Does What It Says On The Tin.

It beggars belief doesn’t it? After a worldwide moratorium on hunting whales set in 1985 the IWC are recommending a lifting of the ban. Hang on; surely the world is a different place than 25 years ago? Don’t we watch and study whales now, not kill them?

What possible justification is there to resume the slaughter? So we can supply a few tonnes of whalemeat to Japanese sushi bars? We have adequate substitutes for whaleoil and I’m confident that whalebone corsets have had their day. I’m struggling to think of one good reason here.
Do they really believe that recovering whale populations are having an effect on fish stocks? That wouldn’t be anything to do with fishing fleets and trawling nets a mile wide would it?

In raw economic terms, the global whale watching industry is worth tens of millions of dollars – whales are worth far more alive than they are dead. But then there’s a clue in the title; International Whaling Commission. That’s Whaling not Whale or Whalewatch. Check the IWC website yourself and look at History and Purpose (and I’m quoting here):
The purpose of the Convention is to provide for the proper conservation of whale stocks and thus make possible the orderly development of the whaling industry. ………
These measures, among other things, set limits on the numbers and size of whales which may be taken; prescribe open and closed seasons and areas for whaling; and prohibit the capture of suckling calves and female whales accompanied by calves.
I particularly like that last bit – prohibit the capture of suckling calves - they’re all heart are’nt they?
No, the future of the world’s whales and their conservation is governed by the International Whaling Commission. And let’s read that bit again: …… make possible the orderly development of the whaling industry.
We may as well ask paedophiles to run the brownies.