cooeecobber comments

A UK company? Surprise, surprise!

I don't think the sub-heading summarises the story. In any case, cultural stereotyping, like tipping, on question banks invariably leads to skewed results. Isn't this a German company? Surprise, surprise!

It's good to see grass-roots democracy at work.

They must be communists!

This is just the preview, folks. Remember Hu's role in Tianenmen Square?

He's coming back, and he's real angry!

I cycle because I live in a coastal city, with next to no public transport. It's actually a lot safer than back home, where I also cycled; because so many more drivers here also have cycling experience, and therefore tend to leave a bit of space for me, and because speeds are so much slower generally.

It's not all plain sailing, though. There is no cycling infrastructure, and no plans for any. Only the poor cycle, apparently.

No matter. I cycle safe, and have had no real problems. It's still a great way to travel.

OneForAll

I agree wholeheartedly! I am similarly blessed.

ilikejapan69

Precisely!

So they may have agreed to bin some old stock that's approaching it's 'use-by' date, perhaps to save some money.

Big deal. Doesn't change the fact that I live in a country with (US) nuclear weapons, and I'm surrounded by countries with them.

I don't feel any safer.

Keystone Cops training video available now! Get your copy quick!

Yawn

Nobody from the west, particularly the US, can criticise Japan! How much of the internet porn is generated in the west? Most of it.

The age issue is a furphy. Most cultures of the world have a surprisingly low coming-of-age. Only in the rich west, does the mock outrage, and lectures on sexual morality confuse the issue.

The statistics in Japan on sex-related crime speak volumes.

How about you wait for a conviction, before venting your collective spleens?

Or, maybe the sign was supposed to read: No.1 Drug

Of course it should be legal, but don't expect it anytime soon in Japan. What percentage of JT does the government control?

Well summed-up Aussieooo.

The arguments for whaling are weak, to say the least! But the tactics of the paid lobbyists is to NOT address the kinds of points you raised. Instead they play a game of distraction, to keep the discussion away from these kinds of points. I must say, they do a very good job, and I have been drawn on many an occasion.

Although I'm extremely disappointed with the roll-back of the Australian's pre-election position, PM Rudd is at least a career diplomat. I believe he really does want to stop whaling, because there is enormous public support for such a position; they would not have made the pre-election promises if it were otherwise.

But until the whaling stops, I will continue to support Sea Shepherd.

Aussieooo - Yes, and isn't it interesting how silent the Japanese media have been on the Yushin Maru #2! Including the pro-whalers here!

So, Sea Shepherd just refuelled in Australia, eh? Not bad for a so-called "terrorist" group! But wait a minute, the Japanese whaling fleet are barred from entering Australian ports! The Yushin Maru #2 had to go to Indonesia for repairs.

How perplexing!

Yes, I Sea Shepherd, because when they are around, the whaling stops. Hand-wringing and wailing by bloggers, politicians and journalists does little to stop the killing. But I would like to see a poll question about the morality of hunting endangered species, or of the quality of the so-called research, or of the millions in wasted tax-payers money!

Provide services, websites, timetables, maps, and the like, in languages other than Japanese. English, would be a good start, being the official language of more than 40 countries, and probably the major business language of the Asia Pacific. The English deficit in Japan, is breath-taking. And the arrogance of some officials, who still regard TOEIC scores as a reliable measure of English COMPETENCE, is perplexing, to say the least. Just ask the tourists!

It's great to read a good news story. Be proud of your Ainu heritage.

ihope2eatwhales - opposition to whaling is decreasing? Really! I don't know what planet you live on, but you are clearly not conversant with the relevant facts. I am afraid that I cannot continue this dialogue with you, as you clearly are unable to conduct yourself in a civil manner.....crazy Japanese, crazy Australians, crazy westerners, crazy Japanese. You should re-read your posts, it sounds as if the whole world is crazy, but you! I wish you well in your pursuits.

ihope2eatwhales - opposition to whaling is decreasing? Really! I don't know what planet you live on, but you are clearly not conversant with the relevant facts. I am afraid that I cannot continue this dialogue with you, as you clearly are unable to conduct yourself in a civil manner.....crazy Japanese, crazy Australians, crazy westerners, crazy Japanese. You should re-read your posts, it sounds as if the whole world is crazy, but you! I wish you well in your pursuits.

ihope2eatwhales - I do listen to arguments by pro-whaling people, but even they have changed their minds on whaling it appears. Shigeko Misaki, a former advisor to the Japan Whaling Association and the former counsel for the Institute for Cetacean Research, has recently called for an end to whaling, "whaling as a business hardly justifies the environmental costs." Also, city councilmen of Taiji have raised environmental and food safety concerns over the consumption of whale and dolphin meat, because of heavy metal contamination. Department of Fisheries own survey on whaling found that the majority of Japanese oppose whaling. So it appears that the Japanese do not speak with one voice on the issue of whaling, and that it's not just "crazy westerners" who oppose whaling. I do not deny you your right to desire and eat whale meat. But it seems that you have increasing opposition, in and out of Japan. I fervently hope that the environmental and economic costs of whaling will soon out-weigh any perceived benefits, real or imagined. I will continue to lend material, financial and moral support to those who can help make it happen sooner, rather than later.

OssanULTRA - I never said Interpol issued warrants. I perhaps used the wrong article - maybe I should have said the warrant listed with Interpol. But the fact remains that there is no warrant for the three activists with Interpol at this time.

thedeath - I would suggest that unless ihope2eatwhales stops calling everyone who has a different opinion to him "crazy", stop replying to him. He obviously has fixed views on the subject, and is indifferent, if not hostile, to anything else. It hardly makes for fruitful discussion.

ihope2eatwhales - Your personal attacks on this forum are quite amusing - you cannot just call everyone crazy because they have a view different to your own! It's hardly a debate if you do and it weakens your credibility. I am happy to debate the topic of whaling, and I disagree with you entirely; it's up to you to convince me using reasoned argument and relevant facts, that the views I hold are wrong and worthy of change. I am quite conversant with the facts about whaling, and I draw my facts from a wide variety of sources. I remain to be convinced that you position is one I should adopt, but keep trying!

ihope2eatwhales - I noticed that you ignored the point about whaling in Japan being a tax-subsidized loss-making business. How is it fair for Japanese tax-payers to subsidize this mess? No matter, the loss will be repeated this year, and with it more negative publicity, in an election year!

Patrick Smash - I think you'll find that Sea Shepherd (and other conservation groups) will agree with you to a point. Traditional whaling in nearby waters is not something they object to, a quick check of their website will confirm this. I like your point about the distance travelled - what the Brits call "food miles". I'd like to see that info on whale meat packaging! Also, Aussies don't like the idea of whaling in their backyard for cultural and economic reasons: whaling watching is now part of Australian culture. It's also a multi-million dollar industry with a rosy future. Unlike the tax-subsidized loss-making disaster that is Japan's "research" whaling.

ihope2eatwhales - contacts, dear boy, contacts!

The Japanese authorities have yet to succeed in their request to have a warrant issued with Interpol, so comments about arrest, etc, are moot. Historically, there don't seem to be any convictions of anything the Sea Shepherd's crew have done, and they do not appear on any watch list, so it is a little odd to be calling them terrorists or criminals. However, there are a number of things the whalers get up to: violating CITIES, by killing and targetting endangered species; violating IWC regulations, by killing whales in a whale sanctuary; violating the Antarctic Treaty, by refuelling in Antarctic waters. While these are all contestable in court, if only any country had the guts to bring it on, they all seem to me to be rather more serious than throwing rotten butter, which is the substance of the Japanese warrant.