‘Whales, Japanese Lies, and Videotapes’ by Captain Paul Watson
http://www.seashepherd.org/editorials/editorial_080308_1.html

Quote Paul Watson;

> Then again, this is the nation that still denies the Rape of Nanking,
> that still denies enslaving Korean and Chinese women as “comfort women,”
> that still denies torturing POW’s during the war, that still denies destroying the
> rainforests of Indonesia and over-fishing the world’s oceans.
> Japanese history is a chronicle of deceptions.

I am a vegan of more than 25 years and vegetarian beyond that. To put my political commitment to the environment and animal rights into context, a friend of a friend and acquaintance of [ xxx ]. Like
many of my generation, although we are entirely against whaling and heartened by Paul Watson’s efforts, if we had to take a position against organizations like the new Greenpeace and yours, it would be for not being animal rights conscious enough.

However, today I read the puerile, chauvinist and ultimately racist statement published by Mr Watson copied above and I am disgusted. You have lost a supporter. Do we really need to stoop to such tabloid
stereotypes to win a war? Do you as an organization really support this?

Who exactly does Mr Watson mean by “the Japanese” … the women, children and peasant classes of Japan who were entirely unenfranchised until after WWII and yet had their own rich culture and history? The Post-War social activists? Or in his tinpot world view, do only the military and male politicians of the Right exist?

I have no interest in supporting racists, racism or this type of low level and androcentric shit and will encourage my friends likewise.

I am not Japanese. I do not support nationalism. To make an enemy of the Japanese people, an entire nation – ignoring Japanese activists in all the above mentioned areas – by such broad sweeping statements is low level ignorance. To invoke nationalistic interest of other nations, who have no specific support of human, environment or animal rights themselves is foolery.

I think Mr Watson needs to study a little bit more history and contemporary Japanese sociology before making such incomplete and biased statements.

http://ca.reuters.com/article/domesticNews/idCAN1436234520080414

http://ca.reuters.com/article/topNews/idCAGOR27824120080412

http://rokdrop.com/2008/01/16/japanese-whaling-update/

I think this one summs up whaling in Ulsan bette.
bin/nn20080209f3.htmlhttp://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/4123826.stm

And,Mac.I don’t think Atlantic whaling would be profitable without government subsidies.

I think Antarctic whaling wouldn’t be a profitable one if there’s no governmental subsidies.

“!but C.W. Nicol is OK by me and Japan.”

Not anymore.
http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nn20080209f3.html

Your Nicol piece is pretty old and inaacurate.Here’s our archenemy BBC’s report on Ulsan.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/4123826.stm

I could dig out a better reference but C.W. Nicol is OK by me and Japan. But according to Japan Whaling Association, Ulsan was developed as an industrial whaling port first by the Russians and then for and by the Japanese. During the Japanese Occupation, Japanese capital developed the Korea industry and the majority of whale meat went to Japan, the American intervention, also outlawing the fishing rights, being the only thing that stopped it to a degree. During 1980-1984, before Korea abandoned whaling, the industry earned $3.54 million dollars of foreign exchange by exporting an annual average of 846 tons of whale meat to Japan. Buddhism had protected the highly evolved and sentient mammals in both countries until the American fleets entered their waters in the mid-19th Century to make money out of bloody slaughter.

Nicol wrote, “Recently, Korea joined the International Whaling Commission. It is said among whalers that she did not join the commission out of respect for its decisions but because a ruling, which Japan would obey, that an IWC member nation should not import whale meat from a non-member nation. Korea exports pretty well all of her whale meat to Japan.” from http://luna.pos.to/whale/jwa_ayukawa.html

If only this one foreign developed city eats 80% of the market, I think my point stands. So whaling is not a “Korean” issue either. For Ulsan … read Taiji. Why let a bunch of hick fisherman ruing your foreign relationships for the sake of dog food or school lunches!?! Strategically Japan is in the driving seat and so will remain the main target. International public opinion would not accept them responding as the French or, I am sure, Russian fishermen might if pushed.

But, you are right, meanwhile South Korean shows good face … “A South Korean official says police have broken an illegal whale poaching racket, confiscating more than 50 tonnes of minke whale meat in the largest seizure of its kind in the country.” http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/01/12/2137174.htm

BTW, it is a way off topic but what face are the Japanese people going to show amidst all this Olympic Torch/Tibet/Human Rights kerfuffle? Its a high stakes card to play, but I would say with China’s credibility on the way down, Japan have an opportunity to raise theirs. Whose example are they going to follow on this one?

There is a whale meat market in Korea.

http://english.chosun.com/w21data/html/news/200803/200803180015.html

The good thing is in Korean town of Ulsan,whales conveniently get “drowned in the nets”so often that can sustain 40 whale restaurants in the city.Something smells fishy here.

Well that’s the whole point! The meat is too tasty just to slow away,and they are dead anyway.
You don’t actually expect us to dump thousand tons of whale meat in Antarctic,Do you? That sure would harm the fragile arctic environment….

“So they’re killing whales to prove they can safely kill whales. Funny no?”

To be more precise Japan is studying whale reproduction to make whaling debate more productive.

And it is not that safe to kill whales nowadays,thanks to Sea Shepeherd backed by the support from Down Under in all forms.Something Fukuda will have to talk to Chairman Rudd of People’s Republic of Australia at the G8 Summit.