Reply #7: Are you really that partisan? [View All]

[kristopher]

This is a pretty authoritative source. I found the paper by goggling "history membership IWC"

Explore my assertion for yourself, since you seem inclined to disregard what I've offered. While you're at it, here is the beginning of a paper by a Japanese scholar that addresses the why of Japanese whaling. Personally, when you are seeking to convince someone to alter their behavior, I think there is nothing more important than understanding why they are engaging in that behavior.

Note that Ms. Hirata identifies 2 major factors behind the continuation of Japanese whaling. Here is the one I'm promarily concerned with: "the domestic legitimacy (or ‘salience’) of the norm".

What this means is that the Japanese, as a people, simply don't accept our values on this subject as legitimate. Well, I think I know how to present to them an argument that will convince them to accept our values as legitimate. I think that would be more productive than throwing stink bombs and trying to intimidate them. If someone wants YOU to accept their beliefs as legitimate - not share them mind you, just accept themas legitimate - do you think the tactics you seem to endorse would convince you? Or would it harden your resolve to reject anything associated with them on the topic?

PS You can do a google scholar search on the title of the article and download a pdf.



WHY JAPAN SUPPORTS WHALING
An edited version of this paper has been accepted for publication in the Journal of
International Wildlife and Policy

Keiko Hirata*
Research Fellow, Center for the Study of Democracy, University of California, Irvine,
California, USA.


1. INTRODUCTION
Japan is one of the few states in the world that adamantly supports whaling. For decades,
Tokyo has steadfastly maintained its right to whale and has aggressively lobbied the
International Whaling Commission (IWC) for a resumption of commercial whaling.
Japan’s pro-whaling stance has invited strong international criticism from both
environmental groups and Western governments, many of which view Tokyo as
obstructing international efforts to protect whales.
Why has Japan adhered to a pro-whaling policy that has brought the country
international condemnation? Its defiant pro-whaling stance is not consistent with its
internationally cooperative position on other environmental matters. For the past decade,
Tokyo has been a key player in international environmental regimes, such as those to
combat ozone depletion and global warming.1 If Japan is serious about environmental
protection and desires to play a role as a ‘green contributor,’2 why hasn’t it embraced the
anti-whaling norm, 3 thereby joining other states in wildlife protection and assuming a
larger role in global environmental leadership?

It is natural to assume that such norm non-compliance would be based on
materialism, that is an attempt to maximize material self-interest. For example, domestic
business groups in Japan often work closely with the state bureaucracy to shape policy in
line with their interests.4 However, in this case, the business-centered explanation fails.
The Japanese whaling industry, which employs only a few hundred people and generates
at best marginal profits, is too small and weak to influence government policy.5

Instead, it is necessary to pay attention to the broader domestic political processes
in which international norm (non-)compliance takes place. Scholars have pointed out
that two national-level factors seem to condition the effects of international norms on
domestic political processes: the domestic legitimacy (or ‘salience’) of the norm and the
structural context in which domestic policy debate takes place.6 This paper argues that
the intersection of these factors explains Japan’s rejection of the anti-whaling norm.