Nations fail to agree on curbing Japan whale hunt

AGADIR, Morocco — Japanese officials and environmentalists traded blame Wednesday as nations failed to reach a deal to curb whale hunts by Japan, Norway and Iceland—countries that kill hundreds of whales every year.

The 88 nations of the International Whaling Commission held two days of intense closed-door talks on a proposal to ease the 25-year-old ban on commercial whaling in exchange for smaller kills by the three countries that claim exemptions to the moratorium on hunting for profit.

About 1,500 animals are killed each year by Japan, Norway and Iceland. Japan, which kills the majority of whales, insists its hunt is for scientific research — but more whale meat and whale products end up in Japanese restaurants than in laboratories.

A key sticking point appeared to be that the agency declared a whaling sanctuary in 1994 in the Southern Ocean south of Australia, but Japanese ships hunt freely there because the agency has no enforcement powers.

Australia has already launched a complaint against Japanese whaling at the International Court of Justice in The Hague, the U.N.'s highest court.

Acting IWC chairman Anthony Liverpool said in an open meeting Wednesday that "fundamental positions remained very much apart."

Complete Story.

Sea Shepherd - Throwing Rocks For Media

Sea Shepherds ongoing international disappointment continues as a recent media tirade slammed South Africa's Marine and Coastal Management (MCM) officials who are now being labeled as "bloodthirsty tyrants" and "mad-dog killers".

Their crime, according to Sea Shepherds titular head Paul Watson, was the unfortunate mass euthanasia of a pod of beached whales.

Watson, whose organization circulated the media tirade, has called MCM a "disgrace to the nation" and said MCM official Mike Meyer had carried out a "savage, merciless, cold-blooded massacre".

Wait a Minute!

This is the same Sea Shepherd who just a few months ago was embroiled in a completely faked whale saving news story that this blog uncovered and then covered again as the story unfolded to its sad conclusion.

Sea Shepherds "Vanessa Pearce" claimed on national news that Sea Shepherd crews were actually on site of a mass Sperm whale standing in Tazmania. She went as far as claiming that Sea Shepherds vessel the Steve Irwin was on site with "actual whale saving gear" but was turned away by Park Rangers leaving the animals to suffer while shadowy figures used chainsaws on recently dead animals.

The entire story turned out to be bogus, but this is Sea Shepherd a direct action eco org that revels in throwing media bombs to maximum audience exposure and little effect.

At the recent tragic stranding in South Africa nothing could be done to save these animals from of lack of resources, ocean conditions, and time. It is to be noted some 120 local volunteers heroically tried to save whales in icy and rough conditions - to no avail. South Africa's Marine and Coastal Management staff are not "bloodthirsty tyrants" and "mad-dog killers" as Paul Watson has publicly charged. They made a tough decision, in tough conditions to put long suffering animals out of misery.

That takes guts, and foresight.

Perhaps Watson and company should spend less time throwing media rocks at glass houses and actually invest in that hypothetical "whale saving gear" his staff claims on Nine-MSN Tazmania to have on board the Steve Irwin.

They could have used it in South Africa recently.

Demand more from your eco org.

Shark Diver "Gear" Sighting-Sweet

Since 2002 Shark Diver has sold, donated, or just plain given away over 3000 baseball caps.

Featuring our homemade logo on the front "Sharky" and our brand on the back-we're told people hold on to these things like treasured mementos.

Now, 3000 baseball caps dropped into the vast pool of the dive industry is not a lot, so we get a kick out of seeing one on a random Flickr page about someone's Cape Cod whale watching trip in 2006.

We have no idea who this is, but one thing is for sure, they sure get attention wherever they go!