Rational Arguments
One the last resorts of the proponents of whaling is that it’s a defence against moves to eliminate cultural diversity, or that it’s a form of ‘cultural imperialism. For the real hardcore moneymakers in the whaling industries, it’s a small step to accuse people of racism, and I can assure you that some are happy to do so at the drop of a hat.
Well, the actual history of whaling puts paid to most of those arguments (its quite modern in most places and opposition comes from all types of people, including those living in Japan, Norway and Iceland), but I also think that this formulaic defence of the indefensible is just downright wrong, and seeks to confuse the public debate from the real arguments.
If you want to read a rationale discussion on the issue of Icelandic whaling that avoids the stereotypes, please read Katharina Hauptmann’s blog on Iceland Review - Insightful.
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In Iceland, Norway, and Japan, whaling is no more a tradition than building skyscrapers or bottling water. It's strictly an industry that uses nationalist sentiment in order to maintain political support.
The whalers of these industrialized nations are not out in open boats with hand held spears and nets trying to kill a few whales for nutritional or religious purposes. They're riding out to sea in diesel powered floating steel factories and gunning down whales with 90mm canon fired explosive penthrite grenade tipped harpoons.
The industrial whaling techniques and technology are used for exactly one purpose: to kill as many animals as possible in a short span of time in order to maximize profits in a niche market (in which demand has consistently declined since the 1960s).
Unfortunately, pro-whaling antagonists attempt to skew the argument away from real issues, like the fact that 3 signatories to the ICRW have been essentially violating and subverting the decisions of the IWC for decades.
They also can't seem to make up their minds about how to best frame their defense of whaling. In one instance, they'll falsely claim all anti-whaling protest is based on pure emotion and ignoring scientific justification. Next they claim "culture" as a justification which is an entirely emotional argument.
One day they falsely claim some whales are overpopulated and eating so many fish the recovery of endangered species is stunted. Next they claim exemptions to hunting endangered whales and make up their own bogus numbers to justify the slaughter as sustainable.
The history of modern whaling is rife with regulatory violations, criminal activity, and state-sponsored pro-whaling propaganda. When people don't know the history of the world's whaling industries they tend to forget exactly why so many whales remain endangered today.
The world's whalers, by violating regulations, ignoring scientific warnings, and declaring national indemnity, nearly wiped out most of the great whale species for nothing more than money.