Whale Wars (1 Viewer)

[Jaysus]

thank you sir.

 

[GregR]

Did a little research and here are some interesting links for the present situation.

The Whale Wars episode was what happened in the beginning of 2013, so about 9 months ago. The Japanese Antarctic Whaling fleet left dock a week ago on Dec 9 to head south for the next whaling season. Sea Shepherd say they hope to intercept them closer to Japan this time.

In Japan, most people are undecided where they stand on the whale hunt, with 26.8% supporting the hunt and 18.5% against and the rest undecided. Few people are actually consuming whale meet anymore though, with 88% saying they have not bought any in the last 12 months. In addition, according to reports, 3/4 of the whale meat that Japan took last year went unsold. 1,211 tons of whale meat were taken (including areas outside of the Antarctic) and 908 tons went unsold.

This year the Japanese quota is 950 minke whales and 50 fin whales.

Meanwhile, Australia filed a case before the International Court of Justice seeking a moratorium on the Japanese whaling in the Antarctic which is allowed for "scientific research", saying it was instead a commercial whaling operation rather than a scientific as it "lacked defined and achievable objectives, appropriate methods, peer review and unnecessarily killed the stock being studied". They are hoping for a ruling in time to stop the coming whaling season.

Good on ya, Australia. Hope they win.

 

[Rayderr]

Sea Shepherd activists say they disrupted Japan's whale hunt in Antarctic watersBy Jethro Mullen, CNN
updated 2:33 AM EST, Tue January 7, 2014
(CNN) -- Environmental activists have declared an early success at the start of their annual high seas showdown with Japanese whalers in Antarctic waters.

The anti-whaling group Sea Shepherd Australia said its ships had split up the Japanese fleet in the Southern Ocean and chased it out of the main Antarctic zone.

"The whale poaching fleet is scattered and currently not hunting whales," Sea Shepherd said in a statement Monday.

But Japanese authorities say the hunt is still on.

Japan's fleet carries out an annual whale hunt despite a worldwide moratorium, taking advantage of a loophole in the law that permits the killing of the mammals for scientific research. Whale meat is commonly available for consumption in Japan.

Each year, environmental groups like Sea Shepherd pursue the Japanese hunters in an attempt to disrupt the whaling. The resulting confrontations have led to collisions of ships and the detention of activists.

Sea Shepherd said Monday that the Japanese fleet's harpoon ships are "separated by hundreds of miles." The factory ship, the Nisshin Maru, is "on the run," the environmental group claimed.

It said its three ships had ushered the Japanese fleet out of the Antarctic Treaty Zone, the internationally designated area below 60 degrees south latitude.

"Within a day and a half, we have the entire whaling fleet in disarray," said Siddarth Chakravarty, the captain of one of the Sea Shepherd ships.

Japan's Fisheries Agency, which oversees the annual hunt, said Tuesday that the whaling operation has not been halted.

It said the fleet remains in the Southern Ocean, which is generally considered to cover a similar area to the Antarctic Treaty Zone.

The agency declined to comment specifically on Sea Shepherd's claims or on the fleet's exact whereabouts.

On Monday, Sea Shepherd published photos and videos that it said showed three harpooned Minke whales lying on the deck of the Nisshin Maru and another being butchered.

The Australian government has challenged the Japanese whaling program in the International Court of Justice.

But the current hunt will continue, and Sea Shepherd activists say they'll continue to fight it.

"We have won this battle," said Adam Meyerson, another of the group's ship captains. "But the war for the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary will wage on over the coming months."

 

[Fat Nick]

So I have to give it to these crazy tree whale huggers...After watching the Dec. 13th episode, I feel like a few of them really are living up to the credo of being "willing to die for the whales." That said, I personally think they're nuts, and very incompetent in general...but you can't deny the effectiveness of Hammerstead's actions. It's true that their new reputation of not backing down will make things harder for the whalers...until the day that they actually sink one of the SS's vessels, and/or somebody dies. Then the s### will really hit the fan. As they noted, it's basically about who has the bigger balls at the moment. Whomever backs down first loses. The issue is that the whaling fleet has superior equipment. The SS's fleet can't withstand all the "battles" if both sides refuse to back down.

 

[Rayderr]

U.N. court orders Japan to halt whale hunt

By Saeed Ahmed, CNN
updated 7:21 AM EDT, Mon March 31, 2014

(CNN) -- The International Court of Justice ruled Monday that Japan can no longer continue its annual whale hunt, rejecting the country's argument that it was for scientific purposes.

"Japan shall revoke any extant authorization, permit or license granted in relation to JARPA II, and refrain from granting any further permits in pursuance of that program," the court said, referring to the research program.

The International Court of Justice is the principal judicial organ of the United Nations.

Japan's fleet carries out an annual whale hunt despite a worldwide moratorium, taking advantage of a loophole in the law that permits the killing of the mammals for scientific research. Whale meat is commonly available for consumption in Japan.

Each year, environmental groups such as Sea Shepherd pursue the Japanese hunters in an attempt to disrupt the whaling. The resulting confrontations have led to collisions of ships and the detention of activists.

The Australian government challenged the Japanese whaling program in the International Court of Justice, leading to Monday's ruling.

 

[Doctor Detroit]

Nice job Australia, too bad the U.S. just stands on the sideline on the issue as to not anger the Japanese. I guess none of us could get to work without them.

 

[johnnycakes]

Score one for the hippies... from today's WSJ:

TOKYO—In the first international ruling on Japanese whaling, a United Nations court on Monday determined that the country's research whaling in the Antarctic Ocean isn't in compliance with international agreements—a decision likely to require Japan to significantly scale back its whaling activities.

The Hague-based International Court of Justice said Japan catches far too many whales under its scientific whaling program, which is permitted by the International Whaling Commission but which has been opposed by Australia and New Zealand as a backdoor way to conduct commercial whaling.

The ICJ said killing whales for research in itself is "not unreasonable," leaving room for Japan to continue the program on a smaller scale.

The decadeslong dispute has drawn attention globally, especially as clashes between Japanese whalers and the anti-whaling Sea Shepherd Conservation Society become more confrontational, with ships colliding at sea and putting crew members' safety at risk.

Neither side seems willing to back down. Japan insists on maintaining its whaling tradition, while Australia opposes all whaling, whether commercial or scientific.

Japan expressed disappointment about the verdict, but said it would abide by the judgment "as a state that places great importance on the international legal order and the rule of law."

Sea Shepherd declared victory. The ICJ "has taken a fair and just stance on the right side of history," it said in a statement. The Japan Whaling Association declined to comment, saying it needs to see how the Japanese government responds to the verdict.

In the year ended March 2013, Japan caught 422 whales in the Antarctic and the northern Pacific—285 minke whales, 100 sei whales, 34 bryde's whales and three sperm whales. The total was more than a third of the 2005 catch of 1,238, reflecting the difficulties of Antarctic whaling in the face of Sea Shepherd's persistent obstruction.

Scientific whaling is a costly undertaking. To take broad samples of the whale population, the fleet has to canvass wide areas and catch various species, instead of just a few large species living in concentrated areas. The expedition is made possible only with financial support from the government.

"Whale meat used to be the least expensive source of protein for Japanese, especially during periods of food shortages after World War II," explained Kazuo Yamamura, chairman of the whaling association. Now, most supermarket chains don't carry it, mainly for fear of a backlash from foreign shareholders. Consumption of whale meat has fallen significantly in the past few decades.

Commercial whaling was suspended by the International Whaling Commission in 1982, but that decision is disputed by Japan, Norway and Iceland on the grounds it isn't based on scientific data. They argue that some whales aren't endangered and can be sustainably harvested. Norway and Iceland have rejected the moratorium and resumed commercial whaling, while Japan conducts scientific whaling to demonstrate there are sufficient whale stocks.

Of the three countries, Japan has been a particular target of antiwhaling groups because it operates in the Antarctic, the "backyard" of the most vocal whaling opponents, Australia and New Zealand.

Despite their protests, Japan has refused to back down, concerned that giving ground could weaken its position in other areas, including the northern Pacific, coastal whaling by local communities, and access to tuna and other fish stocks in international waters, Japanese officials say.

 

[El Floppo]

Ok... now let's get those guys back out there to look for the missing plane. And to clean up some of that garbage.

 

[Rayderr]

Ok... now let's get those guys back out there to look for the missing plane. And to clean up some of that garbage.

Pretty sure the plane didn't make it to the Antarctic ocean or that the bumbling Sea Shepherds would be good at finding a plane.

 

[El Floppo]

Ok... now let's get those guys back out there to look for the missing plane. And to clean up some of that garbage.

Pretty sure the plane didn't make it to the Antarctic ocean or that the bumbling Sea Shepherds would be good at finding a plane.

Considering how close they got to the whaling fleet so muhc of the time- I think the South Indian Ocean is close enough for them.

But yeah. How about just keeping them on garbage duty. That would make for some good built in drama as they ram cruise-ships tossing crap over board.

 

[johnnycakes]

Yes!! 3-hour special Whale Wars January 2 at 8pm.

 

[Reegus]

Yes!! 3-hour special Whale Wars January 2 at 8pm.

Is this show about Otis and his wife's sex life?

 

[The Commish]

Yes!! 3-hour special Whale Wars January 2 at 8pm.

Is this show about Otis and his wife's sex life?

I can't imagine how much time, effort and money it would take to get 3 hours on Otis' sex life

 

[The Commish]

The previous episodes are on as a "marathon" right now

 

[Rayderr]

DirecTv has the 1st hour of the special on demand. Kinda curious how it goes.

Spoiler

Sea Shepherds well back to tripping over their own feet in the first hour.

 

[GregR]

DirecTv has the 1st hour of the special on demand. Kinda curious how it goes.

Spoiler

Sea Shepherds well back to tripping over their own feet in the first hour.

Hey, when a show has a plot that works, they stick with it!

 

[renesauz]

Sea Shepherd folks are crazy, and a bit over-zealous. There's no denying that Japan had been working an end-around the treaties and laws, but the truth is that they really weren't taking enough whales to be worth all the trouble, dollars, and risks taken by these eco-terrorists. The overwhelming majority of the whales they were taking were Minke's, which have a stable and healthy population which was not being remotely threatened by the fairly low quotas Japan gave.

There are MUCH MUCH better ecological battles to fight that are far more worthy of the time and resources that were spent on this.

 

[El Floppo]

Interesting article on their hunt of a "most-wanted" illegal fishing boat in the NYT.

 

[johnnycakes]

What a bunch of pains in the ###. If one didn't have to be vegetarian, I'd consider joining them for a while.

 

[Jaysus]

Interesting article on their hunt of a "most-wanted" illegal fishing boat in the NYT.

Great read, thanks for sharing.

 

[Fat Nick]

Good read. Thanks.

I have to say - I think after Hammerstead took over the helm, these guys actually seem to be doing a much better, more professional job. I think Captain Watson was a bit too much of a rebel for his own good. He wasn't rational in what he thought he could do.

 

[IC FBGCav]

Good read. Thanks.

I have to say - I think after Hammerstead took over the helm, these guys actually seem to be doing a much better, more professional job. I think Captain Watson was a bit too much of a rebel for his own good. He wasn't rational in what he thought he could do.

That is because he would get blitzed in his room, grab the helm drunk and ram things.

 

[Fat Nick]

Good read. Thanks.

I have to say - I think after Hammerstead took over the helm, these guys actually seem to be doing a much better, more professional job. I think Captain Watson was a bit too much of a rebel for his own good. He wasn't rational in what he thought he could do.

That is because he would get blitzed in his room, grab the helm drunk and ram things.

Starchild Moonbeam Peace Lilly says: "But he's so brave!"

 

[Rayderr]

Good read. Thanks.

I have to say - I think after Hammerstead took over the helm, these guys actually seem to be doing a much better, more professional job. I think Captain Watson was a bit too much of a rebel for his own good. He wasn't rational in what he thought he could do.

That is because he would get blitzed in his room, grab the helm drunk and ram things.

The first couple episodes I ever watched were in the middle of a season so I had no idea who anyone was. I seriously thought Paul was just the owner of the boat who had to tag along due to some maritime rules about having a licensed captain on board so he just sat in the back drinking his ### off the whole time.

 

[AAABatteries]

Is this the new Otis v. Woz weight loss thread?

 

[Doctor Detroit]

Is this the new Otis v. Woz weight loss thread?

 

[IC FBGCav]

Whales lose.

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-australia-41078698