Apparently the U.S. Navy has been using trained dolphins and other marine mammals to support the Navy in warfare situations since the 1960s. I became aware of the program when, some 20 years ago, I was living on a boat in San Diego Bay and saw the Navy training dolphins from special-built skiffs.
Those wondrous marine mammals were trained to detect mines, take underwater photographs, bring things to Navy divers and who knows what else.
I was always horrified by the program. I’ve done a lot of sailing in the past, including significant time off shore – way off shore. So often a pod of dolphins would join us for awhile, surfing on our bow wake and obviously simply having a gloriously good time. It somehow seemed very wrong to use the good will of another intelligent sentient being and press it into the service of destruction.
Of course animals have been used in war probably since war began. But somehow, the training of the dolphins in my bay back yard was truly upsetting.
I was delighted to learn that on November 24th the Navy announced it was shutting down or at least cutting back on the dolphin training program at least in San Diego Bay. Apparently the Navy has found ways of building torpedo or dolphin shaped underwater vehicles that will accomplish the same tasks.
In my mind these replacements may well be like the unmanned drones that at least the U.S. is using. We are distancing ourselves more and more from the horror of war and killing, while the killing goes on.
And, of course, law enforcement in this country are clamoring for the same power.
Meanwhile, evidence of global warming increases, with Super-storm Sandy, and Typhoon Bopha that struck in the southern Philippines today, Dec. 4, 2012. At the same time the UN sponsored Doha Climate Change Conference, successor to the 1997 Kyoto Protocols (that the U.S. has never signed) struggles with no commitment from the U.S. and other major polluters.
I don’t know what it will take for America to develop the political will to acknowledge climate change is happening and it that will take our efforts along with many other countries to make the changes that have a chance of slowing rising sea level slim – and scary. This map isn’t perfect, but if you fiddle a bit you can get a sense of what various rises in sea level might mean.
Meanwhile, I continue not to bring plastic bags home and contact my elected representatives urging action – I don’t know what else to do.
What do you suggest?
Love, blessings, and abundance,
{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
Anne, I really wonder if the US military head honchos sit around trying to think of the evillest ideas they can imagine, chuckling wickedly to each other. It’s amazing the list of messed up stuff they’ve done… the dolphin thing was a new one for me. I really think the people in charge are absolute psychopaths.
As for the global warming issue, it’s an obvious hoax. American conservatives know things the entire world’s scientific community hasn’t figured out yet and they’ll all keep this crazy idea from spreading. Just kidding… I was listening to a podcast where they said that in 500 years the oceans will stink like rotten eggs. That can’t be a good thing for our kids’ kids’ kids’ kids’… etc.
I was listening to El Rushbo today… and he was going on about global warming being a hoax and I was trying to understand the mindset that denies science… I was unsuccessful.
You may be right about the folks in charge… and if you are what do we do!!!!!!
I think the mindset that denies science is called stupidity. No reason to mince words. It goes something like this: ‘I don’t understand it so it’s not real.’
There’s a lot all of us can do to conserve energy. One way is to reduce unnecessary laundry. Just about everyone in my family has the habit of using their bath towel once after the shower and then tossing it into the wash- that’s a lot of unnecessary energy use, water, laundry detergent, etc.
My view is- the towel is clean because it was used on a clean body- so I’ve adopted the practice of just hanging it up to dry and using it a few times (my record is 3 weeks). I get chewed out about this at family gatherings (mostly females) because they consider it unhygienic, but I don’t think so- I think it makes sense.
I’ve always had a natural inclination in the direction of conservation and thrift and that may be because of my background: I emigrated from Europe and using a bath towel multiple times is common practice over there: no European I know tosses their towel into the wash after one use- they would be aghast and consider the practice wasteful. (Of course, there may be a lot of people in this country who follow the same practice- it’s just I’m not related to any of them.)
P.S. Just discovered your writing web site- very helpful- a really nice site. I live in North-eastern Ohio and there is a pretty good regional market I would like to tap into. I’m retired and looking to supplement my pension. I wrote part-time 20 some years ago for a daily newspaper. Of course, the budget isn’t there anymore. The same daily paper that used to pay me for writing and photography, now is soliciting for readers to send in material free- for a by-line! That’s how much things have changed.