weekly news: 日本拟捕杀座头鲸 遭各方强烈谴责
Japan under fire for humpback huntJapan came under a storm of criticism Monday for going ahead with its largest whale hunt yet.
Defying warnings from its Western allies that it would inflame anemotional row on whaling, Japan on Sunday sent its fleet to theAntarctic Ocean. The hunt will include famed humpback whales for thefirst time.
A ship of Greenpeace environmentalists tried --so far in vain -- to track down the six-vessel whaling fleet as theUnited States, Australia, Britain and New Zealand all spoke out againstthe catch.
Japan, where whale meat is an important part ofpeople’s food, plans to kill 950 whales on the five-month mission usinga loophole in a 1986 global moratorium that allows "lethal research"with scientific purpose on the giant mammals.
Australia’sopposition Labor Party, which is leading in polls ahead of nationalelections Saturday, said it would send out the navy to track theJapanese whalers and take video footage if it takes power.
Prime Minister John Howard said while "I totally disagree" with Japanese whaling, he opposed bringing in the military.
The US acknowledged Japan’s right to conduct the hunt, but urged it to "refrain" from doing so.
"While recognising Japan’s legal right under the whaling convention toconduct this hunt, we note that non-lethal research techniques areavailable to provide nearly all relevant data on whale populations,"State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said.
Theenvironmental group Greenpeace’s Esperanza ship was trying to find thefleet but said that the whalers had turned off identification equipment.
"If they’re so confident they were doing the right thing, theyshouldn’t have anything to hide, but obviously they do," Greenpeaceactivist Dave Walsh said.
Humpback whales, protected under a1966 worldwide moratorium by International Whaling Commission afteryears of overhunting, are renowned for their complex songs andacrobatic displays.
本周一消息，日本因启动迄今规模最大的捕鲸行动而遭到各方强烈谴责。
此前，日本的西方盟友向其发出警告，称其此次捕鲸行动将会引起国际社会的公愤。但日本一意孤行，已于上周日派捕鲸船队前往南极海。而且日本此次的捕鲸计划首次将珍稀物种座头鲸纳入捕杀名单。
“绿色和平”环保组织已派船追踪由六艘船组成的日本捕鲸船队，但截至目前，还没有发现他们的踪迹。美国、澳大利亚、英国和新西兰均对日本的捕鲸行动表示了抗议。
日本此次捕鲸行动将为期五个月，计划捕杀950头鲸。据悉，1986年出台的《国际捕鲸禁令》未明文禁止“以科研为目的”的捕鲸活动（译者注：该禁令禁止以商业为目的的捕鲸活动），日本正是钻了这个空子。但据了解，鲸肉一直是日本人餐桌上的美味。
在上周六的大选民调中领先的澳大利亚在野党工党表示，将派海军追踪日本的捕鲸船队，并将拍摄其捕鲸全过程。
澳大利亚总理约翰•霍华德说，他“坚决反对”日本的捕鲸活动，但不赞成动用军队。
美国承认日本有捕鲸的权利，但并不主张其这样做。
美国国务院发言人西恩•马克考麦克说：“首先得承认，日本在遵守国际捕鲸禁令的前提下，开展捕鲸活动是合法的，但据我们了解，通过非致命性的研究手段就可以得到几乎所有有关鲸类的相关数据。”
“绿色和平”环保组织的“埃斯波兰萨号”一直在寻找日本的捕鲸船队，但据了解，日本的捕鲸船队已关闭其识别装置。
“绿色和平”组织的环保主义人士戴维•沃尔什说：“如果他们相信自己做得对，就不必隐藏什么，但现在看来，他们显然是在躲藏。”
座头鲸以会“唱动听的歌曲”和表演杂技而著称。多年来，座头鲸被人类过度捕猎，1966年，国际捕鲸委员会出台捕杀禁令以保护这一物种。
马特•达蒙当选《人物》年度“最性感男人”
Matt Damon named ‘sexiest man alive’
Matt Damon, 37-year-old actor, named the "sexiest man alive" by Peoplemagazine -- the honor he said was a surprise to him, media reports saidThursday.
"You gave an aging suburban dad the ego boost of alifetime," he says in a letter published in People’s annual issue, "My9-year-old stepdaughter now thinks I’m cool -- well, cooler."
Damon, who has a 1-year-old daughter, Isabella, with Bozan, says "allthe campaigning" by Clooney and Pitt had finally paid off.
"Unfortunately, after all those years out on the trail, the meet andgreets, the fund raisers, the stump speeches, I’ve finally come toterms with the fact that this is a mantle I wasn’t meant to hold." hesays in the letter, which was signed "Matty."
"Don’t get mewrong, though. I was really shocked and happy (Lucy said I actuallyblushed) when I heard the news. So I can’t thank you enough for that."
Damon won a screenwriting Oscar with Ben Affleck in 1998 for "Good Will Hunting." Both Damon and Affleck starred in the movie.
He has also starred in "The Departed," "Syriana," the "Ocean’s"franchise with Clooney and Pitt, and "The Bourne Identity" and its twosequels.
People’s "sexiest man alive" list began in 1985with Mel Gibson. Others on the list: George Clooney (1997 and 2006),Brad Pitt (1995 and 2000), Denzel Washington (1996) and Johnny Depp(2003).
据媒体本周四报道，37岁的影星马特•达蒙被《人物》杂志评为年度“最性感男人”。达蒙说这一殊荣对他来说是个惊喜。
这期《人物》杂志刊登了达蒙的获奖感言，他在信中说：“你们让一个上了年纪的乡下老爸的形象光辉高大起来。我9岁的继女现在觉得我很酷，对，是比以前更酷了。”
达蒙与妻子波赞有一个一岁的女儿伊莎贝拉。他说，克鲁尼和皮特“所有的宣传工作”都得到了“回报”。
达蒙在这封署名为“马蒂”的信中说：“不幸的是，经过这么多年的’折腾’，我得到了一个受之有愧的荣誉。”
“别误会我的意思。我听到这个消息后，十分惊喜，（露西说我的脸都红了）。为此，我很感激你们！”
1998年，达蒙与本•艾弗莱克担任编剧的影片《心灵捕手》获当年奥斯卡最佳原创剧本奖。达蒙和艾弗莱克共同出演了该片。
此外，马特•达蒙还出演过《无间道风云》、《辛瑞那》，与乔治•克鲁斯和布拉德•皮特共同出演过《罗汉》系列，以及《谍影重重》三部曲。
《人物》杂志“最性感男人”的评选始于1985年，当年的“最性感男人”是梅尔•吉布森。其他曾当选的名人包括：乔治•克鲁尼（1997和2006年）、布拉德•皮特（1995年和2000年）、丹泽尔•华盛顿（1996年）和强尼•戴普（2003年）。
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