Captain's Log

Posted by Lisa at 12:04 AM, June 24, 2005
Hello out there. My name is Arne, I am the Captain of the ARCTIC SUNRISE. I joined the ship 3 weeks ago in Amsterdam, although I joined the vessel for the first time 10 years ago immediately after Greenpeace got hold of her.

This week in Reykjavik, I heard a glaciologist explaining the situation regarding hydroelectric power in Iceland. One view, he explained, is that the current generation does not have the right to destroy large tracts of wilderness by building hydroelectric dams just because we have the technology to do so. Others of course have a different view. It struck me that precisely the same argument might be used against commercial whaling.

I strongly believe that the present generation does not have the right to continue past generations’ efforts at wiping out the stocks of large whales. We do have the technology but we should not use it for exterminating the whales. It is encouraging to notice that tourist operators and tourists alike – both in Iceland and elsewhere – in ever increasing numbers believe that whales are there to be watched and appreciated. Long may they swim!

--Arne

One the deck at 2am