Hey there, it's Stephen Dubner. We are taking a little summer break. Maybe you are too.

So we wanted to play you a series from the recent archives, one of our very favorites. This comes from

2023, and the series was called Everything You Never Knew About Whaling. Back in the 19th century, whale hunting was big

business, especially in the U.S. It created massive wealth and it drove investment in other parts

of the economy. But eventually it collapsed for a variety of reasons, all of them pretty interesting.

We also learned that whaling continues to affect the economy in some

parts of the world. Consider this. President Trump's Big Beautiful bill includes a provision that

allows indigenous Alaskan whaling captains to claim larger tax deductions on their business

operations. This provision helped Republicans get Alaska Senator Lisa Murkowski to vote for the bill.

So, whaling is still making news, at least the news we read.

This series was a lot of fun to make, and I hope you enjoy listening to it.

We have updated facts and figures as necessary.

What drives you to do what you do, Paul?

I don't want to live in a world without whales.

Paul Watson is an environmental activist.

You may remember him from a TV show called Whale Wars,

where he and his crew confronted Japanese whale hunting ships in Antarctica.

Warning, warning, warning,

quit poaching whales and go back to Japan.

Watson calls himself an eco warrior.

Other people have different names for him. A judge on the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals called him a pirate.

I'm actually quite proud of the fact that I'm officially a pirate.

...