It's on! Sea Shepherd has Japanese whalers on the run

[Charlie99]

Per the Sea Shepherd press release:

"As the Steve Irwin came alongside the starboard side of the Kaiko Maru, the whaler steered hard to starboard and struck the Steve Irwin lightly crushing part of the aft port helicopter deck guard rails on the Sea Shepherd ship. There was no serious damage to either ship. "

Eventually Paul Watson will get someone killed.

(After watching a few of the Whale Wars episodes, I can't bring myself to call him CAPTAIN Watson)

 

[Geoff_H]

Paul Watson needs arresting; he is breaking international marttime law and recklessly endangering peoples lives.

Obviously he has no evidence that the Japanese were fishing in the Australian waters otherwise he would have presented it.

 

[wardric]

 

[DennisS]

Per the Sea Shepherd press release:

"As the Steve Irwin came alongside the starboard side of the Kaiko Maru, the whaler steered hard to starboard and struck the Steve Irwin lightly crushing part of the aft port helicopter deck guard rails on the Sea Shepherd ship. There was no serious damage to either ship. "

Eventually Paul Watson will get someone killed.

(After watching a few of the Whale Wars episodes, I can't bring myself to call him CAPTAIN Watson)

If Paul Watson's stupidity gets someone killed, he'll claim it was the fault of the japanese whalers.

 

[Mr.X]

Overview: The Sea Shepherds are there to harass the Japanese whalers. Plain and simple. This reduces the numbers of whales caught under the IWC loophole of (International Whaling Commission) scientific research. There has been a significant reduction in the intended % of Minke whales caught during the campaigns.

Some observations: The Japanese whaling fleet has a very expensive, well maintained fleet. It's incredibly expensive to mount a multi-boat research project in the middle of nowhere for questionable data. Of course, selling the meat you "analyze" may make good on some expenses. That being said - No one needs to butcher 1000+ whales to get more data. The extant data from several years of Antarctic hunting show specific trends. So no real need to go out there and hunt. So the question remains - "Why go hunting?" My thoughts:

1. The CEO's of some Japanese fishing corporations do not like to lose face - regardless of cost, safety, or public opinion
2. Multibillion dollar industries can easily write off losses from minor whaling ventures to the Antarctic
3. The lives of whales are a low-priority item for many governments with the rare exception of AU, NZ, & UK.

So, while we watch the Sea Shepherds on Animal Planet please consider why this event is even occurring in the first place. Also, consider that there are two sides to every story.

X

 

[Geoff_H]

Hunt whales; save the krill?

 

[Teamcasa]

So, while we watch the Sea Shepherds on Animal Planet please consider why this event is even occurring in the first place. Also, consider that there are two sides to every story.

X

Two things I've learned about Paul Watson while watching the show.

The first being that killing those whales is awful and it is painfully obvious that the IWC needs to evaluate the language that permits the hunt in the first place.

Secondly, Paul Watson, while IÃÎ sure he and his cohorts have good intentions, his foolhardy, reckless and deceptive practices (at least what IÃ×e seen on Whale Wars), are surly going to get some well-meaning volunteer killed. But his press releases will not reflect that the whaling fleet murdered the crewmember during some heroic feat by the deceased.

 

[Mr.X]

Two things I've learned about Paul Watson while watching the show.

The first being that killing those whales is awful and it is painfully obvious that the IWC needs to evaluate the language that permits the hunt in the first place.

Secondly, Paul Watson, while IÃÎ sure he and his cohorts have good intentions, his foolhardy, reckless and deceptive practices (at least what IÃ×e seen on Whale Wars), are surly going to get some well-meaning volunteer killed. But his press releases will not reflect that the whaling fleet murdered the crewmember during some heroic feat by the deceased.

The language of diplomacy is occluded when you have toothless organization like the IWC. Any country that can opt out of general agreements doesn't exactly lend credibility to a "worldwide" management organization. The buying of votes by Japan is dirty politics at its best.

Agreed. The exploits of both parties are dangerous and exacerbates what is already a dangerous activity - hunting / protecting whales with big metal boats out in the middle of nowhere in some of the most hazardous waters on planet Earth. One crew member on the Japanese side died a few years back in a Nissin Maru engine room disaster. This did not occur during a confrontation.

As per press releases - both sides jockey for an advantage. I doubt we will get any objective information until official stats. are posted after the Antarctic campaign is finished - # of whale kills.

X

 

[Teamcasa]

The language of diplomacy is occluded when you have toothless organization like the IWC. Any country that can opt out of general agreements doesn't exactly lend credibility to a "worldwide" management organization. The buying of votes by Japan is dirty politics at its best.

If they are indeed a toothless organization (I don't know for for a fact one way or the other) and the certainly appear so, then something should be done about that first.

 

[Mr.X]

If they are indeed a toothless organization (I don't know for for a fact one way or the other) and the certainly appear so, then something should be done about that first.

I agree!

The IWC is a voluntary organization which cannot enforce conservation. Therefore scientific whaling and aboriginal subsistence whaling still occurs. This is why you can buy some whale products in Alaska. Some countries which have opted out of IWC conservation agreements have created their own whale "conservation" organizations. An example is NAMMCO created by Norway, Iceland etc. The North Atlantic Marine Mammal Commission

On a more local level - laws enacted by larger countries like the USA have influenced others. A significant law was the Magnunson-Stevens act and the latest amendments which penalize foreign fisheries and possible trade. One major whaling nation that dropped out during 70's was Russia due to legislation and overall operating costs. The Russian boats were pretty much complete rust buckets.

If anything, the current economy might affect what is a very expensive, low-rewards operation for the Japanese fishing industry. It's a perfect face-saving out for the CEO's.

X