# Did you donate to the relief effort in Japan? If so, some of your money is going towards whaling... **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [December 13, 2011, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-donate-to-the-relief-effort-in-japan-if-so-some-of-your-money-is-going-towards-whaling/606044 "2011-12-13T16:27:02Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Jaledin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Jaledin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jaledin)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2011, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-donate-to-the-relief-effort-in-japan-if-so-some-of-your-money-is-going-towards-whaling/606044/21 "2011-12-13T21:31:44Z")
Yeah, but I’m great with kids – especially if they’re Korean, Chinese, Indonesian, Filipino, or tiny little reincarnated WWII veterans from any Allied country, who have whales as pets and don’t like reading comic books full of eight year old girls fingering their snatches or playing some idiotic (natch) video game about mass rape and wanton torture. Of course the Jap government was going to divert funds however they wanted. What happened when aid was sent to aid a truly desperate, catastrophic event, the tsunami whose impact was felt largely in Indonesia and neighboring countries? Or Haiti’s recent earthquake. I don’t know, but I do know the Jap government wasn’t involved parcelling out snippets to sailors like the sneaky little greasy sword-diddlers they are. ---
**Author:** ![scr4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/59ef9b/32.png) [@scr4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scr4)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2011, 9:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-donate-to-the-relief-effort-in-japan-if-so-some-of-your-money-is-going-towards-whaling/606044/22 "2011-12-13T21:52:25Z")
> [@biddee](#): > > …, I pit that Japan continues whaling in spite of the fact that 95% of Japanese people don’t eat whale meat. The article only says that “recent polls have shown that 95% of Japanese eat whale meat rarely, if at all.” I’m guessing 95% of Americans eat venison rarely, if at all. Does that mean the US should ban deer hunting? ---
**Author:** ![Acid\_Lamp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@Acid\_Lamp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acid_Lamp)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2011, 9:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-donate-to-the-relief-effort-in-japan-if-so-some-of-your-money-is-going-towards-whaling/606044/23 "2011-12-13T21:53:47Z")
> [@Jaledin](#): > > Color me surprised. I didn’t shed any tears about the recent “tragedy” for two reasons – mass uprisings in North Africa and the near East were of far greater interest, and mostly, fuck the Japs. Their leaders are the same as those found in commie North Korea, remorseless, and their culture is vapid and devoid of lasting art. Those gooks can go pound shit into sand. > > I pray every day Red China grows a pair and nukes the shit out of that little scab of a country into the ocean. At least PRC has a history of real language, real literature, just about anything besides their unfortunate mass-murdering communist tendencies. /Not sure if serious/ :dubious: ---
**Author:** ![Baker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bb73d2/32.png) [@Baker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baker)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2011, 9:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-donate-to-the-relief-effort-in-japan-if-so-some-of-your-money-is-going-towards-whaling/606044/24 "2011-12-13T21:57:51Z")
> [@mkecane](#): > > Nuke the whales. From orbit. ---
**Author:** ![GIGObuster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gigobuster/32/421_2.png) [@GIGObuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GIGObuster)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2011, 10:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-donate-to-the-relief-effort-in-japan-if-so-some-of-your-money-is-going-towards-whaling/606044/25 "2011-12-13T22:14:40Z")
> [@mkecane](#): > > Nuke the whales. Now, lets not be hasty. \*\*Shave \*\*the whales, that will do for now.. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![VinylTurnip](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b2d939/32.png) [@VinylTurnip](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VinylTurnip)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2011, 11:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-donate-to-the-relief-effort-in-japan-if-so-some-of-your-money-is-going-towards-whaling/606044/26 "2011-12-13T23:04:21Z")
> [@Jaledin](#): > > Yeah, but I’m great with kids – especially if they’re Korean, Chinese, Indonesian, Filipino, or tiny little reincarnated WWII veterans from any Allied country, who have whales as pets and don’t like reading comic books full of eight year old girls fingering their snatches or playing some idiotic (natch) video game about mass rape and wanton torture. > > Of course the Jap government was going to divert funds however they wanted. What happened when aid was sent to aid a truly desperate, catastrophic event, the tsunami whose impact was felt largely in Indonesia and neighboring countries? Or Haiti’s recent earthquake. I don’t know, but I do know the Jap government wasn’t involved parcelling out snippets to sailors like the sneaky little greasy sword-diddlers they are. Look, I’m still mad too, but you need to face it. The Beatles aren’t getting back together. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2011, 11:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-donate-to-the-relief-effort-in-japan-if-so-some-of-your-money-is-going-towards-whaling/606044/27 "2011-12-13T23:17:58Z")
> [@Jaledin](#): > > Color me surprised. I didn’t shed any tears about the recent “tragedy” for two reasons – mass uprisings in North Africa and the near East were of far greater interest, and mostly, fuck the Japs. Their leaders are the same as those found in commie North Korea, remorseless, and their culture is vapid and devoid of lasting art. Those gooks can go pound shit into sand. > > I pray every day Red China grows a pair and nukes the shit out of that little scab of a country into the ocean. At least PRC has a history of real language, real literature, just about anything besides their unfortunate mass-murdering communist tendencies. I usually allow quite a bit of leeway in my interpretation of the hate speech rule in the pit, but this? [Moderating] Calling for the genocide of an entire nation, while using racial slurs to describe them is a violation of our hate speech rules. This is a formal warning. Do not do anything like this again, or your posting rights will be reviewed. [/Moderating] ---
**Author:** ![Jaledin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Jaledin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jaledin)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2011, 11:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-donate-to-the-relief-effort-in-japan-if-so-some-of-your-money-is-going-towards-whaling/606044/28 "2011-12-13T23:22:33Z")
OK – didn’t realize. I thought this was a pit thread pitting Japan, so I thought I’d pit Japan as well because of their whaling practices. Won’t happen again. ---
**Author:** ![Jaledin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Jaledin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jaledin)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2011, 11:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-donate-to-the-relief-effort-in-japan-if-so-some-of-your-money-is-going-towards-whaling/606044/29 "2011-12-13T23:25:05Z")
Mistaken 2x post But since I’m here – how about some serious pitting of Japan’s whaling industries? You guys are mewling out there, if anything. ---
**Author:** ![VinylTurnip](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b2d939/32.png) [@VinylTurnip](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VinylTurnip)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2011, 12:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-donate-to-the-relief-effort-in-japan-if-so-some-of-your-money-is-going-towards-whaling/606044/30 "2011-12-14T00:49:07Z")
To be honest, after that attack I feel kind of sorry for them. ---
**Author:** ![Namkcalb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/c89c15/32.png) [@Namkcalb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Namkcalb)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2011, 2:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-donate-to-the-relief-effort-in-japan-if-so-some-of-your-money-is-going-towards-whaling/606044/31 "2011-12-14T02:41:48Z")
> [@Jaledin](#): > > _snip_ Did Aiko mess up your sushi order again? ---
**Author:** ![Rhythmdvl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/85f322/32.png) [@Rhythmdvl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rhythmdvl)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2011, 3:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-donate-to-the-relief-effort-in-japan-if-so-some-of-your-money-is-going-towards-whaling/606044/32 "2011-12-14T03:09:10Z")
> [@Namkcalb](#): > > Did Aiko mess up your sushi order again? Hey now! ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2011, 4:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-donate-to-the-relief-effort-in-japan-if-so-some-of-your-money-is-going-towards-whaling/606044/33 "2011-12-14T04:22:36Z")
> [@biddee](#): > > I pit the Japanese government for [this](http://globalspin.blogs.time.com/2011/12/12/blood-money-tsunami-recovery-funds-go-to-japans-whaling-industry/). I gave money to help the tsunami ravage regions recover. I did not expect my money to go towards reviving the whaling industry. I am not happy about this ☹ Well, maybe it was a fluke. ---
**Author:** ![Captain\_Amazing](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6de8d8/32.png) [@Captain\_Amazing](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Amazing)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2011, 4:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-donate-to-the-relief-effort-in-japan-if-so-some-of-your-money-is-going-towards-whaling/606044/34 "2011-12-14T04:51:40Z")
Here’s why I don’t have a serious problem with Japanese whaling. 1. They’re legally allowed to do it. 2. They primarily hunt Minke whales, which aren’t endangered. 3. There’s no evidence that Minke whales are even particularly intelligent. It’s generally thought that they’re less intelligent than pigs, and most people don’t have a problem with eating pigs. 4. The people who are actively opposed to it tend to be assholes and I enjoy seeing them upset. ---
**Author:** ![Isamu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/7c8e57/32.png) [@Isamu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Isamu)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2011, 5:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-donate-to-the-relief-effort-in-japan-if-so-some-of-your-money-is-going-towards-whaling/606044/35 "2011-12-14T05:11:06Z")
Agree with point 4 above, But, here’s why I have a problem with whaling: 1. It runs at a loss and is therefore government subsidized to the tune of about 1,200,000,000 Yen per year. That’s my taxes at work at a truly useless industry. ---
**Author:** ![Zebra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/c0e974/32.png) [@Zebra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zebra)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2011, 5:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-donate-to-the-relief-effort-in-japan-if-so-some-of-your-money-is-going-towards-whaling/606044/36 "2011-12-14T05:13:52Z")
I intended my money to help the creators of tentacle rape porn recover. ---
**Author:** ![Measure\_for\_Measure](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/measure_for_measure/32/557_2.png) [@Measure\_for\_Measure](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Measure_for_Measure)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2011, 10:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-donate-to-the-relief-effort-in-japan-if-so-some-of-your-money-is-going-towards-whaling/606044/37 "2011-12-14T10:05:55Z")
> [@Captain\_Amazing](#): > > 1. There’s no evidence that Minke whales are even particularly intelligent. It’s generally thought that they’re less intelligent than pigs, and most people don’t have a problem with eating pigs. Cite? I’ve tried googling for info on the intelligence of the Minke Whale in the past, and came up with very little. This is odd, as they have been the subject of intense scientific investigation by the Japanese for 25 years. More googling: > [@Mark P. Simmonds: Into The Brains of Whales](#): > > In the case of the minke whales (the commercial whalers currently favoured target species) very little is known of their behaviour. However, there is one place where one population of minke whales on the Great Barrier Reef in Australia is proving tractable to long-term study, including recognition and monitoring of individuals. This population of dwarf minke whales - regarded as an undescribed sub-species of the northern minke whale (i.e. Balaenoptera acutorostrata sp.) – is being studied with the help of local whale watching operations (Birtles and Arnold, 2002 and Birtles et al., 2002). Known adult females return on an annual basis to within metres of where they were previously seen. > > Known individuals have also been regularly seen together in a style that at least emulates the fission-fusion society of some dolphins. Overall, these six tonne animals are reported to be remarkably inquisitive and sociable, and a range of repeated behaviours have been identified for them: bubble streaming and blasting; rolling over in the water, white belly up; and jaw gapping and jaw clapping (Arnold and Birtles, 2002). Moreover, whilst these minke whales, like all the other baleen species, lack the system of air sacs in the forehead region used by toothed whales to produce sounds, they are far from mute. Their sounds probably come from the larynx region (although they also lack vocal cords) and are in the 10-9,400 Hz range (so for the most part audible to us) including a mechanical sounding call that has three rapid pulses and a longer trailing note. They also produce sounds that are described as grunts, moans and belches. That’s not exactly conclusive: as I said, I haven’t a good handle on this. ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2011, 10:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-donate-to-the-relief-effort-in-japan-if-so-some-of-your-money-is-going-towards-whaling/606044/38 "2011-12-14T10:43:48Z")
> [@Measure\_for\_Measure](#): > > Cite? I’ve tried googling for info on the intelligence of the Minke Whale in the past, and came up with very little. This is odd, as they have been the subject of intense scientific investigation by the Japanese for 25 years. I see what you did there. ---
**Author:** ![amanset](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8dc957/32.png) [@amanset](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amanset)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2011, 11:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-donate-to-the-relief-effort-in-japan-if-so-some-of-your-money-is-going-towards-whaling/606044/39 "2011-12-14T11:51:41Z")
> [@mkecane](#): > > Nuke the whales. Nuke Wales. ---
**Author:** ![raskolnik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e47c2d/32.png) [@raskolnik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/raskolnik)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2011, 1:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-donate-to-the-relief-effort-in-japan-if-so-some-of-your-money-is-going-towards-whaling/606044/40 "2011-12-14T13:52:18Z")
> [@amanset](#): > > Nuke Wales. Isn’t Wales small enough that would also be genocide? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-donate-to-the-relief-effort-in-japan-if-so-some-of-your-money-is-going-towards-whaling/606044.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-donate-to-the-relief-effort-in-japan-if-so-some-of-your-money-is-going-towards-whaling/606044.md?page=3)