Pacific Spirit Marine Institute
Monday, January 28, 2008
Extolling the virtues of roadkill? Boiled whale ventral grooves with a lot of grated ginger?
The esoteric opportunity to ‘think about whales’ linking man with the whales and the oceans? Essay contests winning the President Prize of the Ishinomaki Chamber of Commerce and Industry written by a second grader?
All this and more can be found at the Japan whaling Association website.
I came across this website while doing research on the Australian Governments use of the Airbus A319’s first whaling surveillance mission.
With all the tensions growing and turmoil surrounding Japan’s dogged pursuit of it’s “scientific” whaling program I had to wonder why they continue to sail in such politically charged and unpopular waters. After all, what could possibly be learned from 900 dead minke that wasn’t learned from the first 35?
In the name of ’science’ isn’t even a clever cover-up. Not many are buying that thinly sliced excuse, but they may just be buying some thinly sliced whale meat. Waxing nostalgic for her school lunches, Chizue Yamagiwa, cooking expert, most fondly remembers “whale cutlet,” “fried whale meat,” and “whale soup.”
Yamagiwa says, “Thinking simply, there is nothing wrong in adding whales to our food options, which include poultry, pork and beef.” She goes on that as it is beginning to become quite chilly she will cook kujira-jiru, whale pot, in the evening. She describes it as a beautiful, colorful dish with the red and white of whale bacon and the green of the radish sprouts. She says, “I am sure it will invite me to more cups of sake this evening.”
Is whaling really a cultural issue or is it a propaganda issue? To borrow words from Ms. Yamagiwa, “Thinking simply” I’m thinking it may just be a commercial code kind of issue.
One thing is certain from my vantage point. I’d have to have more than “more cups of sake” to garner the ability to sit down to a steaming bowl of whale bacon soup.
Don’t miss this window into the thinking of the Japanese Whaling Association.
Photo Thanks msnbc.com
Whale burger
Labels: Airbus A319, Australia, Japan, Whales, Whaling
© 2009, Pacific Spirit Marine Institute.
Japanese Whaling. Insights Into Why Japan Seems Compelled To Continue Whaling.
Tuesday, November 20, 2007
The meat from the slaughtered whales is sold to restaurants and supermarkets and the profits are used to fund future hunts. Nice work if you can get it! But, read further for the catch.
The Nisshin Maru has left Japan and is now heading towards the coast of Antarctica to begin the largest hunt for whales since 1963. Japan still uses the tired ‘Scientific’ whale hunt label to continue bringing death and destruction, mutilation and torture to the giants of the sea. But, so does Iceland. Norway on the other hand doesn’t try to mask it’s whaling behind the transparent sham of science. They just call their whaling ‘commercial’.
Let’s face it. The claim that Japan has made over the years that whaling is a Japanese tradition going back to the early 1600’s is a poor excuse. Defecating in a hole was a tradition dating back even longer. I don’t see anyone making a claim they should return to their old traditional toilet habits.
Adding insult to the injury that is about to take place, the SeaShepard is reporting that as the Nisshin Maru pulled out of port while crowds of well wishers were flying balloons with smiling whale pictures and cheering. One more nice touch was a brass band that played “Popeye the Sailor Man” on the dock!
Killing more than 1,000 whales will only serve to partially satiate some people’s desire to eat whale sandwiches at fast food restaurants. I contend that anyone that would find a whale sandwich desirable dinning fare, just might consider eating their own grandmother on a bun. Not before, however, they examined her earwax to determine her true age. Before you think I’ve gone bonkers, the examination of the whale’s earwax to determine age is one of the scientific probs said to be done by Japan.
Japan has killed 10,500 whales since the moratorium on commercial whaling took effect. Greenpeace has said Japan has close to 4.000 tons of whale meat in cold storage.
Iceland and Norway are also whaling. In 2006 Norway increased its quota from 797 to 1,052 whales in what was considered to be a political statement. Apparently that ’statement’ backfired because demand for the meat by the Norwegian public is down. Sue fisher from the Whale and Dolphin conservation Society said ‘Middlemen can’t see the meat already caught and have run out of storage space.”
Iceland still using the scientific exemption for their actions would, however, like to export their ’science’ to Japan. Japan is still the world’s largest market for whale meat. All of this flies in the face of ’science’.
Iceland announced plans to export whale meat from it’s scientific whaling program to the Faroe Islands. Apparently they’ll eat anything there too. The Faroe Islands maintain they are exempt from regulations prohibiting the importation of whale meat.
Arni Finnsson from Iceland Nature Conservation Association says “There is no market for this meat in Iceland, there is no possibility to export it to Japan; the government appears to have listened to fishermen who are blaming whales for eating all the fish.”
Photo thanks arigon.multiply
Labels: Iceland, Japan, Nisshin Maru, Norway, Whaling
© 2009, Pacific Spirit Marine Institute.
Is Japanese Whaling a sustainable industry?
