graciegrace1178's review
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
4.0
Extracted from goodreads reading notes:
July 13, 2022 – 25.0% "“In 1972, the Marine Mammal Protection Act prohibited the taking of marine mammals in U.S. waters, but SeaWorld continued to receive killer whale capture permits under an educational-display exclusion” Take a good long look at that line and consider the implication. Cetacean captivity is permitted for “educational” purposes. Ha. A joke. What they mean is “entertainment” and “inspiration” purposes.
July 13, 2022 – 25.0% "“In 1972, the Marine Mammal Protection Act prohibited the taking of marine mammals in U.S. waters, but SeaWorld continued to receive killer whale capture permits under an educational-display exclusion” Take a good long look at that line and consider the implication. Cetacean captivity is permitted for “educational” purposes. Ha. A joke. What they mean is “entertainment” and “inspiration” purposes.
chrismn4422's review
5.0
A quick but must read before anyone visits any Marine Parks such as SeaWorld, even better combined with 'Death at SeaWorld' and the documentary Blackfish.
aritrow's review
3.0
Would've liked more details and more of an ending, plus some of the facts didn't match up with other things...
crewzie's review
5.0
Eu sinceramente não sei o que dizer. Sinto que é uma leitura obrigatória para todas as pessoas que tem curiosidade em saber mais não só sobre o Tilikum, mas também como é a vida das orcas no SeaWorld.
Só consigo sentir pena do Tilikum por ter sido tirado do seu lar tão jovem (ele só tinha 2 anos) para ser posto em uma piscina com duas outras orcas que só judiavam dele a vontade. Conseguem imaginar isso? O desespero que deve ser tentar escapar, mas não ter para onde ir. Meu coração se quebra por ele, pelas orcas que tiveram suas vidas mudadas apenas para se tornarem entretenimento para nós, e, também, pelas orcas que nunca nem tiveram a chance de conhecer o mar aberto e realmente viver como uma orca livre.
Só consigo sentir pena do Tilikum por ter sido tirado do seu lar tão jovem (ele só tinha 2 anos) para ser posto em uma piscina com duas outras orcas que só judiavam dele a vontade. Conseguem imaginar isso? O desespero que deve ser tentar escapar, mas não ter para onde ir. Meu coração se quebra por ele, pelas orcas que tiveram suas vidas mudadas apenas para se tornarem entretenimento para nós, e, também, pelas orcas que nunca nem tiveram a chance de conhecer o mar aberto e realmente viver como uma orca livre.
lizardwater's review
4.0
being that this book was only 30 pages, it was a short read. i personally did not gain much more knowledge from reading this book because it restated many of the facts that are in the documentary blackfish, however i believe that was the point. this book reads similar to the film, without the graphics of course. this is a must if you prefer to read information for yourself instead of having it given to you audibly.
vegancleopatra's review
4.0
Anyone interested in this short non-fiction piece would also likely be interested in the recently released Blackfish documentary which chronicles much of the plight of orcas in captivity, including SeaWorld. http://blackfishmovie.com/
As for this story I felt as though the author managed to stay unbiased, although I do not see how someone could read it and walk away feeling there is nothing wrong with having immensely intelligent beings such as orcas in captivity. Would YOU like to spend your life in a bathtub? I'm pretty sure people would go insane under these conditions and unfortunately it appears some of the whales snap too (such as Tilikum). I cannot blame Tilikum for the death of 3 people, he is the killer whale equivalent of "not guilty by reason of insanity".
Tilikum was taken from his family pod when he was just about 2 years old (essentially equivalent to human years). Orca family units are extremely close and loss of contact alone can cause a member to die. Tilikum was not only taken from his family but then placed in a concrete tank for nearly a year only to then be sent to another location where two female killer whales tormented him (also due to their own imbalances). Tilikum suffered from repeated stomach ulcers due to stress at this early stage and I doubt he has been free of physical manifestations of captivity since. So it comes as no surprise that within 30 years of captivity he has killed 3 people. Honestly, the total could be much higher.
The idea of keeping these amazing beings in captivity is so twisted I cannot really wrap my head around thinking it is acceptable. Zimmermann does a good job in summarizing the plight of killer whales and marine parks (mainly SeaWorld) since the 1960s. I would greatly recommend this piece to anyone considering supporting institutions with orcas. Please consider what your money supports!
As for this story I felt as though the author managed to stay unbiased, although I do not see how someone could read it and walk away feeling there is nothing wrong with having immensely intelligent beings such as orcas in captivity. Would YOU like to spend your life in a bathtub? I'm pretty sure people would go insane under these conditions and unfortunately it appears some of the whales snap too (such as Tilikum). I cannot blame Tilikum for the death of 3 people, he is the killer whale equivalent of "not guilty by reason of insanity".
Tilikum was taken from his family pod when he was just about 2 years old (essentially equivalent to human years). Orca family units are extremely close and loss of contact alone can cause a member to die. Tilikum was not only taken from his family but then placed in a concrete tank for nearly a year only to then be sent to another location where two female killer whales tormented him (also due to their own imbalances). Tilikum suffered from repeated stomach ulcers due to stress at this early stage and I doubt he has been free of physical manifestations of captivity since. So it comes as no surprise that within 30 years of captivity he has killed 3 people. Honestly, the total could be much higher.
The idea of keeping these amazing beings in captivity is so twisted I cannot really wrap my head around thinking it is acceptable. Zimmermann does a good job in summarizing the plight of killer whales and marine parks (mainly SeaWorld) since the 1960s. I would greatly recommend this piece to anyone considering supporting institutions with orcas. Please consider what your money supports!
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