Japan cancels whaling season due to group's obstruction, official says

Japan cancels whaling season due to group's obstruction, official says

www.cnn.com

(CNN) -- Japan has canceled the rest of its winter whaling season, with a top official reasoning that environmentalists' obstructive efforts made it dangerous for whalers to stay on the high seas.

Japanese Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Michihiko Kano told reporters Friday that the country's government halted whaling because of actions taken by the animal rights group, Sea Shepherd. He stressed that Japan did not want to do so, but felt its hand was forced.

"From the viewpoint of our crew's safety, we have decided to cut short the research whaling at this time, again

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I'm almost thinking this is a tactical effort to continue whaling without the sea shephard constantly nipping at their feet!

Personally, I'm not a huge fan of the show after seeing how insane the sea shephard's crew can be. However, I think we can all agree that whaling for "research" purposes is wrong since the animal still dies and parts of it probably still get sold on the black market.

I have the feeling that the Sea Shepherd is still planning on crashing their party and calling their bluff though (if that's what this is).

-ChriS

www.cnn.com
(visit the link for the full news article)

I've never seen the show or really know much about whaling. It seems to me like the activists are pretty hardcore? Do the whalers do anything hardcore in retaliation? Can't they just shoot the activists if they want? hehe

reply to post by BlasteR

Personally, I'm not a huge fan of the show after seeing how insane the sea shephard's crew can be.

Some one has to do it...
I wouldn't knock the crew..
They spend months in the freezing cold and rough seas to save the whales..

Japan doesn't even eat that much whale meat any more..
The youth don't even like it..
And this BS about it being a tradition!!
Very few Japanese actually ate whale meat before WW11 when they were starving..

When the premise is scientific research or cultural, I will call garbage because we are NOT short of food and cultures change.

Just like dolphin kills or shark fin catching or wearing fur.

These backward people need to be targeted as hard as possible.

Good on the shepherd.

Originally posted by badw0lf
When the premise is scientific research or cultural, I will call garbage because we are NOT short of food and cultures change.
Just like dolphin kills or shark fin catching or wearing fur.
These backward people need to be targeted as hard as possible.
Good on the shepherd.

I agree but you know whaling still goes on in many other countries..
Iceland and Norway are the big ones but there are a few more including Canada and the United States..
Though most of theirs is through the Inuit people..
Indonesia also hunt whale in some villages..

reply to post by backinblack


yeah I know... But on far far different levels and while I still hate it, one whale in Inuit culture cannot be compared to a country that has more food than people yet who send ships out to catch a quota.

you have to agree, there is a difference.

I hate it all, I think whales deserve a god damned break, seeing as they have been hunted so long. They are aware creatures.. Oh but here I am entering another topic, so I wont.

Any country that sends ships out to catch a quota of whales, despite having a food supply that already feeds their populace, is indulgent and this is sickening to me.

we don't need to eat random things. We already sustain ourselves with an abhorrently killed food supply.

I've never understood people's fixation on whales as a food source. The sufferings of factory-farmed cows and chickens are generally worse, all things told, so why don't we hear more about that? These sea shepards should be obstructing the gates of a chicken farm if they really want to allivate serious animal suffering on planet earth.

Originally posted by silent thunder
I've never understood people's fixation on whales as a food source. The sufferings of factory-farmed cows and chickens are generally worse, all things told, so why don't we hear more about that? These sea shepards should be obstructing the gates of a chicken farm if they really want to allivate serious animal suffering on planet earth.

edit on 2/18/11 by silent thunder because: (no reason given)

True in part but it's also survival of the species..
Some of the whales the Japanese hunt are very low in numbers..
And worse, they don't even have a market for what they kill..It's being stockpiled..

Great!

Thanks for saving the whales.

Thanks to Greenpeace, thanks to people in NZ, thanks to everyone.

It just goes to show that a few small people hanging in there can overcome a huge power when the cause is right.

reply to post by backinblack


Here in Alaska the Inuit harvest whales for subsistence. But they also use every single part of the whale. I just think of the Japanese cutting up whales for what they call "research" and alot of it probably ends up wasted.

Honestly, How many whales need to die for "research" purposes though? This is my primary beef with the whole Japanese whaling operation.

Also, conducting research on a species by killing it and cutting it into a million pieces is hypocrisy. You can't honestly call that real science, right? If you kill off the species the research isn't going to amount to much. I just fail to see why hundreds/thousands of a single species must be slaughtered for "research" purposes.

It's not like you see the Japanese on the front of Discover magazine for their famous "whale research". What the heck could they possibly be doing that would require killing so many whales?

I wasn't really knocking the crew of the Sea Shepherd in my post. I just don't watch the TV show.

-ChriS

reply to post by BlasteR


Hi, Blast,

I feel so privileged to talk to you.

Yes, it is ok to use whales as food etc ( even tho I don't like the design of the universe) but you are so right about the Japanese. And the Chinese.

Take care up there.

reply to post by catwhoknowsplusone

Yes, it is ok to use whales as food etc ( even tho I don't like the design of the universe) but you are so right about the Japanese. And the Chinese.

I wouldn't say the Chinese..They waste NOTHING..
They could teach us a few things about optimizing what's available..
We watse so much,,

Just get an armed escort ship. Maybe some light armaments on the whalers too. That'll solve the problem.

reply to post by backinblack


We are sitting here asleep, while the Chinese take over this world.

We need someone to wake up.

Saying they will cancel these whaling trips is one thing...

Doing it is another.

Beware the false information to fool people into going about their business.

"These aren't the whales you're looking for"

The Australian government has been going the Japanese for years about whaling,funny thing is they allow aboriginals to hunt protected Dugongs (manatees type creatures) in northern Australia,The aboriginals claim some crap about it being traditional,funny thing is i have never seen a cave painting showing an aluminium boat with an outboard motor on it ,oh and the are allowed to hunt endangered turtles as well,tradition? traditionally cruel maybe
Warning some peeps may find this disturbing
www.fiveaa.com.au...

have they rebuilt the stealth shepherd after last years sinking ?
That was a beautiful machine - saw it in Constitution Dock (hobart) before it went out.

reply to post by lavenlaar


Nice photo! I dun know if they ever repaired it but I remember seeing the video of it being rammed by the Japanese ship and ripped to shreads.

I would imagine doing repairs like that would be more expensive that buying a whole new ship

Also depends on what the thing is made of. If it's made of or reinforced with carbon fiber then it's pretty much a waste of time to try repairing it.

-ChriS

The whalers are fools. I can only hope activists apply pressure until whaling is banned period.

What kind of poor desperate person would feel the need to murder these gentile giants?