TV: What You Might Have Missed - Catching Great Whites and Big Boners

I loves me some Amazing Race. This season (which is the 15th of the always Emmy winning reality series) is pretty good. All the terrible people left pretty early on and we're left with an OK crew of competitors. The interracial couple, reconnecting father and son combo, some Harlem Globetrotters, Ken and Barbie types and the brothers. The not so ambiguously gay duo, Sam and Dan. And Sunday night, Sam and Dan had giant erections. Well, I don't know if they were actually giant, but any erection during prime time is big news.  Of course, CBS blurred them out.  But there they were...boners...on network TV.  I was online a bit yesterday - how the hell did I not see anything about this groundbreaking TV event?  CBS sure likes the wang. Remember that Survivor ep when America was flashed with full frontal?  I do, but only because InfoMania told me about it.  (Can't seem to locate link to that.)

But inappropriate chubbies weren't the most excited thing on TV during this very young week.  The National Geographic Channel ran a pseudo-scientific special just last night about a crew of extreme fisherman and their nerdy science buddy on a quest to catch, tag, release and track Great White Sharks.  Really.

The whole time I was watching this debacle unfold I was thinking, "Man, Patrick Douglas at Shark Divers is going to have something to say about this."  And Mr. Douglas brings up some great points about the ethics and funding sources surrounding this research expedition on his post.  Unfortunately, I didn't know what I was in for when I randomly stumbled on the premier of Expedition Great White, part of Nat Geo's Expedition Week which also features a doc on a head shrinking tribe, terraforming Mars, old skool Jesus, and the search for sunken Japanese subs. Seems like good wholesome Nat Geo family fun, right?

Expedition Great White on Nat Geo, something to avoid if you can.

What I hope you didn't see last night was this magnificent animal being savagely hooked, dragged, worn out, and then lead to this special underwater platform which was then raised completely out of the water.  Then a crude hose with a sharp looking edge was thrust into the shark's mouth to keep it alive out of water by flushing water over its lungs.  A satellite tag was then attached to its dorsal fin by drilling holes into the dorsal fin and screwing it on with four plastic screws.  Another tag was jammed into its skin just behind its dorsal.  The giant custom made circle hook was removed. Blood was attempted to be taken though the "scientist" aboard never seemed to be able to find a vein.  At one point during the attaching of the tag to the dorsal fin, this same "scientist" explained how sharks "don't feel pain like you and I." Later, he attempted to draw blood from another catch by jamming a large need at various points near the shark's tail.  During the 2nd or 3rd attempt the shark clearly reacts to the pain by sharply jerking his tail. Seems like sharky felt something, Mr. Wizard.  This out of water procedure was done in under 20 minutes, but it was awful to behold.

After the shark's release all hands on deck hoot and holler - like the fact that it swims away with little help means it's completely undamaged by the capture.  This show is an embarrassment for The National Geographic Channel.  As Mr. Douglass points out there is no proof that these sharks live on unharmed after their grisly capture.  Expedition Great White is just another sport fishing show...and for some reason Paul Walker was there.  No idea.

It's cool, I was in a movie about the ocean.. I'm totally trained to catch GWS's.

If you respect nature, avoid this show at all costs (there is talk that it will be a series).  Watching a Great White on deck, technically suffocating slowly, possibly even dying, is about as much fun as watching that cat scuba dive. It's clear no one is having fun except the crazy human creating the situation.


Also, just found this on Shark Diver.  Pretty awesome South Park parody of Animal Planet's Whale Wars.