Hawaiian ban on shark's fin

An AP article notes that the state of Hawaii passed a law "prohibiting the possession, sale or distribution of shark fins," apparently in an attempt to discourage shark-hunting and thereby to combat "a dangerous depletion of sharks worldwide." The legislation isn't universally supported; some in the Chinese community aren't happy, since shark's fin is a delicacy. It's not likely the law is going to have a material impact on the demand for sharks, either, since Hawaii is a relatively small market.

I plead guilty to enjoying shark's fin soup, although I suspect the article is correct when it claims the fin isn't contributing much to the dish's appeal: "The flavor in shark fin dishes comes from the ingredients it's cooked with, either the rich sauce it's served with on a plate or the savory pork and chicken base in shark fin soup."

I don't have a problem with the law. I don't routinely eat shark's fin soup and I can certainly live without it. Also, I had assumed that the rest of the shark was consumed separately from the fin, but a ScienceBlog entry claims that in the majority of cases, the rest of the shark is thrown back into the water, still alive, but dying. That's not just cruel, it's appallingly wasteful.

I don't think that the law is an unwarranted government intrusion into my right to the pursuit of happiness, as I'm sure some people think. The states are supposed to be the laboratory for legislation. The law either will be challenged successfully, or not. Other states can follow the example, or not. (Similar legislation is pending before Congress, with the House having passed a bill but the Senate still not having taken action.)

However, I'm skeptical that the law is going to have much of an impact, and not only because Hawaii is such a small market for this delicacy.

You can expound until you're blue in the face about how our eating habits are depleting various species or otherwise having a detrimental effect on the ecosystem, but if somebody is convinced that what he's eating is a net boon to his health, or if he just considers it part of his culinary heritage, he's going to shrug off your concerns, especially if he has the money to purchase it. Last I checked, tigers and rhinoceroses were still endangered species, largely because parts of them are coveted for their supposed aphrodisiac properties. It's tragic, but the only cure is going to be to reduce the demand by changing people's attitudes, and laws like this don't generally have that effect. You change people's attitudes by having a personal relationship with someone whom you can convince to change his ways, and hope peer pressure eventually has the desired effect.