Chapter 663: The murderers who caused the extinction of endangered sharks
Xiao Peng held up two fingers. "The second reason is animals that contribute so much to humanity but can't be farmed. I just used our country as an example, and now I'll use you. You in the West are the ones doing the most things like this. In our country, whether it's the South China tiger or the Yangtze alligator, animal extinction is basically for their own survival, while in your country, animal extinction is generally for profit! Let me give you a simple example: the sea cow. People discovered that the sea cow was delicious and could be preserved for a long time, and the manatee's fat and skin were valuable, so people hunted it like crazy. As a result, the sea cow went extinct from its discovery in 1741 to 1768, a mere 27 years."
"That's unscientific!" Yasmine said, "Back then, humans had no awareness of animal protection and no scientific methods. Things like this wouldn't happen today!"
"Really?" Xiao Peng smiled and asked, "What about the shark?"
"Of course it's because you Chinese eat shark fin!" Yasmine answered without hesitation, "We Westerners never eat shark products! We don't even have the habit of eating shark, except in Iceland!"
Xiao Peng was not surprised by her answer. After all, people here have been indoctrinated with the idea by the media since childhood that China will always be blamed for any bad things that happen.
Xiao Peng didn't bother to reason with her. It would be best to just produce the evidence. He said directly, "Ladies, you all have cosmetics, right? Could you please bring all yours over?"
The three women didn't understand what was going on, but they all took out their cosmetics. Abby also opened her makeup bag and took out a few cosmetics and placed them on the table.
Xiao Peng picked them up one by one and looked at them, saying, "Wow, they're all high-end stuff! This... this... and this! Oh, this moisturizer is also..."
Watching Xiao Peng picking out small bottles and putting them aside, Marlene asked curiously, "What are you picking?"
Xiao Peng picked up one of the bottles and placed it in front of everyone, pointing to the ingredient list on the label and asking, "Do you recognize this word?"
"Squalane?" Marlene and Yasmine looked at each other and shook their heads.
English is not Chinese. While you can generally guess the meaning of uncommon Chinese words by looking at their constituent characters, English has both common and specialized vocabulary, so not knowing a single word is unsurprising. Furthermore, none of the three women's native languages are English.
Abby said, "This means 'squalane', a highly chemically stable oil component."
When Abby mentioned 'squalane', the other two girls perked up. "Yeah, yeah, yeah, that's why I buy cosmetics because it has this ingredient. After all, it's very gentle on the skin, doesn't cause allergies or irritation, and it inhibits mold growth. It's colorless and odorless. Why are our cosmetics so expensive? Is it because of this 'squalane'?"
Xiao Peng clapped his hands: "Then you will bear the greatest responsibility for the extinction of sharks!"
At this moment, Yasmine laughed. "Xiao, you're wrong. Do you think I haven't done any research? The dogfish shark is a small, widely distributed shark. It's not in danger of extinction at all! I did research!" She said this with a look of pride. "That's why I use cosmetics containing squalane!"
Xiao Peng scratched his head. "I'm a little confused about your way of thinking now. Farmed mink aren't in danger of extinction, but since you don't use fur products, they shouldn't be killed. And dogfish aren't in danger of extinction, but since you use them, it doesn't matter."
"I..." Yasmine's smile froze on her face.
Xiao Peng waved his hand and continued, "Besides, who says that 'squalane' means it must contain squalane? We Chinese have a food called 'wife cakes'. Do you really buy cakes for your wife? And the dish you're enjoying the most is called 'Fuqi Feipian'. Do you think they're made by cutting off the couple's own lungs?"
Marlene on the side widened her eyes and said, "Don't tell me this 'squalane' is made from other sharks."
Xiao Peng nodded and said, "First of all, don't say you don't eat shark. You must have eaten British 'fish and chips'. Do you really think those 'fish and chips' are made with cod? Most of them are dogfish sharks, and some are made with endangered shark species like the 'spiny dogfish'. In other words, you have actually eaten sharks for a long time... We really don't have this habit in China because we don't like the taste of shark meat. Let's not talk about that for now. How many sharks are killed for the cosmetics you use? Just now you said 'no trade, no killing'? So, are you throwing away all your cosmetics first?"
The three women were all speechless when they heard Xiao Peng's words.
Xiao Peng spread his hands. "There are countless examples like this. Take whales, for example. 90% of the world's whales died at the hands of you Westerners. How many people rushed into the sea to hunt whales in order to extract whale oil? If it weren't for the emergence of cheaper and better oil, whales might have become extinct by now! Of course, the replacement of whale oil by oil was also due to people's pursuit of profit, not to save species. How can you turn a blind eye to such things?"
"Just like sharks and whales, which are of immense benefit to humans but cannot be farmed on a large scale, are in danger of extinction. Crocodiles, like us, are also of immense benefit to humans. Many of your bags and shoes are made of crocodile leather. But because they can be farmed, their numbers are not a problem and they are not in danger of extinction. Like the Chinese alligator I told you about, in 1999, there were less than 150 in the wild. Now, there are alligator farms everywhere, and their numbers have recovered significantly. And what about the South China tiger, which is in the same boat? It's still on the brink of extinction because of the difficulty of farming it! Take minks, for example. They are valuable to humans and can be farmed, so their numbers are high. But if one day no one could farm or use minks, then let me ask you, what would be the fate of minks? Although the facts are cruel, the reality is that all other animals must give way to humans."
Everyone present fell silent.
Felix asked, "So what about Master's third extinct animal?"
Xiao Peng said, "The third type? Naturally, extinction is caused by the destruction of the food chain. Every animal on Earth has its own reason for existence, and the extinction of one species may lead to the extinction of a series of other species. Therefore, animal protection is really not something that can be achieved by just shouting slogans. Do you think that if we don't eat meat, buy fur, use cosmetics, or wear leather shoes, we are protecting animals? If so, it will only lead to a new round of species extinction!"
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