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Prime Minister Kevin Rudd Snubs Japan?

kevin-rudd

Australia’s Prime Minister is going to visit China soon, and some people think he may be deliberately skipping a visit to Japan, reports the Sydney Morning Herald:

Prime Minister Kevin Rudd has brushed aside suggestions he is putting Australia’s relationship with Japan at risk because he will bypass Tokyo on his forthcoming world tour.

Mr Rudd, a well-known Sinophile, will spend four days in China during his imminent multi-country tour, that takes in the United States, Britain, Belgium and Romania as well.

The prime minister will leave his first visit to Japan as leader until July, when he heads to Tokyo to attend the G8 summit.

The opposition has seized on a report quoting anonymous sources suggesting Japan is irritated because Mr Rudd appears to be favouring Beijing at the expense of Tokyo.

The Japanese embassy in Canberra was not immediately available for comment.

Since the G8 summit is this summer, it might seem a bit excessive to visit Japan twice within a few months, but that doesn’t mean there hasn’t been some tension between Japan and Australia recently. Australia is one of the leaders of the anti-whaling movement, so it is often clashing with Japan over the issue. Although the Australian government recently agreed to investigate the activities of the radical animal rights activist group Sea Shepherd, Japanese internet anger towards Australia (among those who care about whaling) is still relatively strong.

Below are a couple video clips about Australia and whaling that have been popular on YouTube Japan in recent weeks.

[Clip 1] A segment from an Australian TV show [The Chaser's War On Everything] in which a comedian goes around trying to kill Japanese people for research:

[Clip 2] A pro-whaling video that attacks Sea Shepherd and Greenpeace:

Video clips comparing Australia’s kangaroo culls to Japan’s whaling have also been popular on YouTube, which may have led the Japanese media to devote coverage to the latest cull. Prime Minister Rudd has denied claims of hypocrisy, and the cull will probably go ahead as scheduled, assuming that authorities can break through the human shield activists are setting up.

65 comments - What do you think? Posted by James - March 17, 2008 at 2:15 pm

Categories: Anti-Japan, Politics Tags: activism, animal rights, Australia, japan, kangaroos, kevin rudd, Politics, whales, whaling

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Clip 1] A segment from an Australian TV show in which a comedian goes around trying to kill Japanese people for research:

Hmmm, would you really say he’s going around trying to kill Japanese people? There’s a huge difference. If someone come around and tried to kill me by shooting a foam harpoon at me I can’t say that I would care much?

http://www.japanprobe.com James

Hmmm, would you really say he’s going around trying to kill Japanese people?

By describing it as a clip from a TV show starring a comedian, I thought that most people would realize he was not actually aiming to kill people.
parkmount

The issue is not whether those comedian will really kill Japanese or not,

The issue is making fun of doing it on the public television, involving even the ambassador.

If you got approached by a Japanese and was spoken in the language that you don’t quite understand n order to make fun of you and your people to be broadcasted on TV, you wouldn’t mind?

In case of Australians, you have to be careful with them. They are sons and daughters of the British convicts, after all. They have no manner or class and are just unwashed potato.

Bruce Smith

1. Many Australians are not of British descent. They are for example Italian, Greek, Vietnamese, Lebanese, Maltese, Chinese, Indian etc. etc.

2. Many Australians of British descent are the descendants of free-settlers. But of course as you say some of us are indeed descended from convicts.

parkmount

The descendants of British convicts still hold power. They have selected which Italian, Greek, Serbian, Lebanese etc to come in when they were running old white boys club.

Vietnamese, Indian, Chinese from Asia only became “admissible” after the Australian realized they couldn’t find any more excuses not to allow the coloured.

Some of them also seem able to read weather trend well. Especially, the northern wind carrying smell of Chinese money.
Bruce Smith

What pray tell makes you an expert on Australia ?
parkmount

Bruce, What pray makes you God ?
Bruce Smith

Parkmount – At least I am not making incorrect racist remarks about someone else’s country. Have you ever been to Australia ?
The Overthinker

Parky – you mean “What PRAYER makes you God?” right….?

Karisu

Oh, I see. Just because someones father or mother was a criminal automatically makes that person a criminal. I see no flaw in that argument at all.

The Overthinker

That Aussie clip was pretty funny actually.

REV_pioneer

Its from the Show called ‘The Chaser’s War on Everything’. As the name suggests, they uses everyone and everything for their comedy. Awesome show.^^

http://www.japanprobe.com James

Thanks for reminding me of the name of the show. I’d seen their very good terrorism video [ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=McB9tsabPn0 ] on YouTube before, but I had forgotten the title.

The Overthinker

Bloody hell. Brilliant stuff. Is it true that you can’t take pics of the Harbour Bridge and Opera House though? That would be INSANE – I mean, they’re the two single biggest photographic icons of Sydney, if not Australia (them, the koala, and Ayer’s Pebble). But a very interesting social experiment too. Some serious human rights issues raised here.
jonske

LOL you are able to take pics of the harbour bridge and opera house. It was just that during that period where they were doing this segment, the APEC meetings were on or were close to being on and security in sydney was cranked up high. They even made this massive steel fence blocking off a large area in the CBD and the chaser boys got through all the security with a fake canadian motorcade rofl.

Joseph K

I read about the vocal protests by Australians against the kangaroo cull earlier in the week, and thought of that old poorly composed anti-Australians-against-whaling video that compared the two issues.
Are there many vocal Japanese citizens who are anti-whaling protestors?
jjjtango

That was freaking hilarious. The funny thing about this video was that the Japanese are totally clueless as to why he’s doing it.
shazzb0t

Perhaps he will be as concerned about the Chinese crackdown on Tibet as he and his country are about Japanese whaling. It is funny that while Tibetans are being basically cleansed out of their own land by the Chinese, Australia’s PM is going there to make friends yet the nation has all the time in the world to protest Japan’s whaling. I find that bizarre and disappointing.

parkmount

Kevin Rudd also had and still has a few minutes to spare for those poor things.

I am sure these domestics are not as human like as whales.

http://www.savethesheep.com/swf/livetransport_new33.swf

Australian must have enjoyed and been cheerful when they saw that Iraq terrorists captured civilian hostages to do the same thing to the hostages.

shazzb0t

Ugh. That is terrible. Every nation is guilty of this kind of cruelty.

…

If you guys enjoy that, I bet you enjoy this more.

http://www.savethesheep.com/swf/livetransport_new33.swf

haha, this isn’t in Australia dude. We don’t carry cows on the back of a ute over here.

kristo

hopefully that changes — Australia’s most important trading partner is Japan, far more than China… at least for now

schmitt

The Australians believe that whales are almost humans. Japanese scientists would be able to hunt and kill several hundred Australian whale lovers. Particularly, they need to examine Aussies’ brains for the presence of an abnormal prion that causes anti-whaling hysteria.

annie

LOL

I’m also curious why Australians are so vocal about whaling. It must be the most exciting news over there.

http://www.goddesscarlie.com GoddessCarlie

For me, I live close to the whale watching industry in Queensland, that I would say yes, Whales are close to human to me. I would say the same about dolphins and seals. In fact I don’t like the slaughter of anything, including humans. I can’t say I’m a typical Australian, but I don’t really think there is a “hysteria” going on. I think there is a vocal few (and by vocal I may mean “insane”, I can’t say I align myself with the Sea Shepard and their “techniques”) who give the impression that we are all raving mad about the whales. I know more people who don’t give a rat’s arse about the whales than those who do care.

TT

“Well known Sinophile…….”

You mean he’s a Commie? Or the fact that Oz can’t live without China making their goods, just like the USA?

Kevin

Perhaps you’ve heard of his interest in China?

From wiki:

Rudd studied at the Australian National University in Canberra where he resided at Burgmann College and graduated with First Class Honours in Arts (Asian Studies). He majored in Chinese language and Chinese history, became proficient in Mandarin and acquired a Chinese alias, Lù Kèwén (traditional Chinese: 陸克文).[5][6][7][8] His thesis was supervised by Pierre Ryckmans, the eminent Belgian-Australian Sinologist.[9] During his studies Rudd cleaned the house of political commentator Laurie Oakes to earn money.[10] In 1980 he continued his Chinese studies at the National Taiwan Normal University in Taipei, Taiwan.[11]

jiminjapan

The problem with Antarctic whaling is that Japan is doing it in what Ozzies and Kiwis consider their backyard.
That’s an understandable feeling.

The main reason Japan is doing it is to preserve its local traditional food culture.
How would Japan feel if the Ozzies turned up in what they consider their backyard just to grab marine creatures to preserve their “barbecue culture”?

schmitt

In short, Antarctic whaling is a territorial issue. Anti whaling campaign in Australia is goaded by narrow-minded nationalism. But the Australians switch the focus of argument. They charge Antarctic whaling with ethical issues. This is why the two sides fail to reach an agreement.

parkmount

Australians have got to include their cattle and kangaroo industries into the ethical issue, then. Turning entire population of Australia into vegetarians will help global environment for sure.

schmitt

Whales are NOT special!

1.All mammals are warm-blooded. Yes they are close to human.
2.Pigs and humans are remarkably similar on a genetic level (so we would be able to use pig’s organs for some transplants in near future).
3.Whale genes are much more like that of hippo or cattle than that of human.

Karisu

I don’t see how any of that makes them “not special”.

deth

If you don’t live near these beings, you will not understand. The Iwi of Aotearoa are spiritually connected to the whales.

The Overthinker

I love this sort of neo-colonialist comment. Yes, of course all Maoris have this amazing spiritual connection, even those who were born and bred in the cities and don’t speak a word of Maori, or those that are about 1/16th Maori. All indigenous peoples have this wonderful spiritual relationship with the creatures of the Earth – it’s why the Maori hunted the moas to extinction.

deth

I am not even Maori you fuck-head. Neo-colonialist? That doesn’t make sense. You’re just slagging the Maori people off with your wicked tongue.

The Overthinker

More ranting ad hominem drivel. Not only do you not know what I am talking about, you can’t even read. Where did I say you were Maori?

It is neo-colonialist as it supposes that the Maori (and other ‘native peoples’) are too backwards to understand science and reason and live their lives determined by superstition.
parkmount

I think you are too arrogant. Even today, science can not do everything. The people you mentioned backward have carried on some of the most important knowledge from the past. Most new drugs are still depending upon the natural plants. Those native people have had that knowledge for ages.

I am not your mother, but telling you for your sake. Stop being so stupid.
The Overthinker

Don’t spout crap at me. Did I mention a thing about natural plants or medicines? I said “superstition,” belief in the paranormal.

And for someone who dares tell me to stop being stupid, you are being extremely arrogant yourself.
parkmount

Remember, you only get what you ask for. When you throw something stupid, you will get it back. Just try spitting right over above your to see what will happen.
The Overthinker

Just as well I didn’t ‘throw’ anything stupid then.

kristo

all of the commentators above are missing the point —
you can’t reasonably compare Whale hunting with Kangaroo hunting.

many people (esp. tourists) see Kangaroos as cute friendly oversized rabbits, and whales as giant monster killers of the sea, while reality is very different — kangaroos are unfriendly, rapid breeding, hardy pack animals of the marsupial family (ie. mice); while whales are gentle, quite intelligent, vulnerable, and endangered species (many types are almost extinct).

kangaroos are hunted partly for food, but also to reduce their numbers as they over-breed beyond the capacity of available food, and with no natural predators, farmers cull some with the aim of enhancing their survival (not being a biologist I cannot comment on how well this works in practice).

whales on the other hand, are in no such situation — their numbers are few, they are hunted purely for tradition, not for necessity and often outside the law, (never minding the moral or environmental aspects).

Australians are not alone in being against whaling, but they tend to be outspoken about issues that affect them or their environment (still a long way behind Scandinavia though). why is it that in Japan, where the long and continued traditional smoking is being slowly excised from public places, while the obscure tradition of whaling can’t move with the times???

The Overthinker

Because it’s obscure….

Giant monster killers of the sea, though?

kristo

if you’re refering about the smaller ‘killer whales’ which live on large fish, sea lions, and occasionally other species of whales; similarly to sharks they exist to keep the population in check and balance with the available food supply (somewhat like humans, kangaroos have no longer any natural predators to keep this balance against sickness and overpopulation).

conversely, the whales that are being hunted by humans are the giants that live on krill or plankton (micro-sized shrimp) — doubt anyone would consider them to be ‘monster killers’.

kristo

giant monster killers — or cat food?

http://lh4.google.ca/abramsv/R4bSYUKUlKI/AAAAAAAAC_o/vtkaovy6jQA/s1600-h/ertert.jpg
The Overthinker

Actually the minke, the most hunted, is one of the smaller whales. The second-smallest of the baleen ones, at any rate.

parkmount

For the same token, why can’t Australian terminate their cattle industry which contribute greatly to the global warming? It’s a way larger impact on the environment, Japan is not alone, and Norway and Iceland are for whaling.

I don’t see why Aussie prime minister has to scream at it while the issue has been discussed at IWC. Aussie is a member of IWC, too. He must have hidden agenda to go out of his way to do such a silly act. Does he have some reasons why he needs to placate certain interest groups with silly promises?

http://timrudder.com tim

god i miss the chaser
thanks for posting that.

i also don’t see the comparison between whales and kangaroos. they’re not endangered and are considered a pest in some areas. it’s totally dodging the argument.

The Overthinker

Yeah, and whales don’t hop either.

Troy

It was kinda funny. What would be even funnier if someone would kick his ass when he shoots at them.

kabocha5000

Absolutely. I understand the attempted humor of that clip, but I was extremely uncomfortable watching it, knowing the Japanese people on it didn’t have the slightest idea of what he was doing, as he invites the Australian viewers to laugh at them in the context of the serious issue of whaling. It had more of a polarizing effect on my opinion of Australia’s position on whaling than anything else.

your mom

there is an overpopulation of kangaroos, thats why its called “culling”. they do the same thing with white tail deer in the states.

whales are either endangered or at population levels drastically below what they once were.

the cowards of japan can go fuck themselves with their bullshit “scientific research”. why dont they just admit they want to be assholes of the world because of their outdated and backward ideas of “nationalism”.

parkmount

Some of other scientific researches say that the overpopulation of whales are depleting some of the fishery resources.

Most of species are no longer designated endangered.

I don’t think there is overpopulation of kangaroos. If anything, that’s overpopulation of people. Are you going to cull Aussies to control the population?

Well, that’s pretty much hypocritical attitude to me. Nationalism comes in all different forms depending upon which country you talk about. What are you going to do if somebody tells us not to raise and eat chickens, cows, sheep and pigs?

Human being shall not tamper with the nature’s food chain.

Geogia

What really disappoints me regarding the whaling issue, is that the pro-whaling side has managed to transform it into an Australian vs. Japanese one, and attacking Australia rather than the anti-whaling arguments. Accordingly all of the internet-Japanophiles have taken to immediately jumping on any anti-Australian bandwagon, no matter how silly.

Bruce Smith

Exactly. Many Australians like me don’t care about whales one way or the other. And many more Australians (including some who oppose whaling) strongly disapprove of Sea Shepherd. And as I continue to point out Paul Watson is not an Australian.

parkmount

Well, your new prime minister thinks otherwise. One of his election pledges was for anti-whaling. No politician will include such a promise unless he thinks it useful to draw more support from the electorates. He even dispatched one of his navy ships. Or was it mere his stand-up comedy act?

Geogia

The majority of Australians probably do oppose whaling – either on environmental / territorial / economic (as in whale-watching) grounds. But certainly on both sides that majority isn’t too large or too passionate. My point was that, on the internet at least, people are prone to attacking Australia rather than the anti-whaling position and vice versa (though it seems to me to be pretty one sided). Still, as an Australian Japanese-Studies major, it can be pretty frustrating trying to discus what should just be an interesting issue and rarely seeing more than infantile or misinformed attacks on my country and countrymen rather than the actual arguments.

parkmount

I think it’s Australian political apparatus that is acting upon anti-whaling and supporting the eco-terrorists. Along the way, they are instilling anti-Japan feeling into the Australian populations.

It’s coward and conniving for the government of Australia to let the eco-terrorists base their activities of attacking the Japanese vessels. I can’t see any difference between what they are doing and any pirates in high seas.

They luck total respect to others.

Bruce Smith

Please check out The Chaser boys at APEC

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TdnAaQ0n5-8&feature=related
schmitt

The hypocrisy of Garrett is just starting to be covered by Japanese television.
http://www.fnn-news.com/news/headlines/articles/CONN00129444.html

parkmount

Well, it’s Aussies that have opened their can of worms. Enjoy it.

http://www.rokdrop.com GI Korea

I do get tired of people making the claim that the Minke whale the Japanese are hunting is near extinction. It is not even endangered because there are so many Minke whales. In fact what is really humorous is that the 2007 Australian of the Year Tim Flannery, who is quite an eco-loon by the way, supports the Japanese whaling program because it is sustainable:

http://rokdrop.com/2008/01/16/japanese-whaling-update/

dan

japan are a bunch of hypocrites, the issue of culling kangaroos is actually based on conserving the environment as the kangaroo populations are five times greater than they were before european settlement. The japanese did not start hunting whales in any significant numbers until after WW2 because of the severe food shortages. The japanese have no right hunting whales in antarctic waters ,our backyard.

peterk

The whole issue sounds like spilt milk. Haven’t seen the Japanese cause sucha uproar in a while.
peterk

Also it Looks like Japan is worried about it status as a asian superpower. Will China be the new Asian powerhouse?

If China becoming a world economic power is a problem maybe governments in developed countries (Like Japan) mayve could have monitored companies outsourcing all their manufacturing to Capitalist China. Yes the labor and production costs were cheap, but all this influx of foreign money has led to their huge growth and energy demand.

The comparison between whales and our kangaroos is misguided. The bigger kangaroo adults are not warm and cuddly (The joeys are cute thou). The males are huge and when cornered by dogs have been known to kill them.

The main point is their argument for whaling for scientific research. Their scientific data they have provided so far is laughable. Everyone knows they are just catching them to eat since they are so worried about losing their 1000 year old culture of eating them. Maybe it was sustainable back in the old days but not today. I was able to go into a local restaurant in Osaka and could have ordered whale meat just like that! Like it’s just any other meal on the menu!

Their cultural history is really quite unique but they need to get with the times and realize all cultures around the globe are making compromises as the world gets smaller. If anything, as a developed nation they should be leading the cause for fishing sustainability.

They could go a step further and publicly announce their catchments of whales is for consumer consumption which would probably reduce the amount they could catch but at least some sort of sustainable scheme in the worlds eye could be implemented to maintain current populations and end this circus of punch-ups betweem whaling and anti-whaling groups. Either that or no more sea creatures for your grand children!~
http://neilduckett.com Neil Duckett

Are you just jealous Australians have taken over your self proclaimed position? What nationality are you? ….. i think i can guess.

Prime Minister Kevin Rudd Snubs Japan?

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