In honor of Shark Week i thought this would be a neat discussion.

Should the sale of Shark fins be banned in your country (if it isnt already)?

for those who dont already know

bonus questions:

should all species be protected?

does banning the purchase of fins infringe on "freedom of religion"?

is there a middle ground Nations can reach that provides the sale of ethically fished sharks?

facts to consider

~ around 73million sharks are harvested each year. some are finned alive and thrown back into the ocean. only to sink to the bottom and drown. to combat that some countries have either banned the sale of fins if the body of the shark is with the fin, banned the sale of fins completely, banned fishing in national waters. however international waters are unregulated

~ some species numbers have dropped over 80% in the last 50 years. sharks have a "K-selection" life history, meaning they grow slowly leaving the vulnerable to over fishing (including finning)

-Fins have no nutritional value. It is purely cartilage, and nutritional value that would come from "shark fin soup" would be from the broth