I find the whole whale wars series to be nothing more than entertainment. Granted, it gives them a lot of publicity this way, I guess thats why they have room for a cameraman in every boat, heli etc.
Publicity is finances. All fair, can't blame them.
However, from admiration for the cause, as I saw it at the beginning, I now find it more and more an ( careful said) 'amusing' show. Dont get me wrong, I respect their cause and determination, but boy... they sure do mess around. From miscommunication to slap-head mistakes, dropping unbreakable ropelines that snap on the first try...etc. The look on their face when they see the mile-high nets and the watercannons and they try to throw on the front deck (where no one ever walks anyway).
Something that kinda bothers me is the attempts of Paul to make the Japanese 'look bad' as in, as soon as the Japanese use any form of defense it's all 'deadly' and dangerous. I know throwing nuts and bolts IS dangerous, I dont mean that, but more the watercannons etc,etc, he uses anything and marks it as 'lethal'. In my eyes thats a bad move, everyone knows who the bad guys are, no need to thicken it.

Now, I am no die-hard fan of this show, I watch it whenever I see it's on, but overall I think it diverts from their original cause to a 'what will they try today' show.

In addition, I think they should go for the screws/proppelar more and drop the silly acid bottle throwing. Get the screw and its done. But yeh, what do I know,lol.
(Also, wouldnt it be possible to put a crate under the heli with the acid and just release it about the ship..?)

quote:

Originally posted by CreyZ:

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Something that kinda bothers me is the attempts of Paul to make the Japanese 'look bad' as in, as soon as the Japanese use any form of defense it's all 'deadly' and dangerous. I know throwing nuts and bolts IS dangerous, I dont mean that, but more the watercannons etc,etc, he uses anything and marks it as 'lethal'. In my eyes thats a bad move, everyone knows who the bad guys are, no need to thicken it.

I haven't heard him say that the water cannon were lethal, only the possibility of nuts and bolts seriously injuring someone.

quote:

Now, I am no die-hard fan of this show, I watch it whenever I see it's on, but overall I think it diverts from their original cause to a 'what will they try today' show.

That sounds more like your perception of the show. They constantly talk about what they can do to save whales and then show the attempt.

quote:

In addition, I think they should go for the screws/proppelar more and drop the silly acid bottle throwing. Get the screw and its done. But yeh, what do I know,lol.

They do. They've used prop foulers in the past with some success. Maybe they can deploy longer and sturdier ones from the Ady Gil (formerly the Earthrace) and go for the Nishin Maru instead of the harpoon ships.

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(Also, wouldn't it be possible to put a crate under the heli with the acid and just release it about the ship..?)

Noooooooo!! That is illegal as hell. Any pilot that tried/permitted the try would lose his license once it became known.

Fair enough, I guess it IS my perception of the show. It is more a funshow than anything else to me. Unbreakable lines that snap at the first try, coming up with idea's like throwing a grablinghook with a weight attached to it to lower the nets (really, someone should try throwing a hook in the air with a weight attached to it). I admire their dedication but I cant help snickering through the show.

quote:

Originally posted by CreyZ:
Fair enough, I guess it IS my perception of the show. It is more a funshow than anything else to me. Unbreakable lines that snap at the first try, coming up with idea's like throwing a grablinghook with a weight attached to it to lower the nets (really, someone should try throwing a hook in the air with a weight attached to it). I admire their dedication but I cant help snickering through the show.

Yeah, the grappling hook idea wasn't too cool. Sharp pointy objects in an inflatable boat are a bad idea, Fortunately the boat driver said no. There was no way to know how strong the nets were.

I think I remember the episode where the prop fouler failed. It looked like it was cut before it was frayed. Possibly the screw defended itself? Or maybe the whaling fleet attached devices to the bottom of the harpoon vessel (like a cage with a sharp edge) running the exposed length of the propeller shaft that would let the water through but not the prop fouler?

If you really want a laugh, check out the South Park parody "Whale Whores":

http://www.xepisodes.com/south...11/Whale-Whores.html

Paul Watson commented on it on the Sea Shepherd site: "... friggin' great!"

Hope you enjoy it.

Off topic: My mother was born in Utrecht. What part of the Netherlands are you from?