Of Whales and Blondes

That title reminds me a little of Steinbeck, but I assure you--I'm no John Steinbeck. My apologies to former Senator Lloyd Bentsen for paraphrasing him.

If you like jokes, I read this fantastic blonde joke at the Coalition of the Swilling. Give it a look if you're so inclined. It might remind you of the Red Button post from a few days back.

Here's a question that arises from the news story below. At what point does it become indefensible to interfere with others when making political protest?

As much as I approve of Greenpeace's mission, they often are overzealous and that zeal can put their own lives in danger as well as the lives of others. In the story below, placing their Zodiac in close proximity to the Japanese harpoon cannon was obviously dangerous and frankly more than a little stupid. The waters off of Antartica are International and the Japanese are legally able to hunt whales there.

Is the hunting of whales morally defensible? Probably not but some nations really need that whaling for economic reasons--though not Japan--so the laws aren't likely to change soon.

Changing those laws would be a better thing for Greenpeace to accomplish than foolhardy media events like the story below details. Of course Greenpeace does have numerous lawyers that are lobbying governments to do just that--but fund raising works better off of high profile actions like emperiling their own lives.

So, is what Greenpeace is doing right? And can these actions be generalized? Are political protestors who give up their lives, like those Chinese nonviolence protestors killed in Tiananmen Square in 1989, furthering their cause? And is that kind of sacrifice worth it? Closer to home is the example of Martin Luther King, Jr who was murdered in 1968. His death changed the Civil Rights Movement to a more violent and confrontational one and it also forced the nation to change its culture faster than it would have otherwise.

What would have happened if the multitude of martyred protestors over the years had lived? Hard to say--but an interesting question.



Japanese whaler harpoon in near-miss with protesters

Sun Jan 15, 10:28 AM ET: Reuters

A Japanese whaling harpoon narrowly missed an inflatable boat carrying environmental protesters, causing one to fall into the freezing sea, as both sides warn their face-off is becoming increasingly dangerous.

The Greenpeace vessel Arctic Sunrise has been shadowing the Japanese whaling fleet for several weeks in an attempt to disrupt Japan's annual whale hunt, prompting a heated exchange on January 8 when the Greenpeace ship and a Japanese ship collided.

In the latest incident on Saturday, the harpoon came within a meter of the inflatable boat as it tried to shield a minke whale, the environmental group said.

The harpoon's trailing line knocked one activist into the sea. He scrambled back aboard the boat without injury.

Greenpeace expedition leader Shane Rattenbury said the whalers were taking more risks to fill their catch in Antarctic waters south of Australia.

"There is definitely an increasing level of tensions down here and the harpooners are certainly starting to take shots that perhaps a week or two weeks ago they would not have taken," Rattenbury told Sky television.

"Yesterday took it to a new level -- we are very concerned about that," he said, adding the incident might force Greenpeace to review its tactics.

But Japan's Institute of Cetacean Research in Tokyo said it was Greenpeace that was taking more risks to remain in the media spotlight.

Institute chief Hiroshi Hatanaka said in a statement Greenpeace put its inflatable boat dangerously close to the bow of the whaling vessel when the harpooner fired.

"Our harpooner had a clear shot and took it. The strike was perfect and the whale was killed instantly," he said.

"The fact that the rope fell onto their inflatable and one of the activists fell into the water is entirely their fault. We are also concerned that they tried to cut the line because it makes it more dangerous for them."

Australia, a strong opponent of Japan's whaling program, has refused to intervene by sending navy ships to monitor the whaling and protests.

Foreign Minister Alexander Downer said last week Australia sympathized with the protesters, but said they had to make sure their protest was peaceful and did not endanger anyone.