Myan+A's+2015+OpEd+Article

SeaWorld is not a family or kid friendly place to visit; it is a corrupt, evil, and cruel torturous place. They do not care about the "fun" or entertainment portion of an amusement park, the only entertainment SeaWorld is interested in is watching the money pile in from ignorant customers. The injustice and abusive actions towards the animals in SeaWorld needs to be revealed to the public.

I cannot stand hearing kids begging parents to go to SeaWorld. Amusement parks are so corrupt these days, they are tricking visitors more and more with rising prices, ridiculous rules, and shorter amusements. Going to Disneyland would be better than SeaWorld, because at least they do not abuse animals. Children and families especially need to realize the cruel actions SeaWorld takes towards the sea life.

These animals are meant to be wild and free, not slaves used for money. They are not meant to be torn from their families and taken from their natural environment to be confined in a tiny tank, not big enough to provide the right habitat for a 6 ton whale. What may seem as "cute", "happy", or "friendly" animals to the naive families at the park are really suffering, tortured, sad animals. The documentary //Blackfish// actually proves that the sounds whales make are to communicate with their lost families and are sounds of depression and sad behavior.

The Orcas are actually suffering from the sun beating down on the tanks. The shallow tanks do not allow the whales to find shade, where as in the wild they spend 95% of their time submerged in the ocean finding shade. We are too ignorant to see most of the pain because their sunburns are covered up with black zinc oxide, providing a "happy and healthy" money bank.

This kind of sick entertainment is not even safe for the trainers, let alone the animals. There have been over 130 incidents between trainers and the animals at SeaWorld parks. (http://www.orcahome.de/incidents.htm) Despite these dangerous attacks and even some deaths, SeaWorld ignores the possibility of future life-threatening events bound to happen and continues to function. After the first sign of aggression, SeaWorld should have clearly shut down for the safety of the employees, animals, and visitors.

No, these animals are not just showing aggression towards the trainers because that is their natural behavior, as SeaWorld tries to cover up with. They are acting this way because they are being treated horribly, just as any 6 ton whale would be if they were cooped up in the equivalent of a bathtub everyday. Even if SeaWorld was right, that would just be another reason why these animals are meant to be left alone in the ocean, and not come into contact with humans.

The trainers are not even educated in any form of marine biology. You would expect them to be experts in the field they working so closely with, but they are just performers. They should educate the crowd on sea life but instead they poorly dance around for 90% of the "show" to outdated music while the last 2 minutes are of the whale actually showing some movement.

Orcas in captivity are proven to have a shorter lifespan, good job SeaWorld. With an average life expectancy in the wild of 30 to 50 years, SeaWorld's small tanks have shrunk these innocent whales lifespan to a mere 9 years.

No, the bent dorsal fins on the whales are not normal. They are actually signs of an unhealthy orca. Only 1-5% of orcas in the wild have collapsed dorsal fins. The scars and cuts on the whales and dolphins are from being harshly "trained". The truth behind SeaWorld's hidden facts is scary. They are heartless killers and only care about the heavy profit the dying animals bring in.

Stop spending money on SeaWorld and promoting it's brutal, inexcusable behavior. Watch //Blackfish// and I promise you, you will develop a new understanding of this pitiless place and probably never feel so much anger in your life as you have after watching //Blackfish//. Save the whales, dolphins, turtles, fish, starfish, even the plankton; save anything from the malicious torture of SeaWorld.