If anything, his initial post to me is an attack on my argument.
As it should be. Nice reading comprehension. Basically, you tried to invalidate the post and the author of it rather than discuss the logic of the statement. To respond to your initial statement:
So killing a whale for research and food is bad, but using a dead whale to make a political statement is good?
Basically, yes. The activists are opposed to killing whales. They don't care what happens to a whale once it is dead. Their point, if you read the article, is "that there is no need to kill the mammals for research - as Japan does - because cadavers can be found." They also "dispute Japan's claim to be whaling for scientific purposes, saying whale meat often ends up on restaurant tables." I have read a bit about the issue, and it seems like Japanese are using dubious research to justify whale hunting.
That is a lovely opinion for you to have.