Peta changes fish to 'sea kittens'

Photo courtesy Hawkeye Charters Inc.

In another outrageous attempt to shamelessly get press, PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) has decided that fish should be called 'sea kittens'. This is just the latest in a long string of ad campaigns and propaganda designed with the ultimate goal of eliminating meat of any kind from the diet of the omnivorous species homo sapiens. In the past PETA has compared chicken growing operations to the holocaust, used the murder of a Winnipeg, Canada man to protest meat eating (comparing his murder to animal slaughter) and handed out pamphlets to school children with the title "Your Mommy kills Animals".  This group is unapologetic about its attempts to manipulate children and truth in the pursuit of their agenda.

The best examples of PETA’s outrage ironically come from the mouths of PETA themselves.  Some scary quotes from PETA's employees:

"Arson, property destruction, burglary, and theft are 'acceptable crimes' when used for the animal cause."-PETA co-founder Alex Pacheco, Associated Press

“Our campaigns are always geared towards children and they always will be”-PETA vice president Dan Matthews, on the Fox News Network

"Probably everything we do is a publicity stunt ... we are not here to gather members, to please, to placate, to make friends. We're here to hold the radical line."-PETA President Ingrid Newkirk, USA Today

"Even if animal tests produced a cure for AIDS, we'd be against it."-PETA President Ingrid Newkirk, in the September 1989 issue of Vogue

"If we really believe that animals have the same right to be free from pain and suffering at our hands, then, of course we're going to be, as a movement, blowing things up and smashing windows … I think it's a great way to bring about animal liberation … I think it would be great if all of the fast-food outlets, slaughterhouses, these laboratories, and the banks that fund them exploded tomorrow. I think it's perfectly appropriate for people to take bricks and toss them through the windows ... Hallelujah to the people who are willing to do it". - Bruce Friedrich, PETA's vegan campaign coordinator, at the Animal Rights 2001 conference.

Some irony is found in these statements as PETA has been linked to animal welfare violations and has a habit of euthanizing healthy animals that they have promised to adopt out to caring homes. I'm sure that was a shock to those that believed that the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals were ethical in their efforts to re-locate unwanted pets.

Peta also has an active agenda for ending hunting and fishing. PETA has called for the United States Fish and Wildlife service to end the practice of hunting "sea-kittens" or as I like to call it, fishing. They have also called for the school district in Spearfish, South Dakota to rename the high school to "Sea Kitten High". What's next? PETA wants to change the name of the movie "Jaws" to "Dances with Sea Kittens"? PETA will not succeed of course; it is hard to imagine the shark from jaws with the cuddly name of "sea kitten".

There are many logic issues with this campaign, I would like to highlight only three.

The first issue with this is grammatical, a kitten is a baby cat, and technically they should be "Sea Cats". The reason for this choice of words is to connect the "cute" factor of a kitten to a fish; they want to sway the impressionable. Who could hurt a kitten? The answer they want to convey is that only evil people like fisherman would hurt a kitten.

The second issue is that not all fish live in the sea. It speaks volumes about the knowledge these people have of the wild world not to include fresh-water fish. This is a running theme with animal rights groups, they have little knowledge of wildlife or they will ignore and deny science that doesn't fit with their agenda. I rarely fish for "sea kittens", most of my fishing is for "lake kittens" or "stream kittens". Ignoring that all fish do not live in the sea wasn't what was intended, as they want to end all fishing not just salt-water fishing. PETA would like to end all animal use entirely and convince everyone else of their belief that use is abuse and fish and other animals are the moral equivalent of people. Far be it for them to understand that fish has been on the menu and a desirable food source since the first human foot left a print in a sand bar.

The third issue is no one really believes that fish are cuddly creatures. I didn't mind my dear departed Newfie mix joining me at the bottom of the bed, I never felt the same way about any of the pet fish I have had, never mind the 120 pound tarpon I caught in Florida (not the one pictured, that one is bigger).  I have no desire to pet a fish, even one caught and released.

PETA also courts celebrities, counting among their ranks, Pamela Anderson, Pink and Charlize Theron to name a few. I wonder how many of the celebrities that have signed on to promote PETA were eating sushi when they heard this press release? Did they immediately stop eating? Probably not, that would be as likely as Pink not wearing leather. "I have very conflicted views on everything. I'm a proud member of PETA and I got (sic) leather boots on my feet, you know what I'm saying?" - Singer Pink, on MTV.com. No Pink, I don't know what you are saying; neither does anyone else, other than your statements and your behavior are in diametric conflict.

PETA has not only crossed the line of common sense but good taste as well. Attempting to manipulate children to create a new generation of donors through a campaign of distortion is plain wrong.  This is an attempt to distort the role of humans in the eco-system and flies in the face of everything we know about the history of human existence. We have always eaten fish and other meat as well, and we will continue; that is how we have evolved. Trying to deny the history of humans and the human diet is folly that can only be considered ridiculous and self-serving. I have no problem with people making their own dietary choices no matter what they may be. I have a serious problem with a group that wishes to force their own choices on others and myself. I do not require that they personally kill animals to protect their food crops from damage and I wish the courtesy returned in kind to allow me to hunt and fish.