I LOVE these whale debates
I think Japan should stop whaling as they are beautiful intelligent creatures and the harpooning is so bloody barbarixc and cruel, not to mention the dolphin round up ultimate stabbing of hundreds at Taiji.
The fact is, these debates never get anywhere and Japan and the West simply do not seem to garee to want to udnerstand each other.
Like Ronin said, it is only the natives who are allowed to hunt. We are the same in Oz with Aboriginies allowed to hunt endangered species as it is their native food.