Posted on 01/08/2009 5:41:49 AM PST by Abathar
SYDNEY (AFP) – Militant environmentalists harassing Japan's whaling fleet in the Antarctic will be allowed to refuel their ship in Australia despite a plea from Tokyo, according to the government.
Japan has asked Australia and other countries to ban the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society vessel the Steve Irwin from docking, accusing the activists of "sabotage".
Acting Prime Minister Julia Gillard said that while no request to dock had yet been received from the Steve Irwin, which is on its way to the southern Australian city of Hobart, there was no reason to keep the ship out.
"Should such a request be received, then the Steve Irwin will be permitted to dock at an Australian port. There is insufficient reason to prevent the Steve Irwin from doing that," she told reporters.
Paul Watson, captain of the Steve Irwin, has said the ship expects to refuel in Hobart on January 15 after more than two weeks pursuing the Japanese whalers through the Southern Ocean.
This is the fifth year Sea Shepherd activists have trailed the whalers and attempted to impede their hunt, prompting the Japanese government-backed Institute of Cetacean Research to accuse them of "eco-terrorism".
The whaling group said on Wednesday that the Sea Shepherd vessel had used a distress signal sent in the search for a missing Japanese crewman to track down the fleet and had then attempted to disrupt rescue efforts.
But Watson denied the accusations and said they were only trying to help.
Australia opposes Japanese whaling, but Gillard stressed that protests at sea should not put lives in danger.
"What we have said to the Steve Irwin is ... that when the Steve Irwin is in the Southern Ocean that is obviously a dangerous stretch of water, it's very far removed from land," said Gillard.
(Excerpt) Read more at news.yahoo.com ...
There are certain species of whales that even Greenpeace admits could be harvested each year without cutting into their birth/death ratios if done properly.
I don't see the difference between harvesting whales or harvesting salmon. Regulate it conservatively and let the resources be used. I know we over-harvested 100+ years ago, but why are plentiful whales off limits? Are they special or different than any other mammal we eat?
The Australian magnetic barnacle has a preference for Greenpeace hulls. Once the barnacle is firmly attached to the hull, its’ explosive breeding cycle begins. Very unique in nature.
yup I pretty much root for the whalers.....I hunt and eat the meat I hunt. I do not hunt threatened or endangered species and suspect the japanese do not either....
Are they special or different than any other mammal we eat?In my opinion, yes. In the same way that monkeys and apes are special, or that dogs are special.
Koreans eating dogs are hideous mindless savages, in my opinion.
The same goes for Africans eating primates.
And for Japanese eating whales.
That's just my opinion and I'm sure I'll be flamed for it and I'm not going to get in a big argument about it because it's not my "thing", just my opinion, and it's not my reason for being on FR, to hawk "animal rights" (which I don't even believe in, I believe in "animal welfare" not "animal rights").
But since this thread is here I'm just stating my opinion and then not speaking up on this issue anymore.
Over and out.
Fair enough, everyone is entitled to their opinion and this one seems to be polarizing at best.
Ive watched Whale wars and like other posters im sure i felt like stealing a battle ship and sink a few 18’ shells into the Steve. Im Suprised the Japs have let this go as long as they have they should send naval escorts with the whaling fleet for now on
In my opinion, it is time for the Japanese Maritime Self Defense Force to defend its fishing fleet and send the pirate ship Steve Irwin to the deep. I would not shed a tear for her crew of overgrown hippies.
They are infected by the same disease which the Republicans are ... "NoBalls-itis"
I tend to agree. When you consider the intelligence level of these mammals, it is like eating a primate. The Japanese whalers have been know to take illegal numbers of whales in the past and the means of doing so is quite cruel. There is no real need to harvest whales for their oil in light of the development of synthetic oils and protien can be had from other meat sources. This to me is the same as harvesting sharks for their fins (shark fin soup anyone?) and then throwing them back in the sea to die. I hate PETA and the crap that they espouse, but I think the basic reverence for life applies here. Anyone who is an avid scuba diver as I am has a real sense of awe concerning these animals.
Like the saying goes; if God does not judge us He should apologize to Sodom and Gomorrah.
I watched one episode of Whale Wars and was wondering why they don’t just sink the bastards.
Looked like sabotage and piracy, to me.
“We’re not a protest organization, we’re a policing organization,” Paul Watson has said of his Sea Shepherd Conservation Society (SSCS).
SSCS’s mission is to stop fishing of which it disapproves. Its preferred methods? Ramming and sinking fishing ships, throwing butyric acid on their decks, and firing machine guns. Watson argues that United Nations resolutions authorize him to commit violent acts. But he regularly interferes with fisherman and hunters who are committing no crime. He serves as judge, jury, and executioner — while enjoying the same tax-exempt status as universities and churches.
Some of the animal-rights movement’s most notorious terrorists got their start with SSCS. One of them, convicted arsonist Rodney Coronado, had Watson’s approval to plan and execute an attack on Iceland’s whaling industry. He and a colleague sank two of the fleet’s four ships and destroyed a processing facility.
Joshua Harper has also served as a SSCS crewmember. Harper describes his goal as “the complete collapse of industrial civilization.” A young man with an impressive criminal record...
http://www.activistcash.com/organization_overview.cfm/oid/347
I agree with both of you. I like whales & I am sure I will hear about it too.
“I watched one episode of Whale Wars and was wondering why they don’t just sink the bastards. Looked like sabotage and piracy, to me.”
Likewise. In the one episode I saw the several greeniacs illegally boarded a Japanese whaler at sea, and when taken into custody started screaming to the media that their people were kidnapped and held hostage. Personally I thought the japanese should have thrown the boarders overboard.
I saw them throwing some noxious acid on the deck....chemical weapons use in violation of international treaties.
I saw them try to get a long rope into the propellor....sabotage on the open seas.
I also saw them board the ship....and whine about them holding their man prisoner in violation of international law......shoulda tossed him astern.
What they need is to mount .50 cals on all sides....and then have the sack to use them on the aggressive boats......just start putting holes in ‘em when they get close....blow the engines...put ‘em out of commission.
I won't knock anyone's love of whales and anti-whaling sentiment, but the methods the Sea Shepherds use are illegal, and risk human lives. they value whales above humans. Their mission might be "saintly" but they and their methods certainly are not. They are, plain & simple, ecoterrorists.
Don’t look now, but most of the meat we eat comes from mammals.
Actualy, wasn’t it the French who developed and tested that barnacle on one of Green Peace’s vessels at the dock a few years ago??
It is a big ocean out there and ships sink all the time...
.....Geez these idiots cut across our bow and we could not aviod the collision....
Problem is they have video going all the time. It would require something slightly more covert. I’d love to see the Aussies do to them what the French did to the Rainbow Warrior. Just taking out the trash.
The only war they ever one.
Except the research part, and the meat for consumption.
That is such a beautiful sight!
Steve Watson, captain of the Steve Erwin, was basically kicked out of Greenpeace for being too radical. That’s pretty damn bad, IMO.
Yup.. The French understand a few things and occasionally they remember them.
Thanks. I love watching whales. My ex & I had a charter boat & there were many times whales came under our boat. It was wonderful to be able to be able to see then up close.....I am not against killing fish or animals as long as you use them. I do not believe in overkill & I hated shark fishing. So many guys want to kill any shark & that really bothers me. If its too small or not for eating then let it go free ...
I agree with you. They have people who clearly don’t have a clue what they are doing & have no business being on the sea. I watched the show as it was that or QVC etc as it was late night tv. However I don’t trust Japan to be honest in how many whales they take either but that is just my opinion.
I’m surprised and happy to get agreement on this. I also hate PETA, by the way. I don’t think they are pro-animal as much as they are anti-human.
I really don’t think anyone’s opinion on this thread is much different that which y’all share. That said, I will always think of the Sea Shepherd bunch as scumbags.
Why? I don’t know the story. What did they do?
Their assaults on the Japanese, who are not violating the law. They try to kill the Japanese, and generally harass them, using chemical weapons, and they lie like crazy to the media. If you watched the show Whale Wars, all the footage was from the Sea Shepherd ship, and, being on animal planet, it’s obviously biased for the sea Shepherd bunch, you can still see right through their shenanigans. They have no shame.
In one incident, they had two Sea Shepherd crew members illegally board the Japanese ship, then immediately claim they were being held hostage, a gross misrepresentation of the facts.
I think you missed my point. We are mammals along with apes whales dolphins etc... Maybe it’s cultural or connected to the intelligence level of the animal. In our culture we think of dogs and cats as pets and members of the family, not food. We think nothing of shooting a deer and eating venison. Personally the intelligence factor would make it abhorrent to me to eat whales, apes or dolphins. That being said, maybe members of congress would do better as food than as legislators. Mmmmmm Harry Reid on a spitover the coals!
PETA hater here too.
Since I had a charter boat & have always lived on the water...I have a great respect for the ocean & what can happen. People who don't have a clue have no business being on that boat IMHO. They are a danger to themselves & others. The way those people acted was plain stupid & getting wasted on the sea isn't smart IMHO. I never saw the ending since I fell asleep but I doubt I missed much. The scumbags as you called them seemed to be petty & spoiled, not like any fisherman or sailor I've ever met. In fact I think you called them what they are. I still don't trust Japan not to overkill.
Ok, I can understand research but why the great need to do so much? I think its just an excuse to kill & eat them, but that is just my opinion. I despise them for killing sharks for just their fins & leaving them to drown. We eat shark so why don't they use all of the shark too? I know some sharks aren't too tasty but I think I would prefer it to whale any day.
Yes, I have eaten whale meat, and far prefere it to hot dogs. I ddin’t really enjoy it, but the thought of eating a hot dog makes me want to vomit.
Lots of people don’t like horse meat, i think it’s excelelent.
Whether or not you and I like it, it is a part of the japanese culture, and what they are doing is within the law, in spite of what the scumbag Sea shepherd bunch falsely claim.
Great reply, thank you.
As for overkill, do you mean the quota they are given, or overkilling the species toward the point of driving it toward extinction? I think we know far too little to be able to determine whether either the quota they are given is too much, or if they are, while within the quota, driving the species toawrd extinction. The ocean is far too big tobe able to count them all, and it’s extremely difficult to pinpoint what would constitute the brink of extinction.
Tough questions nobody can really answer 100%.
I'd love to see it, but woudl NOT want to partake in the consumption of such a bitter, grissly and unctuous hunk of slime.
When I used to charter I would get very upset when we did shark tournaments. The local marina's would offer cash prizes & for a fee a bunch of guys would enter & hire our boat. I am sure you know all about that. However once out in the ocean they would get wasted & want to take every shark they would catch, some knowing full well that the shark wasn't going to be a winner. I hated the fact that many of these so called sportsmen thought the only good shark was a dead shark. Finally I forbid beer or alcohol on the boat & encouraged a catch & release plan. I admit there were times I saw a marlin jumping & would hope nobody saw it & turn the boat in another direction. Finally marina fees became too high along with gas & we sold the boat. I wasn't sad to see it go at that point. I love to fish & for me a bluefish can be great fun to catch along with yellow fin tuna. NJ has passed some asinine laws & it is hurting the charter boat business.
Tough questions nobody can really answer 100%.
Very true but we need to watch what happens in our oceans.....Not everyone cares & if there is overkill it takes years to recover.......
I wouldn’t want to partake either, especially since most cannibals believe that if you eat someone you take on some of their characteristics or soul. Yuck!
lmao! But we could import that nasty meat to 3rd world countries & feed the hungry. Hopefully they wouldn't get sick & die. (I am joking of course)
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