Need a Job in These Tough Times? Then Smuggle Wildlife
Wildlife smuggling is a profitable trade. Given that the U.S. does not punish the crime harshly, you might consider doing it as a job in these tough times.
Yesterday MSNBC and CNN picked up a story about the discovery of illegal wildlife trafficking activity on a boat traveling from Peru to Chile. The topic seems to be of great interest to Americans if mainstream media sources choose to run these kinds of stories.
Estimates vary, but the general consensus is that internationally, the illegal wildlife trade ranks at least second or third in its volume and profitability, only behind the trade of drugs and guns. It’s thought to be a billion dollar industry annually in the U.S. alone. The World Wildlife Federation says its “the second-biggest threat to species after habitat destruction.”
So why is the crime punished in the United States in such a puny way?
Case in point: today, two women in Minnesota were sentenced to only two years of probation and a $9,000 fine each for the attempted smuggling of wildlife in 2005. They tried to bring in 1,300 illegal wildlife body parts through the Minneapolis airport.
Ridiculous? I think so. If that’s the punishment doled out for such crimes, then why aren’t more people going to start smuggling wildlife? There must be a stronger form of justice enforced against people who break wildlife trafficking laws in the U.S.
I’ve written before about how the illegal wildlife trade might be unstoppable in Peru. If the U.S. won’t do any better of a job than developing countries like Peru in fighting the battle against illegal wildlife trafficking, then we’ve got a bigger problem on our hands than I thought.
Any ideas of what would be a more effective punishment for the crime? Are the United States’ wildlife trafficking laws strong enough?
Photo Credit: © Levi T. Novey
