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 I get the impression that whaling issues are related to Western imperialism to some degree. I think it is significant to that the Sea Sheppards we talked about are American and European but the people who are whaling are mostly Japanese. The idea that whales are special and have culture comes from the West. The idea that whales are a source of food is from Japan. We shouldn't try to make other counties adopt our way of thinking. Whaling shouldn't be banned internationally. However, I think whaling should should be regulated somehow, maybe the same way that fishing is regulated. 

I watched a documentary about dolphins called "The Cove" awhile ago. It talked about the same issues but in relation to dolphins. One thing I remembered from the documentary is that the movement to protect dolphins sprang from the TV show Flipper. People connected with Flipper on TV and then thought it was unfair to kill dolphins. Based on this example, I think it is important to consider how our culture has impacted the way we think about animal conservation.