Japan: Whaling Group Suffers Financial Loss

[Judi Lynn]

Source: New York Times

Japan: Whaling Group Suffers Financial Loss
By MARTIN FACKLER
Published: October 2, 2012

The Institute of Cetacean Research, the government group that operates Japan’s widely criticized research whaling, suffered a nearly crippling financial blow last year when its annual hunt in the Antarctic Ocean was disrupted by an environmental group, a Japanese newspaper reported Tuesday. It said the institute suffered a loss of $20.5 million, requiring additional financing from the government. The newspaper said the group, Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, limited the whaling fleet’s catch to 172 whales, or one-third of its take the year before. The institute relies on the sale of whale meat to finance a large part of its operations, experts say.


Read more: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/03/world/asia/japan-whaling-group-suffers-financial-loss.html?_r=0

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[Scairp]

1. Hurray for Sea Shepherds!

I love those people, they are absolutely fearless.

[niyad]

2. k and r. works for me.

[defacto7]

3. GOOD! Glad to hear it.

Japan can't just finger the planet forever and get away with it.

[wtmusic]

4. But...but...I thought it was a RESEARCH vessel? nt

[obamanut2012]

44. GOOD POINT!

[roody]

5. Spectacular news!!

[Archae]

6. I just wonder what will happen to the lower-level workers.

The CEO's of that company can jump off the top of the company building for all I care, since they used this phony "research" ruse to hunt whales for pricey high-society dinners.

But the lower level people, like the ships' crews will end up screwed.

[Hassin Bin Sober]

8. Yeah, well maybe they shouldn't have held up those snarky "we're doing research" signs....

.... on the decks of the whalers as they gutted the whales.

[masmdu]

17. Neither "pricey" nor "high-society"...Whale is readily available in the local super markets.

[Nihil]

18. I don't distinguish between the two groups in that particular "industry"

Fuck the lot of 'em.

[rwsanders]

19. They'd probably make more money from whale-watching tours anyway.

[catbyte]

29. Sorry, but tough shit. Japan's whaling industry is an obscenity

and anyone working within it should be deeply, deeply ashamed.

[wordpix]

62. +10000

[obamanut2012]

45. It is mainly elderly folks who eat whale meat

And, the surplus is usually dumped onto school lunches, which the kids hate. So say Americans I know in Japan and Japanese I know here.

It is definitely NOT a high-priced "society" delicacy.

[Astazia]

7. WooooHooooo*~*SEA SHEPHERDS!!!!

WAY TO GO!!!!!SUCH GOOD NEWS!!!

[Liberalynn]

64. +10000

[Indi Guy]

9. Can't wait to see this on the next season of "Whale Wars"... n/t

[AsahinaKimi]

10. Maybe they should consider another kind of occupation...

Like fishing for regular ocean going fish. School children do not need to eat Whale meat, and many of them hate it anyway. Its time the Japanese government said no to Whaling.

[Scairp]

11. Yes, well they aren't exactly conservationists

When is comes to the ocean, Japanese fishing is something of a "scorched earth" policy. They fish for sharks, cut the fins off of (mostly), live sharks and then throw the poor beasts back into the ocean to suffer and die. It's barbaric. Please tell me why anyone needs this dish, knowing how the main ingredient is gotten? And they are just about the empty the oceans of tuna, mostly blue fin. They have huge factory ships that can stay out for months fishing away, taking tons and tons of fish. They don't seem to understand that this number one staple of the Japanese diet for all of their history is going to go away sooner rather than later if they don't pull back on their massive take from the oceans. I don't get it. What will any of us do if there are no significant fish populations so everyone can have fish to eat forever? Are they really that dim they don't understand what is happening? You cannot take fish from the seas faster than the fish can reproduce and keep populations level and plentiful enough for all.

[Kolesar]

14. Grow soybeans then

You have a very good point about sustainability!

[AndyTiedye]

21. Much of Japan's Best Farmland (What Little They Have) is Radioactive Now

Japan is more dependent on the sea than ever. All the more reason they should be at the forefront of sustainable fishery management, rather than being an outlaw nation in this regard.


That still does not justify taking whales.

Most of the whale meat is rotting in warehouses, since nobody really wants to eat it.
There is only one part of the whale that is in demand for food, and that is sold to fancy
restaurants (including some in the US that flout the law against trade in whale meat)
at very high prices.

[Kolesar]

35. Organic farmers claim they get much higher yields than contemporary farmers

Because they tend that plants more carefully. So, they can yield more food from a smaller area.

I dine on Alaskan salmon and a vegetarian friend of mine claimed that even that food is not sustainable. I may quit someday, but not just yet.

[Scairp]

52. Well then

I think I know from where they could import corn, wheat, oats, barley, soybeans (tofu ya know, another Japanese staple), etc. that isn't glowing. Can anyone guess?

[Grave Grumbler]

20. Speaking of whale meat, I'm going to get the chance to try it next year.

A friend of mine and I will be travelling to Iceland, and he's something of a "foodie", always getting me to try increasingly exotic dishes.



He also wants to try puffin while we're at it.

[GliderGuider]

22. I love the Spotted Owl...

It tastes like chicken!

[Duppers]

25. heard dog is good

Could try bush meat while you're at it too.

[Grave Grumbler]

32. Next time I'm in China or South Korea, perhaps I will.

Why should eating a dog be any different ethically than eating a pig?

[Kolesar]

36. You sound bored and anxious. Go get some fresh air

Go play some basketball or something.

[Grave Grumbler]

38. Basketball? Blech. I prefer wargames.

A little Squad Leader might be just the thing!

[Duppers]

37. I don't eat pigs

I'm consistent and cannot defend protein choices of others.

Btw, I've spent a good deal of time in China and I risked offending my host by refusing some foods.

[Grave Grumbler]

39. If someone posted that the were going to eat some bacon,

would you post "heard dog is good" along with a flamey-frowney face? That would be consistent.

[Duppers]

43. indeed

Good point.

[obamanut2012]

48. um hmmmm

[fil62793skx]

59. indeed

[bongbong]

28. Another one to try

Eat some human while you're at it.

repigs are the best, since they're almost always loaded with lots and lots of delicious fat.

[Grave Grumbler]

34. You're equating eating a whale with cannibalism?

Talk about

[bongbong]

41. Where did I equate them?

I'm not equating anything. The only way your point is correct is if "try a small carrot" is equal to "try a giant feast".

[Grave Grumbler]

50. So, when presented with someone stating they planned on eating whale meat you just *happened*

to suggest that they try cannibalism as well? Why did you suggest that I eat human flesh rather than that of a cod?

[bongbong]

55. LOL

> Why did you suggest that I eat human flesh rather than that of a cod?

Because that's what I felt like typing.

Can't get much simpler than that!

[LanternWaste]

67. As you implied, meat is simply meat-- no ethical differences.

As you earlier implied, meat is simply meat-- no ethical differences.

[Duppers]

42. scientific article

http://www.newscientist.com/mobile/article/dn10661-whales-boast-the-brain-cells-that-make-us-human.html


sounds like you could use a bit more empathy and understanding.

[Grave Grumbler]

47. That was almost a good, relevant point there...but...

...Now it turns out that these spindle cells also exist in the same brain areas in humpback whales, fin whales, killer whales and sperm whales.

...

However, many highly intelligent but smaller cetaceans examined by Hof and van der Gucht did not have the spindle cells.

The whale meat served in restaurants in Iceland is from Minke whales (which aren't endangered in the slightest, BTW), one of the smallest baleen whales.

[obamanut2012]

46. Isn't that something for you to be proud of

Maybe you can sample some dog and cat, too, or some horse.

[Grave Grumbler]

51. I'm neither proud nor ashamed. I see no moral component to the act of eating whale meat.

Maybe you can sample some dog and cat, too, or some horse.

Depending on how they taste and are prepared, why not?

[flvegan]

66. And it shows. n/t

[snooper2]

63. it actually pretty much sucks, like a big fat Tilapia

And unless you caught it on your own you know how Tilapia taste, being they raised with tons of them swimming in their own shit in the same small tank


If you really want to be all "Exotic" posting random messages on the Internet why don't you just say you plan on trying some Tonkin sunb-nosed monkey?

[catbyte]

30. School children don't eat whale meat unless they're the Japanese version of Romney

Whale meat is considered a delicacy and it's really really expensive. Just a horrific way to know you're making too much money.

[obamanut2012]

49. It's served in the rural public school

Where a friend teaches. It is definitely not a rich kids' school. Where she lives is quite poor by the nation's standards. The kids and teachers hate it. The government is subsidizing the whale massacres.

[AsahinaKimi]

61. I once asked my teacher about it.

She grew up in Miyazaki Japan and her school served Whale meat. She didn't care for it, nor did her class mates. I am sure she would not lie to me about that.

[fascisthunter]

60. agreed!

[Vidar]

12. Bravo Sea Shepherds!

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

13. Two key words: "government group"

They're expected to pay their own way through the sale of whale meat. But, being a government group, I'd bet the government will cover their operating loss for some years. I don't think the whaling fleet will declare bankruptcy and scrap their ships.

The end-zone happy dance photos are great, but premature.

[zorro1]

15. Gentle Giants of the Oceans

I was blown away by the video posted of a whale being saved in Baja a few day ago; and then this article brought visions of seeing the Japanese "research vessel" shoot a whale in the head with an exploding harpoon. The duality of man is crazy.

[DirkGently]

16. Guess the tsunami relief funds diverted to whaling

weren't enough.

Good.

[GliderGuider]

23. Hats off to Paul Watson and his brave crews!

No matter what personal mud gets thrown at him, Watson has my eternal respect.

[Duppers]

26. same here.

Glad to to hear that my small donations to this worthy cause are paying off.

Damn Japanese.

[arikara]

31. I give them a donation

every time I buy something from ebay too.

[Crunchy Frog]

24. I'm weeping.

This is just so sad.

[Larkspur]

27. Congrats to Sea Shepherd!!

What I want to hear next from Japan is that they are permanently disbanding their whaling fleet and ending their whale "research" hunts.

[zappaman]

33. Awesome! n/t

[obamanut2012]

40. Hurrah for the Sea Shepherd and her crew!

And, I don't care that Paul Watson is an egomaniac, I really don't. What he does saves sentient beings from being tortured and slaughtered.

[life long demo]

53. I am hoping Japan will disband the whaling fleet.

Cheers for Sea Shepherd Society. But I must say I was having a hard time reading some of the posts here. I am hoping they were in jest, but even in jest they were sad in my opinion.

[xchrom]

54. May this financial success follow them into the future.

May their bank accounts and their wallets show up empty.

[Ash_F]

56. 172 whales....a crime. /nt

[NCarolinawoman]

65. Exactly.

One would be too much. But 172 ...

: :

[ZombieHorde]

57. Loss of money speaks very loudly to many people.

This is good for the whales.

[Coexist]

58. Woot