, shame on you!

– You, who abuse our hospitality to run down our reputation across the world, shame on you!

SURELY SHAME ON YOU
Go home to your own countries and clean up in front your own doorsteps rather than let yourselves be brainwashed and exploited by an malicious damage extremist, wanted by the police, like Paul Watson, support by brainemty sexstars in Hollywood and its morally depraved dregs of humanity.

Regardful Kajfinn Hammer

Dear Lisa Loczy and the rest of the highly developed British elite.

Dear Lisa Loczy and the rest of the highly developed British elite.

I have the odd feeling that you, dear Lisa (and the rest), may not appreciate the following comments on your gifted post above, so why do I “take the time to comment on a post like this”? Yet I’m sure you are kind person, and a devoted fighter, who care for your fellow human beings, so please regard these scribbles from a second-rate to a first-rate as an attempt to contribute to your continued efforts making “the grind folk” behaving in the same civilised manner as you do.

It is not clear whether you are joining the well-educated and utterly well behaved crowd of Sea Shepherd martyrs currently gathered in The Faroe Islands, or you are the one who donated the lavish amount of 100 £ to Paul Watson. I guess the latter. However, you have my deepest respect. Not only because your knowledge about the world outside your McDonald enclosure is indeed outstanding, but also because you feel so sorry for us.

I sincerely hope that you appreciate my attempt to address you in your own language. The trouble being, that “the grind folk” do not have any language. In fact it is only some kind of grunting. Hence our “language” can neither be spoken or written. How could you miss that part of your otherwise ingenious characterization of us? Never mind; you are forgiven. Even intelligent people like you can’t think of everything, so let’s finish the language part. Under everyday circumstances, when we have plenty of meat and fat, the grunting is a good-natured one, but when the whale meat and fat is getting low, the grunting increases to a horrifying roaring, which not subsides until we have killed an appropriate quantity of whales, so that we can freeze….? Ahhh! There I almost was captured in a contradiction, you mischievous little pixy! How can we freeze the meet and fat if we don’t have any electricity supply? You tell us in your next post – ok?

And now, let’s dig into the core of the case. Occasionally human beings are offered wake up calls, like yours, which entirely changes their lives and habits. And occasionally messages of such brilliant clarity and wisdom have markedly contributed to the understanding and tolerance between people throughout our battered planet. Unfortunately some of this wake up calls are shouts from dubious, violent organizations like Al-Qaeda, The Nazism, The British Union of Fascists and The Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, just to mention a few. In common, all these movements were founded by criminals or incarnated ignorants: Osama bin Laden, Adolf Hitler, Oswald Mosley and Paul Watson. And what else do these founders have in common? To your information, dear Lisa, I can disclose, that apart from Osama Bin Laden, none of this extremists attended any institution of higher education. Adolf Hitler was casual laborer and a talentless painter. Oswald Mosley entered the Royal Military College at Sandhurst, but was expelled for a riotous act of retaliation against a fellow student. His prime qualification being the 6th Baronet of Ancoats. But your hero, Paul Watson – he at least must have obtained a superior academic grade? Sorry to disappoint you again, dear Lisa; he never reached your educational level. He isn’t anything but an ordinary sailor and a former skipper. His prime qualifications as a self-styled crusader and self-beneficial fundraiser is that he is wanted by Interpol and authorities in several countries – on charges of a substantial record of criminal activities. How can you, dear Lisa, be on the same boat as a person who appears to be a criminal and, in comparison to your educational level, an illiterate? Referring to your undoubted educational level, I take it for granted, that you at least obtained an academic grade, although it was hardly a PhD in sociology or in anthropology. But as the genuine and unprejudiced human you are, I have no doubt that your academic research on The Sea Shepherd Conservation Society and its founder, Paul Watson, was as comprehensive and thorough as that you conducted on The Faroe Islands and its population?

However, dear Lisa, as you not are mentioning anything precise about your educational level, I guess it is due to your pronounced humility. Anyway: your keen and accurate assessment of those crude village people, tempting some kind of prehistoric hardship in the middle of The North Atlantic Ocean, is probably the most intelligent description of a mentally retarded society, I ever read.  Being one of these non-educated cavemen, I am looking forward to enjoy you, introducing the retarded subjects of the Faroe Islands to modern 2014 British lifestyle and behavior. And I certainly hope you will learn us a lot about the famous and excellent British cooking. Of course you people do not consume slaughtered animals like pigs, sheep and cattle. KFC maybe – and McDonald burgers, whish of course are made from ordinary, healthy junk – not from intelligent, plethoric animals. And certainly not whales! I have one more request: please teach us how to use The Internet. By the way, did you notice, that ‘The Internet’ is spelled with initial capital letters and treated as a proper noun in the English language?

Anyway, dear Lisa, in spite of your adorable gullibility, you are the prophet we have been waiting for. You are the lucid genius who shall save this flock of barbaric villagers from their ignorance and primitive lifestyle. Especially I’m looking forward to learn how to pick my neatly packed, (fallen, of course) chicken and pork from the freezers in……how did you name it? Supermarkets? Oh yehaa! And we don’t give a damn shit, you and I, that this fallen animals are poisoned with all sorts of harmful chemicals and stuffed with broad-spectrum antibiotics, which eventually may cause us (Yes! You too!) being infected with ESBL, VETC, GRE, VRE, MRSA, NDM-1  and that sort of deadly, antibiotic resistant bacteria. But, of course, dear Lisa, that is the real British world of 2014, as you prefer it.

Your clean world in which the bloody mess in the slaughterhouses does not exists. And I do understand, dear Lisa: there is no need to worry about how the food, without spilling a drip of blood, managed to find its way to the freezers from somewhere, only you and God know about. Verily, if not embracing such evolutionary kind of gospel you are preaching, people like us do not deserve otherwise than being doomed and gloomed.

I also understand that you are a superior Briton, holding a UK passport. I have no doubt that your open minded approach to non-Britton is originated from the usual kind of formation to British superiority, offered at Oxford- and Cambridge Universities. Probable the finest self-important British institutions, where corresponding self-important Britons are introduced to the magnitude and brilliance of The Great Britain. Most likely you also learned to shout out “Rule Britannia!” But I assume you never learned about the former glory of The United Kingdom and her blood stained history of genocides in the former British possessions? OK, you are right, dear Lisa, that was inevitable and necessary man slaughter. How else could you bring the sublime heritage of the British civilisation to backward people, who do not “have the ability to listen, learn, understand or evolve”?

So let’s get to the point:  I do understand that you love adorable whales and cute baby seals, (so do I). But I also understand, that you dislike people who don´t have the noble eating habits as you.

And I do understand that your feelings are solely rooted in the usual abundance of British self-aggrandizement and arrogance. Indeed, dear Lisa, you are the right persons to save the World.

Yours sincerely
William Smith
Argir
Faroe Islands

Whale Killings In The Faroe Islands

Written By: Cah Cah

OK, there have been countless blog posts about this topic now, and since I am no expert I’ve held my tongue. Be that as it may there are so many things being said  that even the slightest attempt at basic research would disprove, that it’s becoming increasingly frustrating to identify as human – the stupidity is overwhelming.

One of the greatest strengths of the internet is also one of its greatest weaknesses: everyone gets a voice. That means people, whose thoughts and opinions would be much better served if they never reached the light of day, get to express themselves. Sometimes this is harmless; everyone is allowed their own opinion. It is when an opinion is based on misinformation and lies that it becomes not only wrong, but also invalid, because contrary to popular belief you are not entitled to have a wrong opinion. If there are facts thatprove the reasoning for your opinion is wrong, there is no reason at all for anyone to accept your opinion as being neither valid nor acceptable, and this is what is happening with the whale killings in the Faroes.
You are completely in the right to disagree with whale killings for the simple reason that you may really like whales. It’s not an opinion that holds a lot of weight, and it most certainly is no argument for you to try to get them banned, unless you are in fact vegan and are equally against the slaughter of all animals, in which case you are completely allowed to fight against whale killings all you want equally alongside your fight against the killings of other animals. Might I even suggest that you start with the millions of animals whose entire lives are spent in tiny enclosures alongside their peers, living in their own urine and feces, whose existence is filled with misery, sickness, and broken bones, until they are killed in completely inhumane ways, rather than the few hundreds of whales that are killed by the Faroese people – as quickly and humanely as possible – after living free, full lives at sea.
However, if you’re going to disagree with whale killings because you’ve read some bogus article about it being a “rite of passage” into adulthood, because pilot whales are “endangered”, because it’s something that’s done “for fun” at “blood festivals”, because “look at all the blood in the ocean! They’re savages”, or because “whales are intelligent”, let me tell you a few  things.

1. It is not a “Rite of Passage”

Is it a “tradition”? Yes! The Faroese people have been doing this for hundreds of years. It’s a part of their heritage and it most certainly is “passed down” – how else would it survive? However, this is done for food. The Faroes have a harsh climate and agriculture options are limited. Nearly everything has to be imported. Can you really judge them for getting food from where they can, especially considering that this is not an industry, the whales are not actively hunted, and the meat and blubber gets distributed evenly for free?

2. Pilot whales are not endangered

I have no idea where this started. Pilot whales most certainly are not endangered, and if they were, it would not be because of the 0.1% of the whales that the Faroese people kill, that has long been deemed a very sustainable number.

3. There is no such thing as “Blood Festivals”

I actually don’t even know what more to say about this. How this one got started is a mystery to me. It is a complete fabrication – someone must have a very vivid imagination.

4. When you kill something, there will be blood (unless you use poison, or something)

When cows and pigs are slaughtered there is a lot of blood as well. Only difference is they don’t get slaughtered on a beach. Would you rather they moved the whales off the beach, bringing more suffering to everyone just so that it would look more appropriate? The Faroese mostly have great respect for these creatures, and don’t wish to cause them any unnecessary suffering.

5. Whales are intelligent

..but so are cows and pigs, and considering how they are treated during their entire lives in the meat industry, you really need to rethink this one. Did you know, that cows allegedly mourn the deaths of and even separation from those they love, even shedding tears over their loss. The mother-calf bond is particularly strong, and there are countless reports of mother cows who continue to frantically call and search for their babies after the calves have been taken away and sold to veal or beef farms.

6. There is an entire system to all of this

You may not be aware of this (actually if you’re one of the people who believe the propaganda I’m sure you’re not), but there really is an entire system to how this is handled. Pilot whales are not actively hunted and no one is out searching for them, trying to find a nice group of whales to kill. If they are spotted by someone, “Pilot Whale Foremen” – who are experts in the area – are informed and they have to judge whether the whales are close enough to shore, if the direction of the winds and currents are appropriate to ensure that it’s easy to drive the whale onto a beach, but not just any beach: the beach has to have been specifically approved for pilot whale killing. If all of these requirements (and probably more that I’m unaware of) aren’t met, the killings donot happen. If they are and the whales are driven onto shore, everything is monitored by officials and there’s a whole system to all of that too. If it looks “savage” it’s because people are bending over backwards to kill the whales as quickly as possible to ensure the least possible amount of stress. Killing something so you can eat it doesn’t necessarily mean a lack of respect for the life and integrity of the animal (unless you’re vegan or just don’t eat meat, in which case I – yet again – welcome your criticism).

7. This is the ultimate in “free range” meat

These whales live free lives right up until they are killed. They swim freely in the ocean, they eat what they’re supposed to eat, and they are not bred for the purpose of being eaten. Faroese agriculture in general is one of the best in the world. Sheep roam freely around the islands, contrary to most countries where farm animals live on top of each other in enclosures so small even an ant would get claustrophobic.

8. Look at yourselves and reflect

Do you even know what is going on in your own countries? If you’re Danish check out this link. If you’re American read this book or watch any undercover video by PETA. If you’re from a more “exotic” location where poachers hunt animals to extinction for their tusks, horns, or fur I’m sure you can agree you have more important things to focus on.

How many cows live for great parts of their life. Go on, judge. Did you know, that animal behaviourists have found that cows interact in socially complex ways, developing friendships over time and sometimes holding grudges against other cows who treat them badly.

How many cows live for great parts of their life. Go on, judge. Did you know, that animal behaviourists have found that cows interact in socially complex ways, developing friendships over time and sometimes holding grudges against other cows who treat them badly.
Why do the Faroe Islands receive this kind of attention for what they do? Is it merely because of the lies and propaganda, or is it because you want somewhere to point your finger, somewhere to direct your attention, so you don’t have to think about where that burger you’re about to eat really comes from?

If you’d like to know more about whaling press this link here.
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Yours,

Link to article

Why we should let Faroe islanders hunt whales

It’s one of the world’s most ancient traditions – and it does little lasting harm

Tim Ecott 1 February 2014

In Tórshavn, capital of the Faroe Islands, I met a man who first helped his father kill a whale with a sharp knife when he was eight years old. The spouting blood soaked his hair and covered his face like warpaint.  He remembered the warmth on his skin, a contrast to the cold North Atlantic in which they stood.

These days we assume that people who kill whales and dolphins must be bad. Flipper and his cousins are our friends, and notwithstanding that unfortunate business with Moby-Dick, those who pursue whales for their flesh must be terrible human beings. We know now, as Herman Melville did not, that cetaceans are exceptional mammals, highly intelligent with elaborate social networks and close family relationships. They are capable of exhibiting grief and even of coming to the aid of human beings in distress.

In several parts of the world, there are moves to give these special animals legal protection as ‘non-human persons’. India passed that law late last year, and in 2011 the American Association for the Advancement of Science began gathering support for the Declaration of Rights for Cetaceans. The first article in that declaration is: ‘Every individual cetacean has the right to life.’

In a week or two, environmental campaigners from Sea Shepherd will be touring Britain enlisting public support to end what they call the ‘barbaric and merciless slaughter of whales and dolphins in the Faroe Islands’. The campaign is gathering rapid traction on social media, and video clips of the Faroese hunt (known as the grindadráp) have been ‘liked’ and circulated in their hundreds of thousands. In those clips, the sea is stained red, the flapping pilot whales are dragged ashore with ropes and grappling hooks, and they are killed with a sharp instrument that severs the spine close to the head, resulting in almost instantaneous death.

Sea Shepherd compares the Faroese whale hunt with the Japanese dolphin slaughter at Taiji, an annual process where hundreds of dolphins are herded into a small rocky cove. Babies and young adults are then separated from their mothers for sale to Chinese theme parks, and the others are stabbed to death by fishermen from above with flensing knives attached to bamboo poles. It is an awful scene of prolonged carnage. And, as we know, Japan has been utterly unwilling to countenance restrictions on its annual so-called ‘scientific whaling’ expeditions.

I respect the bravery with which Sea Shepherd confronts the Japanese whaling ships in the South Atlantic. And I applaud Blackfish, the recent documentary shining a spotlight on the highly dubious practice of exhibiting orcas for family entertainment at Seaworld in the USA. I’ve never killed a whale. And I think I could not do it. But I am uneasy about the campaign to target the Faroese and I’d defend the right of that father and his young son to hunt and kill whales. Theirs is a dramatic land, a green and treeless collection of 18 islands in the North Sea where just 50,000 people still live a life intimately connected to the elements. They have traditionally eaten puffins, great skuas, storm petrels and fulmars. Along the sharp sheer cliff edges there are wooden stakes embedded in the ground to which hardy islanders attach a rope and dangle perilously to catch birds on the wing, or gather eggs from nests on the rock face.

Historically, the islanders have relied on whale meat as an essential part of their survival. These are fiercely independent people, intimately connected to their natural environment in spite of modern heating, air links (when the clouds clear for long enough) and the internet.

They have never set out to look for pilot whales: they kill them only when a school is discovered close to shore, and only if one of a small number of designated beaches is near enough to use as a landing ground. According to the North Atlantic Marine Mammal Conservation Organisation, pilot whales number more than 750,000, and each year the slaughter is estimated to take less than 0.1 per cent of the population. Records have been kept since 1584 — which makes this the longest recorded tradition of any human-animal interaction. Experts think the practice has been going on for more than 1,200 years.

The grindadráp (whale hunt) is not merely something from the Faroese past. It is a reminder of their relationship to the sea, and the meat is still a favourite delicacy.

Wouldn’t it be better if high-profile marine campaigns left the Faroese alone and focused on the more immediate and pressing threats to ocean ecosystems? Only this week a factory was discovered in Pu Qi in China that is processing more than 600 whale sharks a year. The world’s largest fish, a harmless plankton feeder, is known to be dwindling fast across the tropics. In the Mediterranean, a combination of vested interests (some criminal) and lax European Union laws have resulted in the decimation of tuna populations. In the St Lawrence River in Canada, a small population of beluga whales is being poisoned by PCBs. Around 100 million sharks of all species are being caught worldwide to feed the Asian market for sharkfin soup. In many areas, 90 per cent of large carnivorous sharks have been removed from the ecosystem. In India and Sri Lanka, there is a burgeoning fishery for giant manta ray gills to make ‘blood purifiers’ for the Chinese medicine trade. Parrotfish and conch are being overfished in the Caribbean, allowing algae to lay waste to the coral reefs. The list could go on and on and on.

Endangered fish species are commonly found on most British restaurant tables and, due to overfishing, our once superabundant cod populations continue to show little sign of recovery. These are the marine issues that I worry about. There is one ocean on our planet, not six or seven or more according to labels on a chart. All that sea is connected to form a giant system that we have neglected and continue to plunder. Let’s not victimise one tiny human population who are carrying on a tradition that will in all probability die out naturally in time. For now, let them eat whales.

Tim Ecott is the author of Neutral Buoyancy: Adventures in a Liquid World.

This article first appeared in the print edition of The Spectator magazine, dated 1 February 2014

Tags: Animal rights, Environmentalism, Faroe Islands, hunting, Oceans, Whales,Wildlife