Shark fin ban in California clears key Senate vote

[AsahinaKimi]

A push by California lawmakers to outlaw shark fins, the main ingredient in a traditional Chinese soup, cleared a key hurdle Thursday when it was approved by a state Senate committee.

The bill, which would ban the sale, trade and possession of shark fins in California, has been championed by conservation groups as a way to curb the harvest of shark fins, a practice that has contributed to the sharp decline of shark populations worldwide.

But the measure has divided California’s Chinese American community. For centuries the gelatinous soup prepared with dried shark fins has been served as a pricey Chinese delicacy, and opponents say banning it would discriminate against a cultural tradition.

The bill passed the Senate Appropriations Committee on a 5-2 vote and now moves to the full Senate, where a vote is expected within the next few weeks.

more..
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2011/08/california-shark-fin-ban-key-vote-senate.html

Shark fin soup: The taste of extinction

A pending state bill would prohibit the sale of shark fin and help protect the threatened fish. The ban would affect Chinese Americans disproportionately, but Cantonese culinary culture would easily survive.

By Jonathan Gold

August 7, 2011
I still remember the last time I ate shark's fin, in a grand, now-defunct Monterey Park seafood palace, more than 15 years ago. This restaurant had been proud of its pricey shark's-fin specialties, so much so that it showcased its finest specimens in glass cases, where they had the stark, ghostly presence of museum displays, although by this time some connoisseurs had moved on to the rarer, costlier pleasures of sun-dried abalone farmed in Japan.

more..
http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/commentary/la-oe-gold-shark-fin-20110807,0,1824749.story?lanow

Editorial
Take shark-fin soup off the menu

hark populations are declining. California can help by passing a shark-fin ban.
August 25, 2011
The loss of a cultural tradition is regrettable, but the loss of a species is tragic and the upset of the oceans' environmental balance could be catastrophic. That's why a California bill banning the possession and sale of shark fins should be pulled out of the Assembly Appropriations Committee suspense file Thursday and sent to the Senate floor, where it should be passed.

FOR THE RECORD:
Shark fins: An Aug. 25 editorial on a bill banning the possession and sale of shark fins in California said it was in the Assembly Appropriations Committee suspense file. The bill was in the Senate Appropriations Committee suspense file.

Shark populations are declining, and close to a third of shark species are in danger of extinction. Contributing to this decline is the practice of shark finning, in which large-scale fishing operations cut off the valuable fins, used for the Chinese delicacy shark-fin soup, and throw the rest of the shark back into the ocean to die. At one time, the expensive soup was out of the reach of all but the wealthiest Chinese families, but the emergence of the Chinese middle class increased demand to the point where an estimated 70 million sharks are killed each year solely for their fins.

more..
http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/opinionla/la-ed-shark-20110825,0,3572389.story?lanow

[MH1]

1. Good. Wish we didn't need such specific laws like this, but since

people will be idiots, we gotta have 'em.

[taterguy]

2. When shark fins are outlawed, only outlaws will have shark fins

[AsahinaKimi]

3. What a kettle of fish

This will become..