Pro-whaling countries have major victory

Japan has been planning for this moment for years and yesterday, their slim majority paid off and paved the way for commercial whaling to start again. By linking massive development projects to poor nations in exchange for votes, the Japanese and their pro-whaling allies such as Norway and Iceland, have broken the 50% level with votes in the IWC. To overturn the commercial ban they will need to break the 75% barrier. The public reasoning behind these moves are incredible, essentially blaming whales for depleting fish populations around the world, so they must now be controlled. No, dwindling fish populations have nothing to do at all with over fishing just like the dwindling whale populations in the past had nothing to do with over whaling. It was the whales that were limiting their own populations and harpooning themselves into near extinction, not whalers.

I sympathize with some of the poorer countries who have been left behind by the world (and their leaders) and although I don't like it, I can at least understand it. What disturbs me is the vote of countries such as Guatemala, Antigua, Panama and other Caribbean countries. I know that Central America and the Caribbean are not rich countries, that is for sure. What I do know is that these regions are making concerted efforts to sell themselves as eco-friendly environments which means big tourist money. To that, I say piss off and rot. "Eco-friendly" is already a used and abused marketing term and now these countries to want to have it both ways is not possible.