Stop the bloody whaling

[shinytoaster]

You know, I thought commercial whaling was something we as a species had kind of collectively gotten over back in the 1980s, and that the exceptions were made for Japan, Norway and Iceland in the knowledge that they'd be made to wind up their own heinous activities within a few years. This appears not to be the case, for as I sincerely hope you haven't failed to notice, the IWC, which,despite its origins as a regulatory body, as clearly now evolved into an organisation prepared to safeguard the whales' future, has now been hijacked by the Japanese government, and they're out to force a return to commercial whaling, despite the fact that all indications apparently show that lots of Japanese have actually stopped eating the stuff, less than 1 per cent, according to research by the Christian Science Monitor. How was it allowed to get to this situation? Same old story; sheer bloody apathy from the liberals.

It's actually almost enough to get me to think about boycotting Japanese products, where it not for the fact that they're so ubiquitous and I'm still halfway through Azumanga Daioh. Fucking whalers spoiling my anime crack. C**ts. But boycotts can work, I reckon, they nearly crippled South Africa back in the day. If enough of us do it...

emeraldsword has more, including a link to the Greenpeace petition. I'd also urge you to get in touch with any Japanese embassy or consulate, high commission or whatever to register your disgust with their country's barbaric act. It's not cultural imperialism, it's not freedom of expression, it's not 'scientific' and above all, it is disgusting. And if you care enough, or ever went whale-watching as a kid - I went to Cape Cod, hee - then spread it on your LJ too.

And you know, it's not just Japan. This quote is from the secretary of Norway's High North Alliance, who I can safely say is a complete arsehole, and if I ever meet him, I will take great pleasure in slapping him upside his funny little fucked-up head.

"We think there is growing support for whaling in principle and in practice. Whales belong to the animal kingdom. In some cultures they eat frogs, others don't; Hindus don't eat beef, that's their choice, but they don't try to prohibit the rest of the world from eating it."

The difference being, you dimwitted cock, that there are millions upon millions of cows, and nobody's going to miss a few hundred thousand. Particularly not in India.

Here's a list of the countries you may want to think about boycotting:

Japan
Norway
Iceland
St Vincent & The Grenadines
Antigua
Dominica
Grenada
St Kitts & Nevis
St Lucia
The Marshall Islands
Cambodia
Guatemala

Comments

[earth-magic.livejournal.com]

I was watching a news report about this yesterday morning and the really stupid, stupid thing is that the Japanese don't appear to be eating that much whale meat - they have hundreds of tons of the stuff in storage - enough to last many years without ever killing a whales.

I've never understood the 'scientific' whaling nonsence and it's frightening that despite everything we are almost back to commercial whaling again.

[benjj.livejournal.com]

Note how many of those are tiny little countries and don't actually do whaling ... there's apparently a whole political thing brewing. Back sratching.

Bugger, can't find the link I was looking for... this isn't as good
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/5066538.stm

Though Japan apparently gave Cambodia $601million recently...

[cazling.livejournal.com]

It's really like the '80s all over again, isn't it? By sheer coincidence I'm just finishing a reading until with Yr 8 looking at different texts about whaling. When I was their age I was so 'Save the whales! And the rainforests!', it was scary. They were totally and utterly unaware it even happens. Now they're all upset about it and some of the girls are threatening to boycott my lessons because they find the subject matter too upsetting. Yesterday I gave them a ten-minute lecture about the IWC voting this weekend and sent them home with a reading comprehension homework based on an IFAW anti-whaling leaflet. Indoctrinating, moi?

[cazling.livejournal.com]

God. Unit, not until. I've just come back from the sweatbox that is my un-airconditioned gym and not really with it.

[ivyblossom.livejournal.com]

I'm always on board with boycotting Norway.

[pengolodh-sc.livejournal.com]

There is well over a millions minke whales in the world, and the number being caught are low - it is nowhere near any threat of extinction.

As for small nations that have never had whaling activity being on the IWC, that is nothing new - that has been going on for years, with the UK and USA bribing small nations to join up to oppose whaling.

[reservoir.livejournal.com]

T______T

[catlily.livejournal.com]

Whaling doesn't go on in most of those Caribbean Islands - I've visited all of them apart from Grenada, and the one which was built on the whaling industry was Bequia in St Vincent and the Grenadines. They are still allowed to catch one whale a year, but it very rarely happens - most of the men who used to do this are now dead, and the youngsters really aren't interested - they are more concerned with supplying conch, spiney lobster and fish for the restaurant trade. In fact, I don't think they've bothered to catch one for a couple of years now.

The Japanese are investing heavily in some of the islands of the Caribbean - we saw their contributions to the fishing ports of Bequia earlier in the year, but I don't think that means that there is going to be resurgence in the whaling trade. What *is* interesting about investments which are taking place in some of these islands is the ongoing battle between Taiwan and China - they are both pumping money in. The former because they want support for recognition of their autonomous status, presumably with the UN, and the latter, because they want to it.

[titanic-days.livejournal.com]

"There is well over a millions minke whales in the world, and the number being caught are low - it is nowhere near any threat of extinction."

Christian, how on earth do you arrive at the logic. There are millions - therefore it is okay to kill them.

It is an indefensible practice, I respect the fact that you are prepared to stand up for it, but I think you should know that I find your point of view utterly repugnant and barbaric.

[titanic-days.livejournal.com]

"Whaling doesn't go on in most of those Caribbean Islands"

I never said it did. Of course it doesn't. The truth of the matter seems to be, as you say, that international aid counts for more than it should. I'm appalled to see it used in that manner, although I suppose I shouldn't have expected anything more of the human race.

[titanic-days.livejournal.com]

I'm just utterly baffled that it's become an issue again.

[pengolodh-sc.livejournal.com]

How I arrived at that logic? I didn't, you did: "The difference being, you dimwitted cock, that there are millions upon millions of cows, and nobody's going to miss a few hundred thousand. Particularly not in India."

But yes, killing somewhere about 3000-3500 whales each year (between Norway, Japan and Icleand) is just as OK as killing a few millions cows or millions upon millions of fish each year. If killing animals for food is wrong, then whaling pales into insignficance besides the food industry as a whole.

[jiggery-pokery.livejournal.com]

As someone who isn't vegetarian but wouldn't mind if the world were to become vegetarian overnight; I can see your point, but somehow I can't get terribly strong feelings about it either way, compared to the whole issue of being carnivorous.

Is there a line at which the whale population (or, perhaps, the rate of increase of the whale population) would become high enough that you feel it would be OK to treat whale as any other sea-dwelling creature (*), or is it a species issue along the lines of you wouldn't want to eat whale much on the same line of thinking that you wouldn't want to eat (e.g.) horse or dog? The latter is fair enough because it's just the sort of hypocrisy that I personally subscribe to; I wouldn't knowingly eat duck, for instance, because they're too cute.

(*) I lose track. Isn't there one behaviourally-fish-like sea-dwelling creature that's a mammal rather than a fish? Is it a whale or a dolphin?

[shezan.livejournal.com]

Wow! There's something we're not guilty of fishing? Phewww!

*will boyc ott the others*

[misscora.livejournal.com]

Well, boycotting Japan might be a tad difficult for me these days...

The really disturbing thing about the practice of whale hunting in Japan is that, as you say, they don't even do it very much anymore but, because it is "cultural" (or so the conservatives who want to keep it legal successfully claim) they are trying to increase the number of people who do eat it, which practices occasionally include adding it to the school lunch menu in an effort to get the kids to like it and eat it when they grow up.

[titanic-days.livejournal.com]

Well, I have eaten horse so I can't say I can really comment on that. It was kind of like a dark, lean, cured beef, incidentally. Kangaroo is nice as well.

Nature dictates that you're never going to get to a point where whale stocks are comparable to cod stocks (for the sake of my argument let's assume North Atlantic cod isn't endangered too). They are too large and they consume too voraciously for the oceans to be able to support a population on that level, so you really can't compare them to a commercially fished species such as cod or haddock or whatever, for the same reason the Serengetti is crawling with gazelle but there aren't so many lions about. Whales are pretty much at the top of their food chain - humans notwithstanding - there aren't a whole bunch of creatures that eat them.

So no, it's very much a species issue, but when you're down to the last few thousand of them I don't believe it's hypocrisy at all to put a stop to it. Then because they are at the top of their food chain, and we can do well enough without them, why is there any argument for not letting the minkes reach their natural population threshold? We have more than enough livestock to go around, more than enough to cover the diets of the declining number of Japanese and others who still eat it.

Both dolphins and whales are mammals, cetaceans, for the record. If you ever get the chance to see them in the wild please take it.

[titanic-days.livejournal.com]

This is pretty much the same thing I said to Chris below, but I appreciate you may not get the comment yourself. First though - this is clearly not a subject we should be discussing with relative opinions, so I'm sorry I snapped, but I do feel too strongly about this issue to let it go.

Nature dictates that you're never going to get to a point where whale stocks are comparable to cod stocks (for the sake of my argument let's assume North Atlantic cod isn't endangered too). They are too large and they consume too voraciously for the oceans to be able to support a population on that level, so you really can't compare them to a commercially fished species such as cod or haddock or whatever, for the same reason the Serengetti is crawling with gazelle but there aren't so many lions about. Whales are pretty much at the top of their food chain - humans notwithstanding - there aren't a whole bunch of creatures that eat them. So when you're down to the last few thousand of them I don't believe it's hypocrisy at all to put a stop to it. Because they are at the top of their food chain, and we can do well enough without them, why is there any argument for not letting the minkes, I think your example was, reach their natural population threshold? We have more than enough livestock to go around, more than enough to cover the diets of the declining number of Japanese and others who still eat it.