Pual Watson on Democracy Now

Captain Paul Watson is presently released from a German court on a quarter of a million dollars bond.

As hard as it might be to comprehend, fifty million sharks, valued in the billions of dollars, are taken annually by the shark finning industry.

Little wonder that Paul Watson and Sea Shepherd Conservation society have enemies. And let us not forget the Japanese, you can bet the farm that they will be up to their necks in this transparent piece of political chicanery.

Captain Paul Watson, founder of the anti-whaling group Sea Shepherd, has been released on bail in Germany following his arrest for possible extradition to Costa Rica on decade-old charges stemming from a confrontation with shark fin poachers. Sea Shepherd continues to maintain that Watson’s arrest was politically motivated and is calling on its supporters to come together in a day of action on Wednesday when the Costa Rican President Laura Chinchilla visits Germany. Watson joins us from Frankfurt. “We’ve never injured anybody,” Watson says. “The most powerful weapon in the world as far as I’m concerned is the camera, so we go into battle armed with cameras...Right now 19 million sharks a year are being destroyed to feed the shark fin industry in Asia. And that means the fins are cut off of these animals and they’re thrown back into the ocean, and this is what we filmed off of Guatemala and this is what we intervened against — a highly illegal operation.” [Transcript to come. Check back soon.]

See what a shark finning operation looks like here.

Radioactive or Not Tsunami Debris Could Seriously Impact US & Canada West Coasts

Radioactive or Not, Tsunami Debris Could Seriously Impact US's, Canada's West Coasts
by Jon Letman
20 February 2012

Pacific coastal communities prepare for possible impacts of marine debris from Japan's triple disaster.

In the age of constant crisis coverage, it is easy to forget that disasters don't just end once the cameras move on. On the contrary, they morph into new situations, sometimes improved, but often more complex and severe. In the case of Japan's earthquake-tsunami-nuclear catastrophe, part of that tripartite disaster floated out to sea as debris where it has been drifting for months to destinations unknown.

According to Japan's Ministry of Environment's Waste Management Division, the 9.0 magnitude temblor and tsunami generated some 25 million tons of debris in total, literally sucking the lives of thousands of people and their belongings out to sea. Since last March, the remains of destroyed buildings, vehicles, broken furniture, fishing boats, nets and miscellaneous flotsam has been adrift in the north Pacific vastness. But how much was pulled into the ocean and where it will end up, no one can really say for sure.

Scientists and experts in Canada and the United States and, in particular, the Hawaiian islands, recognizing the potential for a fourth leg to Japan's triple disaster, are trying to forecast a possible debris path as they prepare for what could be headed their way.

One scientist closely monitoring the situation is Dr. Nikolai Maximenko, a senior researcher at the University of Hawaii's International Pacific Research Center in Honolulu. Speaking at a conference on the Hawaiian island of Kauai in December, Maximenko said that one-third to one-quarter of the total debris may have been pulled out to sea by the tsunami. But what first appeared as dense, yellow floating masses of broken lumber was quickly overshadowed by a more immediate human and environmental disaster unfolding on land.

Maximenko and other scientists in Hawaii are using diagnostic computer models in an attempt to accurately predict the likely path of debris. In June 2011, sailors traveling between Yokohama and Alaska sighted suspected tsunami-generated detritus. They described navigating two days across a field of "unusual debris," including they said looked like "file cabinets, lumber, freezer chests and large pieces of Styrofoam."

In another significant sighting last September, the Russian sailing ship STS Pallada reported passing through debris some 400 miles west of Midway atoll while on its way from Hawaii to the Vladivostok. The Russian crew spotted an unoccupied Japanese fishing boat (later confirmed to be registered in Fukushima Prefecture) as well as televisions, bottles, boots, wash basins and doors.

Coming to a Beach Near You much more

Previous with photos Tsunami Debris Floats Towards US West Coast

Bullfighter Jose Padilla - Twat

I suppose it must have been playing on my mind, after all, a comment left on a blog defending bullfighting, is a pretty rare thing. In fact I would go as far as to say it's unique; where it concerns bullfighter, Juan Jose Padilla it is. Consequently, and as much on auto-pilot as anything else, I set to first thing this morning and knocked these few pics out.

Every comment on every post that I have read, concerning Padilla getting his, has. as you may well imagine, been a tad short in sympathy department. The sentiments more in keeping with my first graphic in this little gallery, which of course is my own core sentiment.

O fucking le, you twat.

Happy New Year Sea Shepherds Everywhere

Click again when opened.

Sea Shepherd’s Aerial Drone Revealed

Some additional information about the drones used by the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society has come to light. The sUAS (Small Unmanned Aviation Systems) were deployed last week and successfully discovered the Japanese whaling fleet more than 1,000 miles north of the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary.

The technology, not unlike the larger military drones used by American forces in Afghanistan and Iraq, is considered a major advantage for the conservation org; which in the past has relied upon a mix of guesswork, experience, and outside assistance to locate the whalers. more missouri-news.info

Yes Teddy I Know, Greenpeace Are Such Wankers

Greenpeace Should Address Its Own Disgraceful Behavior
December 12, 2011

Junichi Sato, Executive Director of Greenpeace Japan, has publicly condemned Sea Shepherd Conservation Society for accusing the Japanese whaling industry of using funds, earmarked for the Tsunami Earthquake Relief Fund, to provide security for its fleet.




A few days before, Greenpeace claimed credit for exposing the scandal that relief money was being utilized for the support of the whaling fleet. Sato made the following statement: "Not only is the whaling industry unable to survive without large increases in government handouts, now it's siphoning money away from the victims of the March 11 triple disaster — at a time when they need it most. This is a new low for the shameful whaling industry and the callous politicians who support it."

In response to Japan’s suspect claims that the money came from taxes and not from the relief fund (contradicting the Japanese Fishery Agency release that the funds indeed came from the relief fund), Sato, forgetting his earlier statement, decided to use the opportunity to discredit Sea Shepherd. According to Sato, Captain Paul Watson said on Sky TV that it was "really disgraceful" that the money had come from "people all over the world" who never dreamed how it would be used.




Sato called that claim irresponsible and stated that Watson is not doing conservationists any favors by misrepresenting the truth. Sato claims, "Its about the credibility of the whole anti-whaling movement."

We know some $30 million has been allocated from the Tsunami Earthquake Relief Fund, as stated by the Japanese Fishery Agency, with the justification that rebuilding the whaling industry is a legitimate use of such funds. Now the Japanese government is backtracking, claiming the funds came from taxes. Either way, the question must be asked: when people are homeless because of the disaster, why is $30 million being given to the whaling industry to defend their illegal whaling operation in the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary? Either the Department of Foreign Affairs is lying or the Japanese Fishery Agency is lying.

Captain Paul Watson believes that it is irresponsible for Greenpeace Japan to use the contradictory messages from the Japanese government to smear Sea Shepherd.



“Sato should look to his own organization when it comes to questioning credibility over this issue. They raise some $40 million dollars a year on their anti-whaling campaigns and all they do is produce mail-outs asking for funds. They have not sent a ship to the Southern Ocean to hang banners for years. The Japanese whaling fleet will pass right by the Greenpeace ship Esperanza, now in Palau, and Greenpeace will not confront them. This is also a disgrace. The raising of money from the public to pretend to be saving whales and at the same time attacking the only organization that has saved whales in the Southern Ocean,” said Captain Watson. “I have asked Greenpeace to join us in a common cause to oppose the whaling fleet and they have refused. I have no idea what they do with the millions of dollars they raise to save whales but I do know the funds are not used for saving whales. As for credibility, Sea Shepherd saved 863 whales last year from the harpoons and Greenpeace saved none. That is the only credibility which we are concerned with.” Sea Shepherd.org

Arnie Gunderson Discusses China Syndrome & The Impact of Fukushima on World's Oceans

I can't give you a review of the effect on the oceans video just yet, it's an hour long and I'm just now about to watch it myself. Later then.

Fukushima - Could it Have a China Syndrome? from Fairewinds Associates on Vimeo.

Fairewinds' chief engineer Arnie Gundersen discusses whether the accidents at Fukushima were a meltdown, a melt-through, or a China Syndrome. Whatever the accidents are named, thousands of tons of water contaminated with plutonium, uranium, and other very toxic radioactive isotopes are flooding the site, the surrounding water table, and the ocean.

Gundersen on EcoReview: Fukushima's Impact on the Oceans from Fairewinds Associates on Vimeo.

Arnie Gundersen appears on EcoReview to speak about the impact that the Fukushima nuclear disaster will have on the world's oceans. Fairewinds

Japanese Security Boats Shadow Sea Shepherd Fleet

Japanese security boats shadow anti-whaling ship
Jane Hammond
December 27, 2011

Two Japanese security vessels with uniformed guards were tailing anti-whaling group Sea Shepherd's flagship, Steve Irwin, last night as it headed towards the Southern Ocean whale sanctuary.

The Steve Irwin is closing in on the whaling fleet's factory vessel Nisshin Maru as the groups head south for the start of this year's battle over Japan's plan to kill more than 900 whales.

Sea Shepherd used high-tech drones to find the whalers on Christmas Day and expects to catch up with the Nisshin Maru by New Year's Eve.

The anti-whaling group plans to block the factory ship's slipway to prevent any dead whales being dragged aboard and flensed.




Steve Irwin captain Paul Watson said yesterday he was surprised by the military-style bunkers on the decks of the vessels and extent of the whaling fleet's security.

"There seem to be a lot of changes on the Shonan Maru 2 this year, with armed security personnel and they seem to have a bunker-type thing on the top of their ship with sandbags," Capt. Watson said.

"I don't know if they are expecting us to attack them with weapons or something. They seem awfully paranoid.

"We are just there to stop them killing whales but we are doing everything we can to make sure we don't hurt these people."

Capt. Watson said rancid butter bombs were the worst thing the conservationists would be using against the whalers this year.

Late yesterday, the Steve Irwin was about 50 nautical miles behind the factory ship while the two security vessels were sitting about seven nautical miles off the Steve Irwin's stern.

Sea Shepherd's other two ships, the high-speed Brigitte Bardot and the Bob Barker, were not being tailed by the Japanese.
Twenty Australians are among the Sea Shepherd's crew of 88, including five West Australians. The West.com.au

Sea Shepherd Intercepts the Japanese Whaling Fleet with Drones

Oh I do like your style boys, drones indeed. Drive on!

And fair play to Bayshore Recycling Corp (BRC) and Moran Office of Maritime and Port Security (MOMPS) for making this possible. Good on you.

Sea Shepherd Intercepts the Japanese Whaling Fleet with Drones

Japanese Security Ships Move In On the Steve Irwin
December 24, 2011


The Sea Shepherd crew has intercepted the Japanese whaling fleet on Christmas Day, a thousand miles north of the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary.

The Sea Shepherd ship, Steve Irwin, deployed a drone to successfully locate and photograph the Japanese factory ship Nisshin Maru on December 24th. Once the pursuit began, three Japanese harpoon/security ships moved in on the Steve Irwin to shield the Nisshin Maru to allow it to escape.

This time however the Japanese tactic of tailing the Steve Irwin and the Bob Barker will not work because the drones, one on the Steve Irwin and the other on the Bob Barker, can track and follow the Nisshin Maru and can relay the positions back to the Sea Shepherd ships.

“We can cover hundreds of miles with these drones and they have proven to be valuable assets for this campaign,” said Captain Paul Watson on board the Steve Irwin.

The drone named Nicole Montecalvo was donated to the Steve Irwin by Bayshore Recycling of New Jersey, and Moran Office of Maritime and Port Security, also of New Jersey.

Captain Watson having received reports from fishermen when the Japanese ship passed through the Lombok Strait waited south of the strait at a distance of 500 miles off the southwest coast of Western Australia. Sea Shepherd caught the whalers at 37 degrees South, far above the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary. More and photo's.

Happy Christmas Sea Shepherds Everywhere

But a special Christmas and thank you to all those at the sharp end of this campaign. Stay safe.