Comments | ontd_political: Australian PM threatens legal action against Japan over whaling

someidiot in ontd_political

Australian PM threatens legal action against Japan over whaling

Dec 13, 2009 10:06

Australian PM threatens legal action against Japan over whaling
Friday 11th December, 02:01 PM JST

SYDNEY - Australia’s prime minister threatened legal action against Japan on Friday if it does not stop its research program that ( kills up to 1,000 whales a year. )

Comments 21

fauxparadiso December 13 2009, 18:31:22 UTC

I never know where to stand on this. Question though: Even though the Japanese hunt whales, are they really doing so with no regard to species' survial chances? It just seems illogical that they would hunt whales to death if they eat them.

someidiot December 13 2009, 18:51:00 UTC

I would hope so, but... if that's the case, then why isn't Okada saying that as part of Japan's defense?

fauxparadiso December 13 2009, 18:56:33 UTC

IDK. TBH I fell into the "Well it's their culture, who are you to ban them from what they eat" defense for a while and it's probably one of the first things that comes to mind for a bunch of people. But yeah, if they're smart they'll back up their defense with scientific evidence.

topazera December 13 2009, 20:00:49 UTC

See also: bluefin tuna. It's the tragedy of the commons in action, when demand is high and populations are low, that just means a high profit margin and people take advantage of that.

Honestly, for a lot of oceanic species, it's so hard to say just how threatened they are because there's so many factors involved: Overfishing/whaling, global warming, acidification, other pollution, etc. Fin whales, which the Japanese still kill, are most definitely endangered. Minke whales, which make up the majority of the Japanese hunt and are the most robust baleen whale left, are often cited by the 1990 population numbers but when many areas were re-surveyed more recently, only half the expected number were found. More research is always needed and not the Japanese slaughter disguised as "research".

lu_shuang December 13 2009, 18:40:03 UTC

Has anyone else watched The Cove? It has made me so angry about Japan and all the whaling stuff, not to mention that all the whale and dolphin meat is mercury laden and they are selling it to their own people :(

_xaipe_ December 13 2009, 21:26:29 UTC

I thought of The Cove too when I read this post. :(

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someidiot December 13 2009, 18:52:07 UTC

They don't need whales, though! Everyone knows that eel makes the most delicious sushi ever. ♥

playthefool December 13 2009, 20:58:04 UTC

I'm here to agree with you and think fondly about the next time I'll eat unagi... :X

blunder_buss December 14 2009, 15:15:41 UTC

Oh man I ate eel sushi for AGES until discovering what it was. Mmmm, so good.

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castalianspring December 13 2009, 19:48:41 UTC

...well, lots actually depending on the animal, but whales and similar animals should never ever be on that list. I hate that they do this and get off on a technicality.

topazera December 13 2009, 19:14:04 UTC

Please, please put some teeth in this and actually pursue legal action! For me personally, there's no way to discuss this topic without emotion. Whaling is one of those things that fills me with such utter rage whenever it comes up. It's wrong and there's no cultural justification for it, there's no place for it at all in today's world.