swamp musing

Sitting in the bath last night watching the moon rise over the swamp I was listening to the radio and some presenter  was talking about the Japanese whaling fleet in the southern ocean. A spokesperson for the whaling industry came on and was emphasising Japan's traditional reliance on whaling, this started me thinking if somehow I was transported back in time let's say over 200 years and was standing on Iluka Bluff I would not have seen Captain Cook sail passed but a fleet of Japanese row boats heading south to the Antarctic for the annual whale hunt?

This brings up the question of how far back in time does a practice have to be set to become a tradition?

The type of whaling that the Japanese currently espouse only came into existence after World War II, is that long enough to be a traditional practice?

If the traditional whaling methods were used only whales in the northern hemisphere and close to the Japanese islands would be killed.

On the second glass of wine the questions arrived.

Do the Japanese public know where and how the whale meat sold in their markets gets there?

Are they just told that this is their tradition and some green fanatics are trying to limit their enjoyment of a traditional dish?

I would like to know the answers to these questions, but the bath water is getting cold and it is a busy day tomorrow. I have to mow the pumpkins, they are taking over the ancestral homeland of the tomatoes and eggplants.