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Posted on 07/17/2011 2:42:46 AM PDT by tlb
The International Whaling Commission's (IWC) annual meeting has closed after a tense final day when relations between opposing blocs came close to collapse.
Latin American nations attempted to force a vote on a proposal to create a whale sanctuary in the South Atlantic.
Pro-whaling countries walked out, but eventually it was decided to shelve any vote until next year's meeting.
Earlier in the meeting, governments agreed new regulations designed to prevent "cash for votes" scandals that have plagued the IWC in the past, and passed a resolution censuring the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society for putting safety at risk during its annual missions to counter Japanese whalers in the Southern Ocean.
But the sanctuary issue threatened to derail the entire session.
"We didn't come here to win the sanctuary on the vote, but we wanted to put it to a vote - we believe our conservation agenda cannot be put forward, be stressed, be highlighted, be defended in some issues without a vote," said Brazil's commissioner Marcus Henrique Paranagua.
The pro-whaling bloc said this could herald a return to the fractious days of the past, and walked out in an attempt to bring the meeting below the quorum needed for votes to count.
The compromise eventually hammered out, after private discussions lasting nearly nine hours, asks countries to strive to reach consensus during the coming year.
"Acrimony is often the enemy of conservation - in this case, it meant that a critical meeting on whales failed to address the greatest threats they face," said Wendy Elliott, head of environment group WWF's delegation.
(Excerpt) Read more at bbc.co.uk ...
>> Of course there is a valid reason for whaling. People want to eat whale meat.<<
If God didn’t want people to eat animals, including whales, He wouldn’t have filled the animals with meat.
“Unless of course you’re arrogant enough to believe that you can dictate the dietary choices of Japanese consumers.”
I don’t believe in cultural equivalence any more than I support the “right” of the Japanese and Chinese to eat their way through each and every species on the planet.
Hyperbole.
So you’d be ok with it if they opened a whale farm?
“So you’d be ok with it if they opened a whale farm?”
Guess so.
Good luck.
Look, there is no VALID reason for killing and eating whales aside from a cultural need to do so on the part of those countries involved. I have no problem with hunting game animals which are not endangered, for food and other purposes. But there simply is no real need on the part of these whaling nations to harvest whales aside from keeping their whaling industry in business and providing grist for strange tastes and material for pet food. We have other sources for that.
If and when whales increase to the point where there is a large population of them, and/or they pose a threat environmentally, fine - harvest them. But there is simply no case for that at this point.
And its NOT hyperbole.
Let them eat beef (or venison, or elk or buffalo, or something similar.)
Nice try. I know you are busy with all those hunting permits, so don’t let my comments slow you down.
Do you think these whaler's just do it for the hell of it?
If you would....state some valid reasons..from your POV.
Profound.
Just demonstrating your neaderthal thought train again.
What the hell is a neaderthal?
Well, actually, I’m making up .577 minie ball rounds for target shooting at the moment and planning a trip to the Dixon’s Gun Show in PA.
But thanks for your concern.
A Neanderthal with a typing problem.
I agree with you and have said so on previous threads. For these reasons I support Sea Shepard, and only in this.
Many people on these threads have never seen a whale except on television.
Or Sea Shepherd, speaking of spelling problems.
LOL!
No matter what I think about whaling, I would never support the human life-threatening actions of these econuts to save ANY wild animal.
>>A Neanderthal with a typing problem.<<
“Pointing out typos is the last refuge of the incontinent. —Hober Marshmallow.”
I have no problem with designating an area as a whale sanctuary, but to Whom does one assign the task of notifying the WHALES where to go to be safe?
Just askiin’.
The idea behind making it a sanctuary is that because it is a place that is easy to find and kill whales, it should be left alone so they have some place for respite.
I kind of knew that...I was just making a joke to add a bit of levity to the thread (some serious bickering going on!) But Thank you anyway. {:-)
I’m here to help!
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