Whaling thread gone

[Scubaroo]

Colin,

Having had no contact from moderators on this issue since the original thread was pulled, other than what Kim and yourself have posted to this thread, unless the discussion is heading in a different direction or becoming a general discussion on the matter, I'm more than happy to be contacted privately to discuss/clarify my concerns if it's warranting so much discussion.

I used to be a moderator on Scubaboard so I know what the job is like, but I'm only a PM away if the discussion is still based on the contents of my last post.

Ben

 

[BigJetDriver]

Ben,

I will have to say that this thread has occasioned more heated debate in the Mod group than almost any that I have seen. We are close to a resolution on the subject, and thank you for your patience.

R. Davie
SB Staff

 

[archman]

What do ya' expect when you start up a whaling thread? It's like kicking over an anthill.

 

[KOMPRESSOR]

What do ya' expect when you start up a whaling thread? It's like kicking over an anthill.

Hey, I've heard you can eat ants!?

 

[archman]

Yes, they are sour-tasting. I've eaten a bunch, usually when they interlope on food I've left in trees or bushes.

 

[KOMPRESSOR]

Anyway, as we are speaking of whales I feel like straigthening the impression that all we Norwegians can think of when we see whales is food.

Here's some "killer" shots some friends made in Lofoten in November this year:

Diving with Orcas in Norway 12 MB


And yes, that's a yellow Force Fin Pro in the picture...

 

[archman]

Oh man, that's freaky! I trust those are the fish-eating types of killer whales?

 

[Cacia]

stay tuned....wow, this is exciting!

Dr. Bill, are you still just dusting your house?

well, I started wondering about TOS and what that was, and it occured to me that it could be important, like RTFM, and so I read some of those rules someone had excerpted and posted. I felt a little stupid, since I usually roam off into those areas. I will do better. Having said that, I do not see how one can have an intelligent conversation about marine ecology and not mention this nation or that nation. I think SB might be painting themselves into a corner being a little too PC. Here in Honolulu, it is very international. I have observed a very interesting phenomena in the high school upperclassmen. The next generation is not buying into all this PC stuff we have imposed on ourselves. Punahou, one of the top prep schools in America, is full of all kinds of ethnic backgrounds. There are some exciting conversations taking place about cutting edge topics. My advice is that we try and stay socially relevant and maybe take a lesson from them (the next generation of adults) and not be so touchy. Still, I will respect whatever SB rules are. I just hope that when you make your decision, you can see how important "nationalism" as you call it is to global environmental issues, and if we cannot discuss this openly, then divers run the risk of being a less powerful advocate for marine environments.
The whaling thread was very informative and I was impressed with the degree both sides were trying to back their opinions with sources, link, etc. Not everyone wants to hang out in the "mask on forehead " forum.

 

[Humuhumunukunukuapua'a]

I hope the "mods" will let us know more than just the ultimate decision...such as a summary of the thought process leading to the decision.

As heated as the thread got, I didn't find it to be suprising given the subject matter. The only really negative aspect of the thread was the prolferation of posts by a VERY few individuals with nothing to say other than uninformed inflamatory gibberish.

All in all, I thought it was restrained and I learned a lot. I think this forum is starting to show a degree of oversensitivity that interferes with real discussion of these issues.

As far as racism in that thread...what a crock. I never saw anything singling out the Japanese as being more guilty than any other whaling culture except in number of whales harvested. But that's just fact (Japan harvests the most whales). Start a thread about American environmental crimes, and I bet you'll see a lot of the same people criticizing our own country. I know I am not so simple minded as to choose a side based on something as arbitrary as nationality and I doubt many others are either. I didn't read the most recent posts, but accusation of racism were thrown around well before any such accusations were warranted.

 

[archman]

Due to the sheer size of the thread, it takes a while for mods to go through it all and clean it up. Most of what was said on the thread wasn't very relevant to the original post, but it usually doesn't get yanked unless it violates the TOS. But it still has to be reviewed along with everything else.

This forum rarely gets overmoderated. I watch it like a hawk.