This is an issue that I feel very strongly about (not to mention the slaughter of ANY endangered species), and I'm sure a lot of others here do too given the nature-loving peace-loving foundation that is the stem of icmag. 
It's a tricky one to talk about because it can easly get so political - politics are after-all at the crux of this issue. But I also believe if you feel strongly enough about something then it's better to speak up about it than sit back and do nothing.
The Japanese are in my opinion a beautiful, noble and remarkable people - terms like honor, manners/politeness, quality food, advanced robotics and car/engine design etc immediately spring to mind (just to name a few), and I have nothing but respect for them and their culture.
But that's why I find this so surprising! Basically their only "flaw" as I see it, is that they still commence whaling, and not only that but they do it under the blatantly obvious fake guise of "research" when the entire world knows it's simply for meat. There is an International Moratorium against whaling, yet Japan continues to blatantly disregard that under the nose of every other country uder the name of "research".
[PHOTOS/VIDEOS] - I could include hundreds of photos and animated gifs of whales with harpoons in them, part of their body missing with blood spewing everywhere, struggling with their last breaths of life, but I won't -- you've all seen the footage before of how Japan conducts this "research"/meat gathering
The world KNOWS there is no science in Japans annual whale slaughter - there never has been before, and Australia and New Zealand will soon be releasing scientific data - without having to blow up any whales using grenade-tipped harpoons.
Perhaps out-researching them using non-lethal methods is the only way to finally put an end to this blatant endangered whaleburger meat harvest?
Endangered? Yes - ENDANGERED SPECIES are not spared either - Japan proactively targets endangered Fin Whales annually, which they do not deny. The world is still yet to see any science results from these slaughters, although you can find the meat at various burger shops around Tokyo and taste for yourself their scientific value.
A lot of Japanese people are against whaling, and whale meat isn't even very popular in Japan - indeed even the current Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama says "I hate whale meat", yet there is still such a determination from Japan to keep putting whale meat on their menus.
Australia by the way is Japans #1 trading partner, so this issue pops up every year with a lot of passion from both camps. It's an issue we can quickly and easily solve simply by letting these beautiful endangered species live in peace. Us humans have plenty of meat to eat already - we don't need to slaughter endangered whales.
What's particularly frustrating to me is that most of these kills are happening in waters that have been internationally recognised as Australian for over a century, but our government is playing this so cautiously.
One good proactive measure however is that Japan's whaling fleet has been banned from docking in Australian ports for several years now, but that seems more symbolic than anything as it's just an inconvenience for them - it doesn't stop them at all from slaughtering whales in our oceans.
Please discuss, but please keep your thoughts civil and foremost PEACEFUL, because a PEACEFUL and mutually-agreed end to this is what all parties need, and is what's in the best interest of the whales.
It's a tricky one to talk about because it can easly get so political - politics are after-all at the crux of this issue. But I also believe if you feel strongly enough about something then it's better to speak up about it than sit back and do nothing.
The Japanese are in my opinion a beautiful, noble and remarkable people - terms like honor, manners/politeness, quality food, advanced robotics and car/engine design etc immediately spring to mind (just to name a few), and I have nothing but respect for them and their culture.
But that's why I find this so surprising! Basically their only "flaw" as I see it, is that they still commence whaling, and not only that but they do it under the blatantly obvious fake guise of "research" when the entire world knows it's simply for meat. There is an International Moratorium against whaling, yet Japan continues to blatantly disregard that under the nose of every other country uder the name of "research".
[PHOTOS/VIDEOS] - I could include hundreds of photos and animated gifs of whales with harpoons in them, part of their body missing with blood spewing everywhere, struggling with their last breaths of life, but I won't -- you've all seen the footage before of how Japan conducts this "research"/meat gathering
The world KNOWS there is no science in Japans annual whale slaughter - there never has been before, and Australia and New Zealand will soon be releasing scientific data - without having to blow up any whales using grenade-tipped harpoons.
Perhaps out-researching them using non-lethal methods is the only way to finally put an end to this blatant endangered whaleburger meat harvest?
Endangered? Yes - ENDANGERED SPECIES are not spared either - Japan proactively targets endangered Fin Whales annually, which they do not deny. The world is still yet to see any science results from these slaughters, although you can find the meat at various burger shops around Tokyo and taste for yourself their scientific value.
A lot of Japanese people are against whaling, and whale meat isn't even very popular in Japan - indeed even the current Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama says "I hate whale meat", yet there is still such a determination from Japan to keep putting whale meat on their menus.
Australia by the way is Japans #1 trading partner, so this issue pops up every year with a lot of passion from both camps. It's an issue we can quickly and easily solve simply by letting these beautiful endangered species live in peace. Us humans have plenty of meat to eat already - we don't need to slaughter endangered whales.
What's particularly frustrating to me is that most of these kills are happening in waters that have been internationally recognised as Australian for over a century, but our government is playing this so cautiously.
One good proactive measure however is that Japan's whaling fleet has been banned from docking in Australian ports for several years now, but that seems more symbolic than anything as it's just an inconvenience for them - it doesn't stop them at all from slaughtering whales in our oceans.
Please discuss, but please keep your thoughts civil and foremost PEACEFUL, because a PEACEFUL and mutually-agreed end to this is what all parties need, and is what's in the best interest of the whales.
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