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

[letterboy]

both ships have the right to defend themselves but neither would have to defend itself if the other wasn't trying to disrupt operations . . . maybe the seashepard should go stop the pirates off of somolia. . .

 

[cdreamer]

The Japanese do have ships that are faster than the "Steve Irwin",
and IMHO they are not that innocent. Yes, they are having their "research"
disrupted and are clearly venting their frustrations, but it takes two parties
to have a confrontation. They are all out there playing a dangerous game of
chicken and if someone does get hurt - they are all responsible.

 

[D_B]

I wonder how that would play out in a court?

... The Japanese being attacked and harassed by other parties, and someone gets hurt?

You think that a judge would say it's the whalers fault ??

 

[Geoff_H]

The Japanese do have ships that are faster than the "Steve Irwin",
and IMHO they are not that innocent.

Your logic is amazing. Can you describe it to me?

If you were going shopping for some beef (or whale meat?) and I didn't agree with your legal right to do so, can I harrass, intimidate and try to stop you going shopping?

And you would be "not that innocent" in this situation? Even if you had a faster car than me?

 

[Mr.X]

Your logic is amazing. Can you describe it to me?

If you were going shopping for some beef (or whale meat?) and I didn't agree with your legal right to do so, can I harrass, intimidate and try to stop you going shopping?

And you would be "not that innocent" in this situation? Even if you had a faster car than me?

There are contextual differences between shopping for food & driving a car vs. harpooning whales under a BS "scientific banner" and outmanning/outmaneuvering a single boat (Irwin). I think we all know this.

That being said, if both of them keep this up someone will get seriously hurt. More than having blubber flung at you from some irate crew member. What I wish I knew was how the crew members felt about the whole thing. Not, the captain, political commissar, or Robo-PR chick assigned to the ship. In my experience, regular folks (Russian crew members and families) had no stomach for this stuff and quietly wished for a cessation of whaling. People are people and I bet the whaling fleets do not have a high return of original conscripts.

X

 

[Geoff_H]

AFAIK the helicopter has never attacked a ship.

YouTube - Sea Shepherd attempts to block whale transfer

here is a the video that I meant to put up.

For anyone who didn't watch this:

The video quite clearly shows the Steve Irwin delibrately ramming a Japanese ship hard in the open seas, forcing the Japanese boat to a strong starboard list before it manages to disengage and free itself.

There is no way these tactics can be described as legitimate - the antics of the Steve Irwin are dangerous, criminal and completely unacceptable.

 

[Mr.X]

For anyone who didn't watch this:

The video quite clearly shows the Steve Irwin delibrately ramming a Japanese ship hard in the open seas, forcing the Japanese boat to a strong starboard list before it manages to disengage and free itself.

There is no way these tactics can be described as legitimate - the antics of the Steve Irwin are dangerous, criminal and completely unacceptable.

Pretty spectacular stuff...not in a nice way. That being said, the edited video clip originates from a whaling boat. I'd like to see the whole thing from start to finish as the text in the Youtube video indicates that the Irwin was being bombarded by sonic waves, high pressure water cannons and debris from the whaling vessel. This might affect piloting of the boat. I'm trying to be objective here, but at the same time I have little sympathy for damaged whaling hardware.


X

 

[lemon]

I hope they sink those whaling ships.

 

[Geoff_H]

That being said, the edited video clip originates from a whaling boat. I'd like to see the whole thing from start to finish as the text in the Youtube video indicates that the Irwin was being bombarded by sonic waves, high pressure water cannons and debris from the whaling vessel. This might affect piloting of the boat.

Come on.... that is the most opimistic assessment I can imagine. Funnily enough ships don't have their steering affected while being sprayed by water, or by lots of noise.

If you are thinking the pilot was somehow disorientated then I would suggest the rational course of action in that case would be to cut power to the engines and get some distance from the noise, not rev up to full throttle and steer right into another ship.

 

[D_B]

I hope they sink those whaling ships.

another one of those "at any cost" people