I’m posting this because it pertains to the trip that we took this weekend to the museum!  It is interesting to see the ways in which the whaling industry has changed since the 19th century.  Currently in Japan whaling is an major source of economic prosperity, however, the practices that are used to acquire the whales/dolphins are viewed as unethical by the rest of the world.  So, now, “The UN’s International Court of Justice (ICJ) has ruled that the Japanese government must halt its whaling programme in the Antarctic.”

Good.

Has anyone ever seen “The Cove”?  It is a documentary on the whaling/dolphin industry in Japan which will most certainly make your stomach turn.  That’s really the only background knowledge that I have about the industry in Japan.  However, the article that I found on the BBC entitled, “Japan Banned from Antarctic Whaling” outlines some of the ecological destruction that has occurred due to Japan’s decimation of the Minke whales and dolphins in the Pacific.

Japan had been using the whale products for different types of oils and meats–maybe bought by NASA???!?!–and the dolphins that were caught were not only used for meat, but were also sold to the entertainment industry.  Australia had been attempting to place sanctions through the UN onto Japan since 2010:  ”It agreed with Australia, which brought the case in May 2010, that the programme was not for scientific research as claimed by Tokyo.”

“Japan said it would abide by the decision but added it ‘regrets and is deeply disappointed by the decision.'” <– Really, Japan?

 

(A whale being pull from the ocean.  Pretty gruesome.) Australian Custom Services.