[GoNative]

There is a difference between the breeding and killing of domesticated animals and hunting those in the wild. Few countries in the world still allow unrestricted killing of wild animal populations. To argue that killing a chicken or cow that has purely been bred for human use and consumption is just the same as killing whales or dolphins is just being disingenuous.
I too don't elevate whales or dolphins to some sort of mythical status and think it wrong to kill even one but the methods of killing dolphins in Taiji do appear to be somewhat cruel and unusual. I would also argue that the practice has little to do with cultural traditions and much more to do with financial greed.