The Green Picture: Iceberg Cat And Mouse

19
by Michael dEstries December 21, 2009
Categories: Animals, Causes.

ice_ss

A beautiful shot taken aboard the Sea Shepherd Steve Irwin showing the Japanese Harpoon ship Shonan Maru No 2 coming into view from behind an iceberg.

Captain Paul Watson and his crew used these massive bergs early in their campaign to surprise the Japanese ship and turn the tables on their stalking.

Currently, the Steve Irwin is once again on the move after enjoying a few days rest in the company of scientists and conservationists while anchored in Commonwealth Bay. Their new stealth boat, the Ady Gil, is expected to rendezvous with the Irwin any day now. Check out additional photos from the current campaign below.

About Michael dEstries

Michael has been blogging since 2005 on issues such as sustainability, renewable energy, philanthropy, and healthy living. He regularly contributes to a slew of publications, as well as consulting with companies looking to make an impact using the web and social media. He lives in Ithaca, NY with his family on an apple farm.

View all posts by Michael dEstries →
  • ddpalmer

    Isn’t the Shonan Maru #2 still ‘stalking’ the Steve Irwin? Do you have any pictures of the Steve Irwin breaking UN regulations by shining a laser at the Shonan Maru #2?

  • Hideyoshi Toyotomi

    ddpalmer, I have found that people here are not too concerned with Sea Shepherd’s constant violations of international laws. When fanatical zealots pursue their agenda, it is not often that they worry themselves with legal or ethical matters.

    But the good news is that Sea Shepherd is meeting with complete and utter failure in their campaign to disrupt the research programme. They are now as ineffective as Greenpeace and other entities they spend so much time ridiculing.

    Makes you wonder what stunts they’ll have to think up to make their eco-terror TV show entertaining? It’s bound to be a spectacular violation of international law, whatever it is. Hopefully, as the ratings drop away and the eco-terror financiers take their money elsewhere, this vile organisation will wither and die.

    In the meantime, sit back and enjoy watching these fools wallowing in their failure and irrelevance.

    Paul Watson, you fail fat man! Might be finally time to look into getting that real job that’s been eluding you your entire, worthless life.

    • From MN, with hope…

      For you: http://www.seashepherd.org/news-and-media/news-091211-1.html

      You may not go there, so I’ll sum it up: the “Research program” is fake. Its commercial whaling for profit. If its REALLY research, where is all the research?

      I gotta stop before I get too hyped up to fall asleep…

    • http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1109978932 Delliana

      To Hideyoshi Toyotomi, and All pro-whalers:

      You Fail to see the truth behind the lies.

      There is No Proof that there is any actual “research”-
      however there is footage of bodies being processed and then sold.

      The Whales are speaking to us! They have heard and answered our call since the beginning. It is up to Us to hear theirs, and to finally end this evil, greed ridden slaughter for profit!!!

      I ask you, how would you feel to come home and find your family bloodied, killed?!?

      STOP THE SENSELESS SLAUGHTER NOW.

    • Jane

      You are obviously Japanese. You ought to change your screen name, maybe then someone might believe you. No one in the world is dumb enough to believe that the whaling being done is for research. It is being done for profit.

  • Devon

    Watson is spending most of his time hiding from the Japanese.

  • ddpalmer

    “You may not go there, so I’ll sum it up: the “Research program” is fake. Its commercial whaling for profit. If its REALLY research, where is all the research?”

    If it is REALLY commercial whaling where is all the profit?

    The SSCS says the whalers lose money every year, so it sounds like it is not for profit. Kind of adds credibility to the research angle doesn’t it?

    • Jorge

      They lose money, but the programme is subsidised by taxpayers so the real losses are taken by the people of Japan, not the whalers. The “profit” is made by ex-government officials running the programme, who have been given golden parachutes into high-paying jobs. Outside of corruption whaling is about political games and not science. There is no credibility to the “research”, and anyone who says that there is has no place in this debate.

    • Jane

      The SSCS says and they can say anything without having to back it up with any kind of proof.

  • Michael Raymer

    ” Kind of adds credibility to the research angle doesn’t it?”

    The only thing that gives the research angle credibility is …. (wait for it) … research. Where is it? What are the findings? Where is the peer review? This is not to mention that Japans own Foreign Minister said outright that the goal of the whalers is to harvest meat, which is a clear violation of U.N. law. Perhaps, ddpalmer, you should learn to do your own research.

    Calling something “research” doesn’t automatically make it valid. I would direct your attention to the work done by one Josef Mengele, for those who want to hide behind the research label.

    • ddpalmer

      The Japanese Minister said no such thing. You might want to do some research and find a quote of what he said not what someone says he said.

      Some of the research can be found at the IWC website. Since they are doing the research to prove to the IWC that commercial whaling of Minke whales is sustainable.

      You see I have done my own research. While you obviuosly just believe what people tell you since you just repeat lies and half truths that are easy to prove false.

  • Michael Raymer

    Oh great, we have another one. OK dd, how’s about you click right here.

    http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/world/japans-foreign-minister-katsuya-okada/story-e6frg6so-1225809200162

    There’s my research. It took me 30 seconds to find the quote YOU said was never made. Want some more?

    “First of all, with regards to this issue, I think we should try to discuss this issue in calm, not emotional way. Because our ancestors, we have a tradition here in Japan where we have been eating whale meat. Of course it would be a different story if it were endangered species which are on the verge of extinction. But if not, I think the average Japanese would like to consume whale meat into the future.

    Meanwhile in the West you might not have a culture to consume whale meat, but I think food is an important element of cultures and therefore there is a need to mutually respect and recognize each others’ culture.

    There might be some things that the Australians would eat but the Japanese don’t, so this again is the culture of yours and European nations that should be respected. I think we should mutually respect that point and from there start this type of discussion.”

    BAM, copied and pasted straight from the above link. Not from a second source, not edited, nothing deleted. So come on, tell me more about how I’m making things up. Or maybe you would like to accuse the newspaper, “The Australian” of just making the whole interview up.

    • ddpalmer

      Thank you for making my point. No where in that quote does he say the Japanese are “outright that the goal of the whalers is to harvest meat”. He says the Japanese eat whale meat. But he says nothing about the whalers goal just being to provide that meat.

      Just because you and some others read that into what he said doesn’t make it true.

      Try to save your BAM for when you actually win an arguement.

  • Hideyoshi Toyotomi

    Apologies for interjecting, but I’d just like to point out that you’re debating a moot issue.

    Japan should not have to carry out research whaling. It has openly stated its desire to lift the moratorium and resume commercial whaling. But it has been bound by an IWC that has been hijacked by anti-whaling nations which turned it from a whaling-regulating body to one that prohibits all whaling. These countries are not concerned with scientific data or reality – they are ideologically opposed to whaling. They don’t care that many species of whale have recovered to harvestable levels. They simply want to impose their irrational beliefs on other nations. So in reality, Japan is being punished for being a reponsible global citizen and abiding by international law.

    On the other hand, Iceland and Norway came to their senses a long time ago and ignore the moratorium completely. They don’t have to play the silly games of the IWC because they refuse to be bound by the whims of fanatical anti-whaling nations. They’ve been conducting commercial whaling for years. Which makes it all the more interesting that Sea Shepherd chooses to attack the Japanese and not the others.

    Perhaps there’s just more money in attacking yellow people? It always helps to have racial-prejudices on your side when you’re chasing publicity and funding.

    • Jorge

      Typically racist comment coming from Hideyoshi. I couldn’t be anything but racism from westerners who don’t understand Japanese culture could it!

      “These countries are not concerned with scientific data or reality – they are ideologically opposed to whaling. They don’t care that many species of whale have recovered to harvestable levels. They simply want to impose their irrational beliefs on other nations.”

      These countries are not ideologically opposed to whaling, they oppose it on environmental levels. The whole point of the IWC moratorium was to enable whales numbers to recover as they have not been hunted responsibly or sustainably. The ONLY species that is thought to have recovered so far is the East Pacific grey whale. Fin whales are still endangered, Humpbacks are threatened, and Minke numbers – while thought to be around 300,000 by some estimates – are in dispute. 300k may sound like a big number, but it is not when we are talking global biodiversity and a species that is extremely slow to reproduce. Any argument that they have to be killed to determine their numbers are large enough to be killed commercially, which is so often rolled out by Japan apologists, is ridiculous.

      “So in reality, Japan is being punished for being a reponsible global citizen and abiding by international law.”

      No, reality is Japan is breaking its own commitments under the moratorium by hunting endangered fin whales. It’s right there in the agreement Japan signed. Go look for yourself. It is also breaking the agreement by hunting in what it has recognised as an international whale sanctuary.

      The whaling programme has proven that Japan is anything but a responsible citizen, when it comes to the IWC agreement and even when it comes to human rights. You would do well to do some actual research on BOTH sides of this issue.

    • Jane

      playing the rqce card won’t help. Japan IS just using a loophole to break the law. I guess they have the best IWC that money can buy. What will they do if “special permist” are given to anyone who askes for one and there are no whales for them to kill anymore?

  • Michael Raymer

    And here we go again. Mr. Cold Hard Facts playing the race card. Don’t let anyone else use innuendo, Hideyoshi has taken it all for himself. It is NOT a moot issue. The Japanese whalers are the ones hiding behind the bogus assertion that they are conducting research. No one asked them to blatantly lie about this. But they have and, like all liars, they have been caught. In this case by one of their own. This lie compounds the fact that their activities in the Southern Whale Sanctuary are illegal. Not because Australia says so, not because Sea Shepherds say so, but because the United Nations says so. No, they are not abiding by international law, as you claim.

    And for a guy that likes to invoke the law, Iceland and Norway conduct whaling in their own territorial waters, which opens up a big can of legalistic worms for anyone who interferes. If Japan wants to hunt whales so bad, let them stay within THEIR own territorial boundaries to do it. This shouldn’t be so hard for a nation that has conducted whaling for “centuries”, should it?

    • http://vegan--japan.blogspot.com/ herwin

      And besides, Norway had half of their whaling fleet destroyed long time ago by some activists. The racist card that Hideyoshi tries to play is bogus.

    • ddpalmer

      So what international law are they breaking? And when has the UN said that the Japanese whaling is illegal?

      Minke whales are not endangered and never have been. Over half the females are pregnant each year and produce a calf every year. Using the number of 300K, say half are female and half are of age to bear young and half bear a calf each year; 300,000 times 0.5 equals 150,000 times 0.5 equals 75,000 times 0.5 equals 37,500 new Minkes per year. The Japanese take less than 1000 a year. Sounds like it is sustainable to me.

      And by the way theat 300,000 number for Minke population comes from some of that Japanese research that doesn’t exist.

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