Today marks the start of “Fish are Friends, not food” week [via Freakonomics]. While it is cute that PETA has co-opted a line from Nemo to try and indoctrinate little kids, the whole premise is utter bullshit.
If you want to be vegetarian because you feel there are health benefits to eating only vegetables (or more likely that eating the hormones in todays meat is unhealthy), then you will hear no complaints from me. If you don’t want to eat meat because your religious beliefs tell you that Sammy the Salmon might really be your Grandma Samantha reincarnated, then cool. If, on the other hand, you don’t want to eat meat because of some Disney-inspired anthropomorphization, then I think you need to grow up.
If we are going to project human emotions and desires onto animals, then why not do it in a way that is congruent with centuries of world history. That is why I teach my kids that some fish want to be eaten.
The fact of the matter is that fish are food; that is just the way it is. The big fish eat the little fish and the humans eat whatever damn fish they want (as long as it is not too small and not in too short supply).
Who wants to go get some sushi?
