March 2012
1 post
Closing the Doors to Sea Shepherd Advocate
Hello, followers and occasional readers.
I have been a Sea Shepherd supporter for quite some time and, as you know, have written about things related to them for a while hereon Sea Shepherd Advocate. But other parts of my life have taken precedence over this site so I am letting it go.
It’s hard to let go of something you’ve invested so much time into, but life is taking me elsewhere so it’s the...
February 2012
2 posts
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Erwin Vermeulen Ordered to be Released →
Sea Shepherd activist and Cove Guardian Erwin Vermeulen, who was arrested for allegedly pushing a Japanese fisherman in Taiji, has been afforded a release order by a Japanese judge. This is great news for Sea Shepherd but primarily awesome for Erwin and his family. Congratulations, Erwin!
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January 2012
1 post
USDA Poisons Millions of Birds to Death →
Every once in a while I find something which isn’t related to Sea Shepherd but that I’m confident is important to share with Sea Shepherd fans because it’s related to the well being of animals and consequently is relevant indirectly. This is one of those occasions.
Over the past few years there have been an increasing number of reports of mass bird deaths. And of course the media is quick...
December 2011
8 posts
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Brigitte Bardot Crew Safe and Sound →
This morning Sea Shepherd announced that the crew of the Brigitte Bardot is now safe and sound. They and their vessel are being shepherded (I can use puns if I want to) back to port where they will work feverishly to repair the hull which was damaged by a rogue wave.
Sea Shepherd is going to lose some ground monitoring Japanese whalers with two ships out of commission. However, the good news is...
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Brigitte Bardot Severely Damaged, Sends Distress... →
While in pursuit of Japanese whalers the Sea Shepherd vessel Brigitte Bardot was severely damaged by a rogue wave which cracked its hull. It has been taking on water while the storm continues to bombard it with waves, and the Steve Irwin is racing 240 miles toward the ship and its crew in response to their distress call.
Brigitte Bardot captain Jonathan Miles Renecle is confident the ship will...
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Sea Shepherd and Greenpeace Go Toe-to-Toe →
Things have never been cordial between Sea Shepherd and Greenpeace (at least I can’t recall a time). But the fire is super hot right now. Greenpeace is accusing Sea Shepherd of being disgraceful for calling out Japan on spending Tsunami relief funds on whaling.
Executive Director of Greenpeace Japan, Junichi Sato, had some words for Japan’s inexcusable dispersion of relief funds to the whaling...
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Your Message on a Butyric Acid Bottle →
This is absolutely beautiful. Sea Shepherd is affording their supporters an opportunity to have their personal messages printed on the bottles of butyric acid they’ll be throwing at Japanese whalers this winter.
Sure, many bottles crash on the sides of ships. And even if they do land on deck they likely won’t be read. But it’s an awesome idea all the same. What’s more, if you believe in the power...
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Ravers Kill Dolphins in Captivity →
Switzerland is home to a dolphinarium called Connyland. The only dolphinarium left in the country, in fact. Recently they hosted a rave on their grounds for whatever insane reason.
Animal activists warned that the loud music would pose a threat to the cetaceans’ sensitive hearing and immune systems, yet the park allowed the rave to occur anyway. Shortly thereafter two of their dolphins died slow...
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And So It Begins. Again! →
Today, Japanese whalers have left harbor for another winter of slaughter in the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary. And therefore Operation Devine Wind begins.
But there is more to this story. A new element which makes it infinitely more disgusting than the whaling itself. The Japanese government is issuing $28 million in earthquake recovery funds to the whalers! Yes, you heard me right. The money...
November 2011
9 posts
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“A manly man don’t want it piled high with vegetables! He would call that a sissy...”
– Herman Cain when asked about his thoughts on pizza. (I’m a sissy man who likes his sissy pizza.)
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Life Aboard a Sea Shepherd Vessel: Ship Manager,... →
The Sydney Morning Herald has published an excellent article about what it’s like to be aboard a Sea Shepherd vessel on a campaign. Therein is a video with Bob Barker Ship Manager Andrea Gorden who discusses the forthcoming Operation Divine Wind campaign.
From this article I learned that the Bob Barker houses stickers that read “it takes a pirate to catch a pirate.” So good.
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Operation Divine Wind Needs Funding →
As Japan gears up to spend $27 million on security for their whaling season—even after announcing they would call it quits—Sea Shepherd’s Operation Divine Wind is working hard to raise funds to ensure they can counter the efforts of Japanese whalers.
If you ever wanted to support Sea Shepherd monetarily, now is the time.
Photo/illustration © Sea Shepherd Conservation Society
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Blood in Taiji →
Through no fault of their own—and certainly for no lack of effort—it appears that Sea Shepherd is unable to successfully protect dolphins in Taiji. Cove Guardian leader Rosie Kunneke reports:
This week was a brutal, cruel, and saddening week in the horrible little town of Taiji. Three pods, approximately 28-31 dolphins in total, of beautiful Risso’s dolphins were senselessly murdered in the...
October 2011
7 posts
aprickleofporcupines asked: How do you get involved with Sea Shepherd? I want to do more (:
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Shark-Finning Massacre in Columbian Waters →
In the Columbian waters of the Malpelo Wildlife Sanctuary it is reported that as many as 2,000 Hammerhead, Galápagos, and Whale sharks have been massacred for their fins.
Poachers were discovered entering the sanctuary flying Costa Rican flags by some international divers in the area to study the sharks. The Columbian president’s top advisor, Sandra Bessudo, was noted as saying:
When the divers...
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Japan Strengthens Fleet for Whaling Season →
So as I mentioned a couple weeks back Japan is preparing to head to the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary once again this winter, even though it was anticipated they would be ending whaling permanently. I continue to find Japan’s dedication to whaling bizarre for two reasons:
CBS reported that Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Makoto Inoue noted “The Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries...
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Shark in Fresh Water Fished, Murdered, and... →
A 16-year-old boy from Georgia drummed up what he referred to as a “catch of a lifetime.” That catch was a Bull Shark which happened to be swimming in fresh water. The boy, Noel Todd, was on the Today Show to tell his story. It was heavily glorified according to Huffington Post. They noted:
Todd caught the 8.5-ft long, 368-lb. shark with a shark hook, bait, and ropes, and then dragged the animal...
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U.S. Government Federal Ban on Shark Fin Trade →
The United States government is accepting signatures for a petition to “ban the sale, trade, and possession of shark and shark products, including shark fin.” As of this writing 3,231 people have signed towards a goal of 5,000. If you’re a U.S. citizen and haven’t already, sign away!
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Shark-Killing Surfers →
So…this is quite unusual. Surfers are typically “at one” with the ocean. Every surfer I know (and I know a number of them) understands that when sharks attack a fellow surfer, it’s simply a matter of circumstance. They’re in the shark’s domain at their own risk and with no fault of any shark who bites down on one of them. Sharks mistake humans for their prey, and surfers generally forgive.
But...
September 2011
11 posts
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Japan Gets Green Light for Whaling This Winter →
Damn! Though it was expected (but not assumed) that Japan would cease whaling this winter because of their epic failure against Sea Shepherd last season, they are indeed moving forward with a new hunt. With that, Operation Devine Wind is in effect.
Australia Network News notes:
…the Asahi newspaper is reporting that it will go ahead, saying the government decided it would be against the...
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Dolphins Fighting for Their Lives in Taiji →
About an hour ago Sea Shepherd tweeted the following:
Taiji: banger boats busy trying to drive a pod in. Looks like the pod is fighting hard and making it difficult!
That just sounds horrible. There’s some silver lining that the pod is fighting back, but the point is that they’re fighting. They’re instinctively fleeing a mysterious sound without knowing the real horror that awaits them if they...
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Act Now to Help Dolphins →
So there are two really important things happening right now in the world of dolphins, and they both involve the lives of 25 dolphins held in captivity:
First, Change.org is accepting signatures in an attempt to send a message to Mastercard. They are currently running a promotion with Resorts World Singapore who is housing a 25 dolphins (27 before 2 died) in holding pens awaiting their life in...
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Report From Taiji, Week 1 →
A report by Cove Guardians leader Rosie Kunneke after their first week in Taiji for Operation Infinite begins “if only all weeks were this good.” She sums up the week quite nicely:
The killers stayed in the harbor on four out of seven days due to bad weather and sea conditions. They went out searching for dolphins to hunt on two days only to come back emptyhanded on both occasions, and on...
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Inquisitive Humpback Whales →
Some whale watchers off the coast of Australia were pleasantly surprised as a Humpback approached their boat for a peek of their own. The beautiful animal approached a idle boat and studied its occupants for a brief period of time.
Apparently boaters approaching a whale to within 100 meters can be fined $110,000 and spend two years in jail. But whale watching organizers suggest boaters turn of...
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IMO Bans Heavy Fuel Oil South of 60º South →
The International Maritime Organization has amended its regulations for fuel requirements in the Antarctic. The new Regulation 43 prohibits carriage of heavy fuel oil as cargo or in use below latitude 60ºS.
This is very significant because these heavy oils are exactly the type of fuel the Nisshin Maru uses. Consequently the Nisshin Maru can not enter the Japanese whaling grounds in the Southern...
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Let’s Nominate Sea Shepherd as an Ocean Hero →
I recently discovered this nice resource, Save My Oceans, which shares information about the destruction of our oceans and how people can act to help keep them healthy. It’s an accompaniment to a Disney film (believe it or not) called Oceans.
It’s a nice resource. However, I found something really odd about the site. It houses a page dedicated to “ocean heroes” which showcases a limited list of...
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The Superiority of Animals →
Animals never cease to amaze me. The East Coast’s earthquake a couple weeks back was shocking to humans, who weren’t aware of the event until the earth began to shake beneath their feet. Animals in the Smithsonian National Zoo in D.C, however, showed signs of premonition according to Dr. Don Moore, the zoo’s associate director for animal care sciences. He noted:
Red ruffed lemurs sounded a...
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Laurens de Groot Hearts Brigitte Bardot
No, not the actress. Well maybe the actress. But I’m specifically talking about the Sea Shepherd interceptor vessel.
Laurens posted a stream of tweets yesterday upon the Brigitte Bardot’s arrival to Amsterdam. I think it’s lovely how excited he was about the whole thing. Like a kid in a candy store.
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The Majestic Humpback Whale →
To see this in person must leave one speechless. I also don’t know how photographer Ron Niebrugge can snap a shot like this without being distracted and wanting to put down his camera. This was taken in Kenai Fjords National Park, Alaska.
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The Annual Slaughter in Taiji Begins Today →
And so it begins. Another massacre of cetaceans in the waters of Taiji, Japan. Blood for industry. But Take Part has an action page for The Cove which outlines 5 things you can do to help fight the genocide.
August 2011
8 posts
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Operation Ferocious Isles Wildly Successful →
Sea Shepherd announced that they have successfully prevented a single pilot whale from being slaughtered by the Faeroese in their annual Grind. This is wicked awesome for obvious reasons, but there are some underlying elements to the story which teach us some things about the Faeroese:
Apparently the Faeroese police ordered that no slaughters would take place under the witness of Sea Shepherd....
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Iceland Halts Fin-Whale Hunting →
Hello, Sea Shepherd Advocate readers! It has been some time since my last post because I have been super busy on a very special, personal project (which I’ll explain later). Now for the news on Iceland…
Apparently Japan not only sells their own whale meat, they’re also a chief consumer of whales harvested by Icelandic fisheries. And the (dare I say) sliver lining in their recent natural disaster...
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Animal Planet Filming Series Documenting Grind... →
Well hell yes. Animal Planet has started filming Sea Shepherd on their Faeroe Islands campaign, the Grind Stop. It is tentatively called “The Faeroe Islands Project.” How did I miss this?
In any case the enormity of the mass slaughters in the Faeroe Islands has been quiet for far too long. This is a perfect opportunity to point the spotlight on those people and their “Grind.” So awesome.
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Final Images from the Berserk Yacht
Last winter five men—Jarle Andhøy, Samuel Massie, Leonard J. Banks, Tom Gisle Bellika, and Robert Skaanes—embarked on a journey to retrace the steps of Roald Amundsen, the man who first ventured to the South Pole. The new venturers set forth on this journey in an extremely ill-prepared vessel called the Berserk, which was more suitable for a weekend tour around the Bahamas.
Jarle Andhøy and...
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Bond Posted for the Steve Irwin →
In case you all missed it, the Steve Irwin’s bond has been paid and the vessel has been released back into the hands of Sea Shepherd. If you don’t know the background story, I posted about it a couple weeks back.
This is awesome in general. But what’s more it means the Steve Irwin will soon be on its way to the Faeroe Islands to protect Pilot whales during The Grind. Hang on, little cetaceans,...
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Floridian Dolphins →
My friend Cameron Moll snapped this shot of dolphins off the coast of Florida. It must be majestic to see them so close. How anyone could slaughter these creatures is beyond my comprehension.
July 2011
7 posts
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Pilot Whale Rescue Near Scotland →
While some humans disregard cetaceans as nothing more than an insentient product, other humans value life as a precious gift and recognize the importance of the balance of nature.
Last last week a pod of pilot whales was in danger of being stranded in an estuary near Northern Scotland. But a small group of human beings came to their rescue, saving a large number of them.
The British Divers...
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Help Post Bond for the Steve Irwin →
For those of you who don’t know, the Steve Irwin was locked down and detained by British authorities last week shortly before they were to leave port in Lerwick. The reason for the detainment was because a Maltese fishing company by the name of Fish & Fish filed a civil lawsuit against Sea Shepherd, citing they damaged their property.
The property in question is a fishing net used to capture...