Hayden Panettiere | Dolphin Savior
In case you were thinking that Hayden Pannitiere was just going to be another barely legal Hollywood brat who partied constantly, flashed her privates to the paparazzi, and generally behaved like a complete imbecile without conscience or feeling for anything but her own fame, you would have been thinking wrong.
It has been reported that Hayden Panettiere stood up for dolphins being fished in a Japanese cove. When she and her activist friends saw fishermen coming to kill a pod of dolphins, they grabbed their surfboards and surfed out to try and save the creatures, who have been credited in many scientific studies as being highly intelligent, and sensitive enough to detect tumors in humans, as well as pregnancies. (They are also rumored in popular culture to be the only species apart from white mice smart enough to avoid the annihilation of Planet Earth by the Golgafrinchians.)
Unfortunately, Hayden's attempt at saving the dolphins was not met with great joy on the part of Japanese Fishermen who yelled and threatened and struck the surfers with long poles, then presumably killed the dolphins anyway.
Hayden said of the ordeal: "This baby stuck its head out and kind of looked as us, and the thought that the baby is no longer with us is very difficult."
However the Japanese were unmoved by the sight of a Hollywood star in a bikini trying to heroically save the sweet little dolphins. "Whales and dolphins are traditionally being used in Japan. In this light, we cannot accept an argument simply based on emotional causes." Said Hideki Moronuki, who holds the exalted position of chief of the whaling section of the Japanese Fisheries Agency (clearly a very popular fellow indeed.)
This incident highlights some ongoing barbaric practices which are allowed to continue due to the fact that international pressure is still not great enough to convince people that 'tradition' is not necessarily a good reason for doing anything. Traditionally a great many terrible things have been done, such as the stoning of women who engage in sexual intercourse outside of marriage (another 'traditional' practice that continues in parts of the world.)
How warming it is to see a young star with privilege and fame using it to try to make a difference in the world, not by merely speaking out about how terrible things are, but by physically taking action. Let's hope that other stars follow in her footsteps, and use their powers for good, and not simply getting really high. (Insert final 'Hero' pun here).
