March 9, 2012

Japan recalls its whaling fleet from the Southern Ocean

Source: Radio Australia News / ABC

Japan's Fisheries agency has told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation the country's whaling fleet is heading home, after catching less than a third of its quota in the Antarctic.
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The Sea Shepherd conservation group which harassed the fleet in the Antarctic says it's a massive victory for whales.

Despite receiving a special budget boost of 31.9 million US dollars to fend off Sea Shepherd, the Japanese whalers were repeatedly obstructed by the activists.

The Australian government says it welcomes Japan's decision to recall its whaling fleet from the Southern Ocean.

It says it remains opposed to commercial whaling, including Japan's so called "scientific" whaling program.

The Australian government says Australia will continue its efforts to achieve a permanent end to whaling through the International Court of Justice.
...end...


Read more: http://www.radioaustralianews.net.au/stories/201203/3449811.htm?desktop

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That last sentence is the tricky part. The law certainly is not clear on the issue. Hence, the animal rights activists have to resort to "direct action".

These guys could have been better neighbors.
Let's jam to the Hoodoo Gurus:

March 1, 2012

Why gun owner in Ohio school shooting won't be held accountable

State has no laws governing children's access to firearms

While new details emerge about the possible motives in Monday’s school shooting in Ohio, another question remains: Will there be legal consequences against the owner of the handgun used to kill three people and injure two others?

As Ohio state law stands today, the answer is likely no.

Officials say T.J. Lane, a 17-year-old high school sophomore, confessed to the killings at Chardon High School, located about 30 miles east of Cleveland. County prosecutors say they plan to try Mr. Lane as an adult, resulting in a possible maximum sentence of life in prison.

The Associated Press reported Wednesday that Lane stole the gun, a Ruger .22-caliber Mark III target pistol, from an uncle who legally purchased the weapon in August 2010 from a gun shop in Mentor, Ohio. Lane’s grandparents noticed the gun missing this week from a barn they owned.

It is not yet certain if the handgun was properly stored, had its ammunition removed, or was secured with locks preventing its use — all factors that that gun safety advocates say are critical in preventing gun access by children.

According to a 2000 study by the US Secret Service, 65 percent of school shootings up to that point involved a gun obtained from the juvenile shooter’s home or that of a close relative.

“There is a widespread misconception that if you talk to your child about guns they will know enough about how to act around a gun. The problem is, they are still children and studies show, over and over, they will not act as an adult will around a gun,” says Laura Cutilletta, a senior staff attorney with Legal Community Against Violence, a public interest law center dedicated to preventing gun violence, located in San Francisco.
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Twenty-eight states have Child Access Prevention laws that make adults liable if it is determined that children were able to access their firearms, although the liability depends on certain factors that vary by state.
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Ohio has no laws governing child access to guns on its books and as recently as this month state lawmakers debated a bill that would allow concealed guns in schools. The proposed bill would extend a provision to the state’s conceal-carry law, signed last year by Gov. John Kasich (R), that allows concealed firearms into bars, restaurants, shopping malls, nightclubs, and sports arenas.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/46580398/ns/us_news-christian_science_monitor/t/why-gun-owner-ohio-school-shooting-wont-be-held-accountable/#.T0_1sKV5HNW

March 1, 2012

Gutless: Lawmakers say Ohio shooting won't change nation's gun rights

House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) downplayed new gun control legislation in light of Monday's high-school shooting in his native Ohio.

Asked if the shooting would prompt some kind of legislative crackdown on gun rights, Boehner nixed the idea.
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A number of Democrats introduced gun-reform legislation last year in the wake of the Giffords shooting, but it was never considered in the GOP-led House.

Supporters of gun reform pointed to Monday's tragedy as evidence that Congress needs to intervene to make it tougher for U.S. youths to get their hands on firearms.

"When parents cannot send their teenagers to school with any assurance they will return home safely at the end of the day, we have a serious gun violence problem that our political leaders must address," Dennis Henigan, acting president of the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, said Monday in a statement. "It is simply too easy for young people to get their hands on deadly weaponry. It is long past time for us to address this issue as an urgent national concern."

The shooting took place roughly 25 miles east of Cleveland, an area represented by Rep. Steven LaTourette (R-Ohio), a close Boehner ally. LaTourette took to the House floor Tuesday afternoon to lead the chamber in a moment of silence. He condemned a tragedy he said has become "all too frequent" in the United States, but did not address the issue of gun reform.
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http://thehill.com/homenews/news/213107-boehner-ohio-shooting-wont-change-gun-rights

Life is tough, kids, learn to live with fear. And good luck