Whale Wars

[DMBEAR]

Necro bump FTW. Yeah I root for the whalers looks like a awesome job hunt whales throw stuff at hippes spray them with water cannons. 

At least I didnt start a new thread.            (post #)     

[Vudak]

Well it's a long bump and all, Dmbear, but I'm glad you did it.  I just found this show a few weeks ago and can't watch it without my jaw dropping and my eyebrows raising.  Politics, whaling, and/or any fuzzy feelings aside, those guys on the Steve Irwin are just...  Well, I'm not sure I can come up with a word suitable to describe their ineptitude.  They have to be the absolute worst sailor/para-pirate group on the high seas.

They are going to get themselves killed.

[DMBEAR]

It's a justified bump because the current season is showing the Japanese owning those whales like a hippie owns BO.  The Japanese are hauling up whales in front of them.   Sorry,  maybe they'll spin it different, but I doubt that the processing boat that the Irwin follows is the only one down there.

It's a hunch, but I think the Japanese have several processing vessels. 

But that wouldn't make for a good show...and it might even stop donations to the cause.

[Reaper90]

They are going to get themselves killed.

 

[kilo2]

I laugh every episode. Last episode I was yelling at the freaking guy manning the harpoon to pull the trigger. They whine at everything though which is annoying. They are also the biggest hypocrites.

[Vudak]

It annoys me how often the phrase "I am ready to die for this" is followed by, "Well, I'm not doing THAT..."  It also annoys me how the people who most often say the first thing are the ones in the least harm's way.  That skinny Dutch fellow seems to say it the most, and he's on the bridge...  Get in the small boats if you feel that way...

I understand they are all volunteers, but often they act like they're volunteering for a tag sale or some such...  It is in their very best interests to have a crack down on discipline and come up with some sort of clear chain of command.  They're in far too dangerous of an environment to be a democracy... 

[fudgums]

  The Japs seem to be doing good this year despite the bad economy

[BoilerDown]

Haha thanks for the bump.  I was looking for this thread after the last episode.  I also think they will likely get themselves killed, and a talented camera crew will be lost .

What amazes me is that the Japanese are for the most part using non-violent defense mechanisms against them, and doing it well.  Yeah throwing bolts and golf balls at them wasn't exactly non-violent, but everything else they've done is.  And eventually the Japanese have now figured out that they can just go ahead and fish right in front of them, as if they aren't even there.  The Sea Sheppards got owned, hard, this past episode.  They just figured out that they are totally ineffective at stopping whaling.  Too bad for them.

[sntslilhlpr6601]

Sadly, I root for the whalers now too.

I Just started watching this season and I hadn't even seen the rammings yet when all of a sudden they're trying(keyword: trying) to destroy the japanese ship's prop. They're pirates as far as I'm concerned.

And I'm no chopper pilot but that guy flies way too low. With those floats on the bottom he might even survive an autorotation on the open sea, but he sure as hell isn't gonna pull it off at 50 feet. And I know there's some law about buzzing ships.

[Anaxogoras]

Unless we're no longer going to let our Eskimos shoot whales with machine guns for their traditional hunt, they don't have a leg to stand on.

[fudgums]

icrwhales.org has all stuff from the Jap side.

http://www.icrwhale.org/eng/090206SS.wmv
 

[mbailey]

Unless we're no longer going to let our Eskimos shoot whales with machine guns for their traditional hunt, they don't have a leg to stand on.

I just watched a show on this the other night, i think that the Eskimos are required to use "traditional" hunting methods to take the whales. Although with that said, they do use explosive tipped harpoons. Not sure how "traditional" that is.
<S>
Mbailey

[Jebus]

"You must not fight too often with one enemy, or you will teach him all your art of war" Napoleon Bonaparte

I am sorry but I have watched both seasons.  Last season and this season you can tell the Japs studied up on Paul Watson and the Steven Irwin plans of attacks.  If you noticed everything they crew of the Steve Irwin did the Japs had a counter to... They had netting up for the Buteric Acid (which is toxic) they had higher pressure water cannons for the keeping the smaller boats at bay.  They had the LRAD for the physcological aspect and making the Steve Irwin crew scared and have that in the back of there head.  They had something on the bottom of there harpoon boats so when the prop fowlers went out they did not catch the props.

Paul Watson went to the well way to many times.  It was a matter of time when his plan wouldnt work.  Any military person here can tell you the same thing, and I never been in the military.  I believe the Japs played Paul Watson like a fine tune fiddle.  They knew his main goal was that processing ship and laid a trap.  They lead the Steve Irwin to there fishing grounds only so Steve Irwins crew can watch them Harpoon those whales right infront of them.  Sorry I thought it was a great plan on the Japs part.  Just my opion.

Now I read that Sea Shepards recieved 3 ships for next season
 http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/outposts/2009/06/whale-war-saga-between-japanese-hunters-and-sea-shepherd-to-escalate-.html

The Earthrace is a fast boat but was made for speed not for Ice or dangerous stuff that Paul Watson does.

I hear the Third boat is for the camera crews.  They felt there life was at constent harms way the whole time and that the third boat will be there for there safety.

Yes I am rooting for the Japs in this battle!

[redman555]

Ok, im not an eco nut at all, but i think its wrong what there doing..... have you seen what they do? They chase the whales for miles, and shoot them with a 6 foot harpoon, then they drag them along side of boat, if the whale isnt dead yet, they start shooting it with rifles...I am against animal abuse to.... but im just saying, leave the dang whales alone


-BigBOBCH

[MORAY37]

Back from the dead, this thread!

The problem is, both sides are right, and both are wrong.

The Japanese are making whaling an industry.  It's obvious.  There is not a shred of science being done on that ship.  One single whale would take days to scientifically examine properly, and they're doing it in about 2 hours from haul out???  I call BS there.  There just isn't any kind of time to process the specimen adequately. One single Tursiops truncatus (Bottlenose Dolphin) necropsy takes longer, and it's only 1/50th the size of a Minke.

 As such:

The quality of science involved in the JARPN study is astonishingly poor. At the 2001 meeting of the IWC Scientific Committee, 32 scientists representing many different countries submitted a document expressing their belief that the Japanese program lacked scientific rigour and would not meet minimum standards of academic review that are widely in use in science world-wide (Clapham et al. 2002, 2003).

It angers me that the Japs are hiding behind science, while not actually doing any real science.

But, as I said before the Sea Sheppards are complete idiots, to the degree of functional retardation.  There are correct ways to document and catch these guys, without risking lives.  I have said all along, this show will end with deaths.