Sea Shepherd Launch New Sleek Vessel Under Australian Flag (PICS)

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by Michael dEstries November 30, 2010
Categories: Animals, Causes.
Photo: Eye In The Sky Magazine

sea shepherd, gojira, interceptor vessel, anti-whaling, operation no compromise

The Sea Shepherd have successfully completed the transformation of their new sleek harpoon intercepter from the “Ocean Adventurer” to the “Gojira” (Japanese for “Godzilla”). It’s unclear whether the org scrapped original plans to find a sponsor for the boat’s name — or if such a deal might still be on the table. Either way, “Gojira” is a fitting name for a badass boat reportedly worth about $4 million.

In another surprising play of strategy, the Sea Shepherd also managed to register the new vessel with the homeport of Fremantle, Australia. Such a move (the remaining fleet is registered under the Dutch flag) could put a lot more pressure on the Australian government to provide support during Operation No Compromise; especially with Australian crewmembers serving onboard the Gojira.

“Having Fremantle as a homeport for Gojira, and flying the Australian flag, optimizes Australia as the most passionate defender of whales in the world,” said Sea Shepherd’s Australian Director Jeff Hansen in a release.

The Gojira is currently underway to meet up with the rest of the Sea Shepherd fleet in Hobart, Tasmania. Operation No Compromise launches on December 2nd.

sea shepherd, gojira, interceptor vessel, anti-whaling, operation no compromise

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 →
  • AnimuX

    Godspeed Sea Shepherd. Shut ‘em down.

    • imforthewhales

      They have the ship, they have the will, they have the crew, they have the support…go Sea Shepherd, give em hell!

  • josh lamb

    Beautiful Ship, Hopefully a Season to end Whaling.

  • don miguelo

    I think they should go retro, like get a Maine shrimper like Clooney had in “A Perfect Storm”. That might be smarter. Seriously I understand the need for speed but I kinda worry about them being, Oh I don’t know, SUNK by another ship or even a big albatross flying too low! haha

    (I guess that’s why they have the Bob Barker).

    Anyways good luck Australian flagged, Japanese named Gojira!

    Gojira is also the name of a death-metal band with Earth-concerned lyrics…Coincidence?

    • boo radley

      I’m sure that the Japanese whalers will be trying hard to sink this one too. They did a good job of wiping out the Ady Gil last year…they lined her up beautifully. But then, why shoudl we be surprised? The Japanese whalers/ dolphiners/ long line fishermen are after all the worlds biggest and most practiced eco-terrorists!

  • David

    Why would Sea Shepherd name their new boat after a creature that although originally an enemy and destructive force toward Japan, evolves into a friend of Japan and defends Japan against attacks from other creatures?

    • Michael Raymer

      What does it matter? Where there was one boat, now there is three. Instead of one crew of volunteers, there is three. Many thanx to the pro-ICR faction for cutting down on SSCS contributions and turning people off to Paul Watson. Your effectiveness is a shining beacon to internet trolls everywhere. If it wasn’t for you guys, there might be five or even six vessels by now. Thank God you pointed out to us that Watson was going to get people killed, get himself sunk, wind up in jail, etc. I mean, nothing of the sort has happened but without the Inwood-faction warning us that it might, who knows what kind of pandemonium might have erupted. Of course, a $4 million boat seems like a big donation for a misanthropic outcast that no one trusts, but hey, if you can’t listen to David, romika, etc., who can you listen too?

      Keep up the good work boyz. Never let moronic ineffectiveness get in the way of the beliefs that you’re getting paid good money to have.

      • romika3

        Michael Raymer How much does the SSCS pay you guys per post? I heard through a source that your group get $10.00 per post. Can you please verity this.

      • Michael Raymer

        $00.00 per post. I don’t get paid by anyone. I seriously doubt that SSCS pays anyone to post on the internet. As you, David, Kimitake and others have shown, there is nothing to gain in these hokey internet battles. For all the vitriol that your side has flung at SSCS, contributions are up and they are deploying three boats with volunteer crews instead of one. This internet smear campaign has done you guys nothing while SSCS gets more effective all the time.

      • Chris H.

        romika,

        I’ve been wondering where you’ve been. I wanted to ask you if you know a guy called “Myles Higgins”?

      • romika3

        “Of course, a $4 million boat seems like a big donation” From what I know there was no donation. SSCS is chartering the vessel. Nobody wanted to donate 4 million so that someone could run around in circles in front of a TV crew doing nothing. I thought the only TV show about nothing and that was Seinfield. Now there is a second, Whale Wars.

      • Michael Raymer

        You might be right. This next season might turn out to be a show about nothing.

        http://www.seashepherd.org/news-and-media/news-101130-1.html

        It seems the whalers can’t find their keys. Or their money. Or their nerve.

        For those of you keeping score at home: SSCS is ready to go, whalers are stuck at the dock.

        Three cheers for the brilliant internet campaign being fought by romika and David. It’s not often that you get to change the course of human events. I know this because you still haven’t. Keep pecking those keys, boyz. As a Seattle Mariner fan I know what it’s like to sit and dream, “Maybe next year, maybe next year.”

      • romika3

        “Three cheers for the brilliant internet campaign” thanks for the support it is about time some of you folks seen the truth about the SSCS.

      • AnimuX

        One thing is certain. These pro-whaling antagonists generate plenty of interest in Whale Wars and help to boost the ratings by watching it themselves. :-)

      • imforthewhales

        Ah Romika is back! How was the pro whaling
        conference Romika?

        We do get paid for posting Romika 3, didt you know?

        We get a performance based bonus & its quite nice.

        Of course, our bonus has nothing to do with money…we dont get paid in cash .our reward is seeing the japanese whalers and the Glen Inwood trolls cop it! Our reward is the good feeling yo get knowing that there are whales swimming freely in teh ocean, having missed their date with the Japanese Cetatcean Death Star.

        Boy oh boy is this new ship going to give them curry. Yes, Gojira is our bonus this year.

    • romika3

      I am surprized Watson didn’t pick up on that as I know he reads a lot of comic books.

      • http://seashepard.com devon

        hey i got nothing against the country of japan. the whalers may be fishermen but not in a whale sactuary. they are also breaking an international treaty that bans commerial whaling.they may say there collecting tissue samples but u only need to kill maybe 5-10 whales for that not 950 whales. GIVE EM HELL SEA SHEPARD!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    • Chris H.

      David,

      SSCS is not an enemy of Japan, it is an enemy of Japanese whalers.

      I realize that that may be too fine a distinction for you to comprehend, so let me try to explain it for you.

      Let’s take a hypothetical right-wing nut-job. Let’s call him “David”. Let’s say “David” hates environmentalists. Let’s say that includes American environmentalists. Does that mean that “David” hates all Americans? No, of course not, “David” hates a subset of Americans that identify themselves as environmentalists…

      Got it?

      No?

      Okay, well, I’m not going to explain it again…

      • romika3

        SSCS incites hate towards the Japanese. To demonstrate this that a sample of YouTube posts on SSCS material and perform an analysis.

      • Chris H.

        romika,

        here’s the Sea Shepherd “Equality Statement” from their website:

        http://www.seashepherd.org/who-we-are/equality-statement.html

        As you can see, they are not anti-Japanese (or anti-Canadian), they are “pro-Ocean”.

      • romika3

        Do you beleive what SSCS writes? Read Watson’s book “Earth Force”.

      • imforthewhales

        Did you pay for your copy of earth force romika?

      • From MN, with hope…

        Earth Force was published in 1993. I hardly think it is reliable, current material. Yet of course you bark on about it. It is, after all, a good chunk of your argument.

        Do you REALLY believe everything you say/write on here?

      • David

        So MN, how far back is “reliable, current material”? Because the anti-whalers seem to like to go back 20, 30 or 40 years.

    • romika3

      “Myles Higgins” a fellow Newfoundlander who, like many of us reconizes how the SSCS, PETA, HSUS and 17 other organizations have “used” the Canada Seal Hunt to fill their pockets. A legal, managed and sustainable harvest.

      • AnimuX

        *waaah* Europe upheld the seal skin ban… *waaah*

      • Chris H.

        romika,

        do you realize that the only organization that has harmed, or killed, Newfoundland sealers is the Canadian Coast Guard? And yet you guys seem to get along quite well…

      • romika3

        AnimuX: EU is only less than 33% of the market.

      • romika3

        “do you realize that the only organization that has harmed, or killed, Newfoundland sealers is the Canadian Coast Guard” From what I read Mr. Watson was quite pleased to hear that two Canadains lost their lives. But, then that is an indication of the level at which Paul Watson operates.

      • Chris H.

        Oh my goodness! Danny Williams has resigned! Whatever are you going to do now?

        http://www.cbc.ca/canada/newfoundland-labrador/story/2010/11/30/williams-corner-brook-goodbye-130.html

        Williams, a conservative (but not a conservationist), showed up at the event wearing a seal skin coat.

        Here, on a lighter note, are some pretty funny comedy sketches (from Canada’s “This Hour Has 22 Minutes”) portraying Danny Williams. The 3rd clip is particularly relevant.

        http://www.cbc.ca/arts/media/blogs/popculture/2010/11/danny-williams—-as-seen-on-this-hour-has-22-minutes.html

      • AnimuX

        Sorry for the families but anyone, who has a job akin to beating puppies and kittens to death for their skins (ie: killing baby seals), who also takes a boat out into hazardous ice conditions it was not designed for, takes his life into his own hands and gets no sympathy from me.

        It’s not about how anybody “operates” other than the sealers who participate in a despicable trade.

      • Chris H.

        Actually romika, Paul Watson described the 4 deaths as “a tragedy”, but he added that the deaths of hundreds of thousands of seals was an even greater tragedy. Of course, NFLD politicians spun this into “Paul Watson is glad that those sealers died”, and some very easily led Newfies bought that, hook, line, and sinker…

      • Michael Raymer

        WTF does sealing have to do with the topic at hand? And why do you guys let romika lead you down the path like this? If you want to discuss sealing, ask Ecorazzi to put up a story on how the EU has upheld its ban on seal products, and have at it. This thread is about whaling, a new boat for SSCS, the fact that SSCS is getting stronger all the time while the whaling fleet can’t even get out of the harbor and other whaling related issues. Well……since the whaling fleet is stuck at the dock, I guess that makes them a non-whaling issue (rimshot).

      • romika3

        “WTF does sealing have to do with the topic at hand? ” The methods Watson uses against the Whales are the same methods he used against the sealers (although there is more violence in the case of the whalers most likely becasue Watson is being filmed). In both cases the seals and the minke whales have healty populations, the animals are not endangered and both campaigns were selected based on thier money making and media potential.

      • Michael Raymer

        That’s fine. In the case of whaling, comment all you like. But take the sealing debate somewhere else. Right here, it’s about the whales.

      • AnimuX

        There you go again making the same false allegations about Sea Shepherd and Paul Watson.

        1) Sea Shepherd uses the overwhelming majority of its funds for operational expenses and not for overhead (ie: very little for salaries and other administrative costs). Sea Shepherd has received high ratings by charity evaluators, in part, for this excellent use of funds.

        2) Paul Watson has been actively interfering with industries that cruelly exploit marine life from poaching sharks to sealing, pirate whaling and more. He’s gone out with virtually no money and no publicity and he’s gone out with huge donations and television crews. Watson doesn’t disappear to some private island mansion with a hoard of cash. He just continues, year after year, with the cause he took up over 30 years ago to protect marine life. He’s clearly not in it for the money.

        3) Sea Shepherd has never killed or threatened to kill anybody. Sea Shepherd has never taken people as hostages. Sea Shepherd has never beaten anyone up or threatened to either. They shoot cameras, not machine guns, and throw stink bombs, not grenades.

        The wretched sealers you continue to defend, on the other hand, have been filmed physically assaulting unarmed protesters with haikpiks as weapons among other incidents of violence.

      • romika3

        “The wretched sealers you continue to defend, on the other hand, have been filmed physically assaulting unarmed protesters with haikpiks as weapons among other incidents of violence.” you know, I know, and Mr. Watson knows that the footage was obtained by a group of SSCS protesters inticing a group of sealers and the selective editing of what little footage they shot. You folks eat this kind of stuff up.

      • imforthewhales

        Romika3…you cant pretend that this didnt happen…edited maybe , false footage? Not a chance.

      • AnimuX

        Here it is ladies and gentlemen. Sealers attacking Sea Shepherd activists with deadly weapons normally used for puncturing the skulls of baby seals and dragging their carcasses.

        Romika says the sealers were “incited” to engage in assault and battery against protesters who, aren’t attacking anyone, aren’t threatening anyone, but are filming the seal hunt.

        http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0HEqc2398iQ

      • ednakano

        SSCS always provoke prople and cut provoke part. Cowards always cheat people.

      • boo radley

        Go you good thing !

      • http://seashepard.com devon

        i dont understand how clubbing baby seal is humane…

  • Chris H.

    Go-jira, go!

    What a beautiful vessel, on a beautiful mission. Flying the flag of Australia, with a more experienced officer and crew, this interceptor should be able to directly block the harpoon from the whale, that is, if the Japanese whalers show up this year…

    I have a feeling that the ICR/Kyodo Senpaku thugs might just give the Southern Ocean whale hunt a miss this year. They are certainly leaving their departure from port a little late…

    http://www.seashepherd.org/news-and-media/news-101130-1.html

    If the ICR has indeed decided to give this season a miss, it would explain the absence of Kimitake Hiraoka/Hideyoshi Toyotomi and some of the other paid pro-whaling posters on this site.

    • boo radley

      Stay home Japanese whalers…please…stop stealing our whales…they do not belong to you…just stay at home.

      • David

        Actually the UN says they belong to whoever catches them. Until they are caught they belong to no one. So they aren’t yours or iamforthewhales.

      • boo radley

        Actually the UN agrees that the protection afforded whales should be upheld.

        They do not belong to “whoever catches them”.

        I suppose you thought it was OK that japan caught three times as many tuna as they were allowed…did those illegally caught Tuna “belong”to Japan also?

        No of course not, Japan simply STOLE them.

      • David

        Actually the UN says that the IWC regulations should be followed as the IWC is the appropriate international group that was established to regulate whaling.

        And actually the UN says that resources, including wildlife, in international waters belomg to whoever catches them.

        No the ‘illegally’ caught tuna were in violation of the appropriate regulatory agency’s limit, hence the word ‘illegal’. As opposed to whaling which is done within the appropriate agencies regulations and thus not illegal.

  • romika3

    There goes Watson again off to the TV set in the Southern Ocean to make TV show about nothing and to protect whales that are not endangered. As for the boat, well doners should ask if this is the right place to put there money. There are many REAL conservation organizations out there that need assistance. Perhaps its time you folks supported them, not a reality TV show!!

    • Michael Raymer

      Apparently, the donors think that this is a dandy place to put their money. And guess what? You have done nothing to deter them. Perhaps it’s time you ICR folks found a cause that you can actually contribute too, and not your bought/paid for, twisted sense of reality.

      • romika3

        The reality is that the SSCS is an organization that attacks the common frontline fisherperson, uses terror tactics to acheive their goals and as pointed out in Watson’s book “Earth Froce” lies and distorts the truth.

      • Michael Raymer

        The reality is that the whalers are not common frontline fisherpersons, they participate in an archaic industry that no one wants anymore and there are penty of donors (of money, boats and supplies) who have no problems with the tactics used by SSCS.

      • romika3

        “The reality is that the whalers are not common frontline fisherpersons”, sorry but they are. These are men working on a boat for a living to support their families and to raise their kids. Fishermen are fishermen (despite what they harvest) Watson and SSCS attack the common fishermen because it is the easiest thing to do. Watson does not have the intellect or the capability/ability deal with any issue at a level higher than that. It’s like the schoolyard bully going after the weaker kids; they know they can get away with it.

      • Michael Raymer

        “Fishermen are fishermen (despite what they harvest)” That’s simplistic crap and you know it. My brother is and has been a commercial fisherman and he disagrees with you 100%. What you fish and how you go about fishing it is something that real fishermen concern themselves with. Many true commercial fishermen are against whaling, sealing and drift-netting. You claim to be speaking for the common fisherperson yet, you really don’t.

      • romika3

        “Fishermen are fishermen (despite what they harvest)” That’s simplistic crap and you know it. My brother is and has been a commercial fisherman and he disagrees with you 100%” Better check with your brother again. I am refering to “fishermen” from the perspective of an individual who is working hard to make a living. Ask you brother how he would feel is he was carring our a legal, sustainable, managed fishery and somebody got off a plane, walking up to him in a brand new set of gortex cloths, swore on him and then spit on him.

      • Michael Raymer

        Hey man, there’s Mafia members and drug dealers that “work hard for a living” too. Refering to whalers as some type of working class hero is insulting to the fishing industry and insulting to anyone who makes an honest living. As far as what my brother would do, blah, blah…..he’d kick your ass. But he wouldn’t be using a weapon to do it.

      • boo radley

        Romika3…did your brother help wipe out the Canadian cod fishery?

      • romika3

        European offshore fleet was the major contributor to the loss of the Northern Cod Stocks.

      • romika3

        “Hey man, there’s Mafia members and drug dealers that “work hard for a living”’ We are not talking about the mafia or drug dealers, we are talking about the common fisherperson. And I don’t think I referred to them as working class heros. The fishermen up here do not go around beating up on fellow fishermen no matter where they hail from. Are you sure your bothers a real fisherman. Going out on the weekend to catch a few bass doesn’t make you a fisherman.

    • Chris H.

      romika,

      this may come as a shock to you, but Paul Watson does not make the TV show, the people from Animal Planet/Discovery Communications do…

      • romika3

        I am well aware that he didn’t make the show be he did quite a bit of “acting”!!

      • imforthewhales

        Romika…if you dislike the fact that Sea Shepherd are on TV in the Animal Planet oproduction of whale wars, why dont you tell your mob to stay away from the Antarctic whale sanctuary & quit killing our whales?

        Problem solved!

    • Steve

      Uh…the whales ARE endangered.

      Paul Watson has been protecting whales for like 30 years, the show has been on for less than four.

      Seems legit to me.

      Dont really understand why you’d be attacking a guy who is trying to protect magnificent animals.

    • boo radley

      Romika 3…since when was a show about saving whales a show about “nothing”?

      Whales are protected …especially so inside a whale sanctuary, didn’t you realize that? Yes thats right…protected…and commercial whaling is banned…do you have any idea why they are protected?

      Do you know the current classification for fin whales?

      Do you realize that the japanese whalers want to turn some endangred fin whales into whale sushi? For profit?

      Which “real” conservation groups will you be donating money to romika3? Do you plan to lead by example?

      • romika3

        I stand to be corrected but I beleive only one fin whale was taken by the Japanese last year vs close to 200 in Iceland waters. The majority of the whales havested were minke whales and their populations are healthy.

      • romika3

        If Watson is really concerned about fin whales then can somebody tell me why he is not in the waters off of Iceland. It seems to me he is in the wrong place.

      • From MN, with hope…

        The Japanese whalers are the biggest ‘fish to fry’ currently, so Sea Shepherd goes after them. They don’t have the funds to go after all of them. Even now they’re stretching their budget.

        And if Sea Shepherd only focused on European whaling (like they used to) than you pro-whalers would come on and whine about, saying they are doing nothing about the Japanese whalers.

      • Michael Raymer

        “If Watson is really concerned about fin whales then can somebody tell me why he is not in the waters off of Iceland?”

        Watson goes to save whales in the Southern Ocean WHALE Sanctuary. While some in here wish to debate the point, it is a WHALE Sanctuary where people are hunting whales. I don’t know too much about where Iceland is getting its whales but, I’ve heard no mention of a WHALE Sanctuary. That changes the rules. Despite what you guys claim, Watson is not a terrorist and doesn’t go around arbitrarily looking for laws to break. He goes to the WHALE Sanctuary because there are whalers there and the law is on his side and it’s the whalers who are breaking the law.

        Anything else I can clear up for you.

      • David

        Well mikey you can clear up why you keep lying?

        Under the IWC regulations Japan filed an objection to the sanctuary. So legally, in respect to Japan, there is no sanctuary.

        Whether you like or agree with the IWC regulations doesn’t matter; any member has the right to file an objection to any resolution and not be subject to that resolution. That is also why Norway isn’t subject to the commercial whaling ban.

      • David

        “And if Sea Shepherd only focused on European whaling (like they used to) than you pro-whalers would come on and whine about, saying they are doing nothing about the Japanese whalers.”

        Well it is good to know you are psychic and know what other people would do.

      • romika3

        “The Japanese whalers are the biggest ‘fish to fry’ currently, so Sea Shepherd goes after them. They don’t have the funds to go after all of them. Even now they’re stretching their budget.” You know and Watson knows why he won’t go north to Iceland. The bulk of the Japanese harvest are minke whales that are not endangered. The reason why Whatson is in the south ocean:

        - the sancuary is located in international waters
        - the japanese tend to be forgiving whereas the people of iceland wouldn’t put up with Watson’s antics
        - Watson can get away with his foolishness

      • From MN, with hope…

        david – Why thank you for the compliment, but I am not psychic, I just know people. Especially those at your maturity level. But be honest, if Sea Shepherd were in European waters taking care of Icelandic whaling instead of in the SO, you pro-whalers would rant about how they aren’t going against the Japanese.

        romika – If I know why Sea Shepherd doesn’t go north to Iceland than how is it what I know and what you say are different. The Japanese are NOT forgiving by what I have seen. But oh- I see you have debuted your newest idea. Nice. And it isn’t int’l waters. In accordance to the Antarctic Treaty the waters belong to Argentina, Australia, Chile, France, New Zealand, Norway, and the United Kingdom. And what you call foolishness seems to work in saving the whales, so whatever works.

      • Michael Raymer

        “Under the IWC regulations Japan filed an objection to the sanctuary. So legally, in respect to Japan, there is no sanctuary.”

        Now you see Wormtongue…I mean David, no one really cares what Japan objects to, especially when what their objecting to is off the coast of Australia. Aren’t you guys always whining about people trying to tell Japan what to do. Well, don’t go knocking Australia for setting up a WHALE Sanctuary and Economic Exclusion Zone. It’s their right to do so just like it’s Japan’s right (in your opinion) to keep eating whale meat. And since you insist on calling me a liar, which I’m not, I guess I’m clear to call you stupid, which you are. See, if you were interested in following the topic rather than looking for excuses to snipe at me, you’d see I was giving romikas valid question a valid response. Watson has a clear legal mandate to try and shut down whaling in the Southern Ocean WHALE Santuary. We know this, how? Because nobody is arresting him for doing it. No one at all. As a matter of fact, in case you missed it, he’s down in Australia, right now, getting ready to do so again. Not only that (you may have missed this), I hear that he has three boats, three crews, and all the supplies he needs. There’s also something going on with some chick named Michelle Rodriguez but who really cares? Anyway, that’s what I was doing. Explaining to romika why Watson is in Australia (right this very instant, from what I hear), fueled up and ready to go, instead of in Iceland.

        I’m sorry, where are my manners? I forgot to ask how things ae with you. So, how are your boyz, the Japanese Whaling Fleet doing? Where are they at, at the moment? Still at the dock in Japan? Bummer. Can’t seem to find a replenishment ship, huh? Yeah, yeah, I feel ya. Ships are really hard to find in Japan. Well, buck up, buttercup. I’m sure that the whalers won’t let anything get in the way of their right to plungle a harpoon into a baby whale and its mother.

      • boo radley

        Has anyone noticed how big and brave David seems to be at the moment after falling in a big heap when left alone last thread?

        Nothing like Romika 3 as backup hey!

      • David

        “Well, don’t go knocking Australia for setting up a WHALE Sanctuary and Economic Exclusion Zone.”

        No actually under the ATS they don’t have a right to claim international waters.

        “Watson has a clear legal mandate to try and shut down whaling in the Southern Ocean WHALE Sanctuary. We know this, how? Because nobody is arresting him for doing it.”

        Well no one is arresting the whalers, so by your own logic they must have a clear legal mandate to hunt whales.

        “…and all the supplies he needs.”

        Is that why they are still begging for more supplies?

      • Michael Raymer

        “Well no one is arresting the whalers, so by your own logic they must have a clear legal mandate to hunt whales.”

        No one is arresting the whalers, Davey-boy, because they aren’t whaling. They’re sitting at the dock, crying into their sake’, because everyone is so disgusted by them, no one will sell them a replacement for the Oriental Bluebird. This is where all the trolling, obfuscation, accusations, sematics and BS games have gotten your side. Honestly, I truly believe you internet trolls have done more for the SSCS than people like me.

      • David

        Well again using your logic, no one is arresting the SSCS because they are sitting in port not doing anything.

        Also the Japanese fleet isn’t sitting in port any more, you need to keep up with the latest news. They left port this morning.

      • Michael Raymer

        Well, good for them. Of course you realize that your boyz are headed for an ass kicking of biblical proportions, right?

    • From MN, with hope…

      How many times do I have to repeat this: Sea Shepherd is Sea Shepherd. Animal Planet is Animal Planet. AP has cameras on SSCS ships. SSCS goes to the SO to save whales, cameras or no cameras. SSCS has been directly blamed with Japan’s low catch of whales last year. Yeah, some TV show. Meanwhile your precious ‘other organizations’ such as Greenpeace have done NOTHING to save the whales other than pass out some pretty papers. Donors are happy with where their money is going. They have to be, after all they are donating to a cause that they support.

      When are you going to change ideas again?

      • romika3

        “Sea Shepherd is Sea Shepherd. Animal Planet is Animal Planet. AP has cameras on SSCS ships” Watson is for Watson and thus the TV cameras so that he can dance around pretending to save whales that are not endangered and in the safety of International Waters. For him it is all about selecting issues based on their media and fundraising potential and safety. That is why you do not see Watson and SSCS off of Iceland protecting fin whales. Up there he wouldn’t last long enough to get footage for one episode of Whale Wars.

      • boo radley

        Its really the Japanese that are hunting fin whales in Iceland, after all it is JAPAN that is buying ENDANGERED FIN WHALES from ICELAND!

        Hopefully japan will just go broke and no longer be able to support the killing of endangered wildlife.

      • David

        And Greenpeace gets much more in donations than Sea Shepherd does. So I guess GP has more support and has more people happy with what they do than Sea Shepherd.

      • David

        “Its really the Japanese that are hunting fin whales in Iceland, after all it is JAPAN that is buying ENDANGERED FIN WHALES from ICELAND!”

        Japan forces Iceland to hunt whales? Pretty twisted view of reality.

      • boo radley

        They pay for em to be killed, they pay for them to be imported to japan…they are paying for the icelandic fin whale slaughter. Japan supplies the cash, iceland kills the whales. All for profit. I agree thats pretty twisted but they are the facts.

        There is also a blackmarket trade in whale meat between japan and Russia going on.

      • From MN, with hope…

        romika – If Paul is all about attention why does he have cameras on all three ships? Why not just have one ship with cameras? Why not have Paul on Gojira, the fastest and coolest of the Sea Shepherd ships, and not on the Steve Irwin, the slowest ship? And ‘pretend to save whales’? You don’t even know the facts! The whalers cited Sea Shepherd as the direct cause for their low catch last season. There are easier ways to get money, eg: save the polar bears is a much better way to try and get money. You get the donations, you get your ships up there, watch the bears, document it, return to port, and ask for more money. There. An evil plot to get rich off polar bears, and all you need is a simple tiny boat, not three ships of volunteers with inflatable boats.

        davi- Sure, I guess so. But exactly how much of the donations goes to them so they can ‘save the whales’? Sea Shepherd has two of three campaigns for the whales, while Greenpeace has hundreds of campaigns from the Amazon Rainforest to Tuna fishing. But indeed, GP does have more support because they are more ‘mainstream’. You say ‘Greenpeace’ to someone and they know who you’re talking about. Walk up to most people and say ‘Sea Shepherd’ they’ll either say Whale Wars or ask what you’re talking about. Sea Shepherd also isn’t as big, and doesn’t deal with things like pollution or other on-ground issues, for they are SEA Shepherd.

      • David

        So, boo I guess Australia and the US (along with many others) are responsible for strip mining, pollution and human exploitation in China. Because they supply the cash to the Chinese for rare earth metals to build wind turbines and solar cells.

      • boo radley

        Thats right David…he who pays for the crime is responsible for the crime. You are catching on, yes?

        If people pay for a chair in a shop, and that timber has been taken illegally, then they are paying someone to take logs out of a rainforest somewhere illegally.

        If some German tourist in a market somewhere in China buys a tiger skin, then they have paid for that tiger to be shot an killed and stripped off its skin. They are responsible for the tiger population dwindling.

        The Chinese in Hong Kong who pay for Rhino horn may as well have shot that rhino themselves.

        People who bet on dog fighting are just as responsible for the dogs getting injured as the dog masters.

        do you think that people who pay to view child pornography are guilty? They are, after all, as bad as the molesters who took the photo. They are encouraging illegal behavior with their money.

        Japan pays Iceland to kill endangered fin whales.

        Thats a fact.

      • David

        So lets follow you logic boo. According to you all the people involved in any part of an action in any way from start to finish are responsible.

        So Iceland catches whales so they are responsible. They ship some of that meat to Japan. So the shipping companies are responsible. And the companies that sell supplies to the ships are responsible. And the trucking companies that transport those supplies to the ships are responsible. And the companies that built the trucks and the roads they drive on are responsible. And the companies that built the ships are responsible. And the countries where the ships are registered and crewmen come from are responsible. And anybody or company that gives any support to anyone mentioned above, from selling them food or cloth to building their houses, are responsible.

        So following your logic to its end, virtually every adult alive today or in the last few hundred years are responsible for whaling in Iceland.

  • Chris

    I would say the Japanese whalers are holed up preparing their ships for Sea Shepherd onslaughts. Through experience they’ve learned all the tricks Sea Shepherd employ to try and stop them harvesting whales. An easy way to counter prop entanglements would be to weld plates in front of the propellers with metal extensions that allow the rope to harmlessly glide under the propellers without getting tangled in them, or put the prop shafts and props in tunnels. I would say Sea Shepherd should be diving under these vessels, walking along the docks, spying with a telescope or binoculars and gathering intelligence. In conflict, doesn’t victory go to the one who is most informed?

  • romika3

    “That’s fine. In the case of whaling, comment all you like. But take the sealing debate somewhere else. Right here, it’s about the whales.” sorry you are incorrect. Right here, it’s about an organization that claims to be a conservation organization yet uses violent and terror tactics to achieve their goals, selects issues based on the fund raising and media potential and as outlined in Watson’s book “Earth Force” distorts the true and lies.

    • imforthewhales

      Romika3…every time you mention the sealers in canada, who love nothing better than bashing the brains in of defensless baby seals, all it does is spell

      C*A*N*A*D*I*A*N S*E*A*L*E*R W*I*T*H A C*H*I*P O*N H*I*S S*H*O*U*L*D*E*R

      We know the sealers hate Paul Watson because he helped bring about the EU ban on baby seal skins in Europe.

      Lets hope that the japanese whalers end up hating PW just as much!

      • romika3

        Has far as I know the sealers didn’t hate Watson. What upset them was the following:

        - being told what to do
        - being setup for the purposes of getting media material
        - being spit on, called in the middle of the night and being threatened
        - having the seal hunt being “used” by SSCS and 17 other organizations as a money making machine

        We here all recognize that Paul Watson is a misfit with a distorted understanding of what conservation is. A number of years ago I listened to his babblings once over the VHF radio off the Northeast Coast a Canada and I have to say he is an embarrassment to the conservation movement.

    • From MN, with hope…

      Sea Shepherd’s goals are conservation of ocean wildlife, so, according to what you just said, Sea Shepherd accomplishes that goal.

      • ednakano

        SSCS or cther consevation NPO is kind of modern crusaders who attached other culture. They never think about real conservation.

      • boo radley

        Edna, you obviously do not have a clue what “real conservation” is.

        I suppose you think that the Japanese whalers are really doing research (?) WWWAAAHH!!!!

      • From MN, with hope…

        Crusaders? They just wanted the Holy Lands back, since Europe was so Christian, they thought it was theirs and they tried to take it. Anytime you go into war it attacks another culture, but I am afraid your comparison makes no sense. But I CAN tell you this: Sea Shepherd is a REAL conservation org who gets the results. How do they not think about ‘real conservation’?

  • ednakano

    SSCS named GOJIRA to the ship. It means SSCS going to hunt Bluefin Tuna. In the movie “GODZILLA”, The creature eat TUNA.

    • boo radley

      This one is after something much tastier than tuna…this Gojira eats whalers…for breakfast….

      Be afraid, be very very afraid….

      • ednakano

        Shabby ship may me eaten by whale. LOL

      • Michael Raymer

        Dude, seriously, you should go in to the nursery rhyme business. You’re a natural.

      • boo radley

        i think Edna bought a used copy of ‘translator’…must have a bug in it somewhere.

      • ednakano

        And eat SSCS crews for dinner. WAHAHAHA

      • boo radley

        WAAAAHHHH!

    • From MN, with hope…

      Eh, no. SSCS named a ship Bob Barker and the ship doesn’t host game shows. They named a ship Steve Irwin and it isn’t the Crocodile Hunter.

      • romika3

        Gee and all along I though the antics on the Bob Barker was a game show with Watson the host in a Captain Kangroo Suit!!!!

      • Chris H.

        Well then romika, I guess that just illustrates your distorted view of reality…

      • From MN, with hope…

        Wow, Chris H is right, that is a distorted view on things.

  • romika3

    Timeline for SSSC 2010/11

    - Set sail for the southern ocean

    - Stay in International waters where it is safe

    - Find a least one Whaling ship

    - Stage an incident

    - Fill the internet with images, video etc of the incident to raise money

    - Shoot plenty of footage of crew running around in circles

    - Watson returns and spends the rest of the year travelling around the country (paid for by supporters, includes meals and good hotels)

    - Whale Wars airs and all the viewers buy tees shirts and send their allowance to SSCS

    - The cycle begins again.

    • AnimuX

      Timeline for pro-whaling trolls:

      -Wake up
      -Visit Ecorazzi
      -Find any topic about Sea Shepherd
      -Choose between gross exaggerations of events, factually incorrect accounts of history, implications of wrongdoing without corroborating evidence
      -Repeat until tired of typing

      • ednakano

        It is your life Amimux.
        You donot have job and looking for some subject to forget your uncertain future for a while.
        I hope you have well sleep night.

      • boo radley

        Animux..you forgot “type in insult to translator program’ copy and paste…

    • http://seashepard.com devon

      they do it to gain publicty for the whales. if a lot of people know wats happening then more will try to stop it. im only 11 year old and i know 10 times more about sea shepard than u do.

  • ednakano

    Ausitrallia give the flag to this ship means OZ want to stop whaling and expoet more beef or kangaroo meat to Janan. And make The Antarctic Ocean own EEZ. Australlia refused Japanese proposalto reduce blue fin tuna fishing limmit. This means Australlia have duble standard.

    • boo radley

      Oh Japan wants to stop Tuna fishing? Gee thats Some good news right there…especially because they under-reported their tuna catch to the authorities for the past 20 YEARS which is why Tuna is no longer what it used to be. Japan told lies! Australia got just as mad at Japan for that as they are mad at Japan for illegal commercial whaling inside a whale sanctuary.

      Australia does not harpoon either beef cattle or kangaroos. Or pigs or chickens, if they did then people would be thrown in jail for animal cruelty.

      • ednakano

        Japan ask well controled usage of natural resource but Australlia refuse reducing numner of limmit.
        For Australlia, Whaling does not make money but Tuna fishing does. Who is really concern with natural resource.

      • boo radley

        Edna…did you know that Japan LIED about their tuna catches in the Southern ocean for 20 years?

        “Japan fesses up to tuna overcatch: govt
        Monday Oct 16 09:40 AEST

        The Australian government is confident that Japan will honour its drastically reduced quota of bluefin tuna catch after acknowledging that it had previously exceeded its take of the valuable fish.

        It was revealed in August that Japanese fishers and their suppliers from other countries plundered world southern bluefin tuna stocks, secretly catching up to three times the annual Japanese quota each year for the past 20 years.

        “Whether it is $1 billion, $4 billion or $6 billion it is in anybody’s language an horrendous overcatch,” Australian Fisheries Minister Eric Abetz told ABC Radio.”

        Is this what you are referring to when you say Japan “ask well controlled use of natural resource”?

        Whaling does not make money in Australia, that is true. However whales do make money…whale watching, that is. In fact it is far more profitable to run whale watching tours than to go whaling.

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