Jessica Perry-Targaryen, Gobbly Gook from a Biologist?

Congratulations to Facebook phenom Jessica Perry-Targaryen, de facto champion of the discredited Oxy Shark Myth.

You know the one. It can be found being recited by Facebook hysteria brokers who have little else to do with their time but quote half-witted conservation gobbly gook wherever they can.

Usually with a "like" button attached to some sort of petition.

"If we kill all the worlds sharks we will run out of oxygen to breathe".

According to Jessica Perry-Targaryen her entire justification for embracing the Oxy Shark Myth, much like those who fervently embrace Bigfoot or the Loch Ness monsters, comes from her made up science premise, and we quote with our own questions attached:

"One need merely apply syllogism to solve this argument:

Major premise: Phytoplankton supply Oxygen to Earth.
Minor premise: Sharks keep Phytoplankton in check. (cite source(s) here)
Conclusion: All Sharks supply Oxygen to Earth. (bunk conclusion)

The model:

Major premise: All P affect O.
Minor premise: All S affect P. (except freshwater bodies where sharks are not present?)

Conclusion: All S affect O."


We'll let actual scientists ponder the finding of Jessica Perry-Targaryen, who is fostering her own unreasonable line of reasoning with the same passion that Flat Earth People try and explain their two dimensional world to the rest of us.

In the meantime, for the rest of us, facts do matter in conservation.

Our world becomes a better place when you can bring others to understand why conservation matters without resorting to bent shark prophecies that have no basis in facts.

To Jessica and the last few hold outs of the Oxy Shark Myth, look around you.

Even the myths first speakers, the few websites that once touted the myth, and the myths old champions are all walking back from it. It's a sea change. One based in the realization that some myths are better off dying on the vine from whence they came.

Oh, and Da Shark just waded in, yikes!