Sea Kittens

[HowDidIGetIntoThis?]

Peta is just like Sea Shepherd. A group of people with noble end goals, and absolutely NO connection to reality. Whos whacked out plans do more damage to their cause than help.

As much as I'd like to agree with you, I worry that groups such as this are dumb like a fox for several reasons:

- Consider the amount of free publicity that this move has garnered for them. Prior to this, when was that last time PETA was mentioned in your coffee room?

- So what if some of their campaigns fail? Their ammunition costs next to nothing so they can continue to fire at random.

- Every once in a while they score a direct hit; get a home run; strike paydirt; or whatever analogy you choose to use. Good example: an ENGO came up with the catchy name "Great Bear Rain Forest" for a huge area of forest land on the coast of British Columbia. For whatever reason, the name caught the imagination of the general public and the end result was a lot of decadent old forest is being left to rot rather than being reforested with young growing stock that will do much more for CO2 reduction and carbon sequestration than can ever be expected of a forest past its prime. Then they capped it off by finding some bears with white fur (a genetic mutation that occurs rarely but predictably) and gave them god-like status by dubbing them "spirit-bears". Another home run. The monumental mistake made by those in opposition to those moves was to initially dismiss them as a bunch of nuts, as has been done in this thread. By the time they figured out that the ENGO's campaign had traction it was too late to regain the lost ground. Perception, unfortunately, is reality.

Be careful folks - this campaign may not work but one day something may catch hold and scuba divers will be severely limited as to where they may dive, because they may interfere with the Sea Kittens. And remember, you read it here first.

Happy Diving,
HDIGIT

Sea kittens, Cat fish, whatever. It's still a case of so many good recipes and too few cats.

 

[J.R.]

Yes, we are the apex predator thanks to our technology, but when we start populating other ecosystems that did not evolve along with us, that does not grant us the right to kill everything we can, since the species have almost no defense against bullets. We can only hope another predator evolves to "thin" us out, perhaps sharks with laser beams attached to their heads.

Naw... we're the apex preditor because of the tools Ma' nature gave us for the job... specifically all that grey junk between our ears... the bullet thing is simply a by product... Most gazelles don't have any real defense against a lion's claws either...

The predator which evolves to thin us out probably won't be technologicly equipped shark-kitties with laser beams... it will probably be some low life little bacterium... and there's something kinda' funny about that...

Man's arrival is not "artificial," but can be considered incredibly unique in that we are the only fully terrestrial species (so far) able to develop a way to cross major oceans in significant numbers.

... as far as you know...

By invasive I mean that the species has gotten there by artificial means, such as the lionfish which got from Asia to the Caribbean via the pet trade, as it could never had made the journey by itself.

Did you know that farm ponds are having a problem with a little ol' worm that's getting into bass? Wanna' know why? Because herons (with there great number rebound thanks to eccologists)... pick them up in their diet from places where they're found naturally... and then come and 'deposit' them into the rather pristine waters of farm ponds... because... well... they're there... pond kitties are there... things happen. In any case... an 'invasive' species got there by... ummm 'artifical means'??? ... natural means??? (It didn't walk there on its own...)... no... there are any variety of mode of transportation... I'm not sure we can apply a 'human' fraction to it by defining human transportation as "artificial"... we're just a different form of heron.

 

[Coelacanth]

Naw... we're the apex preditor because of the tools Ma' nature gave us for the job... specifically all that grey junk between our ears... the bullet thing is simply a by product...

Our gray matter would be useless without resources to make tools. Show me a human that can outrun or fight off a lion with sheer running power and their bare hands (not He-Man)

Most gazelles don't have any real defense against a lion's claws either...

Speed and stamina are their defenses.

Did you know that farm ponds are having a problem with a little ol' worm that's getting into bass? Wanna' know why? Because herons (with there great number rebound thanks to eccologists)... [snip] we're just a different form of heron.

Yes I do consider that "natural". In terms of sheer distance, it is not the same for a heron to fly 10 miles to another pond that for humans to carry sea-lion-kittens across the Atlantic.

 

[bigken462]

Damn, there for a minute I thought I stumbled into a dive forum. Guess not.

I like my steaks, I like my taters, and I like my cats. I think it's time you guys go diving.

Ken

 

[D_B]

tools are everywhere
.. we have the ultimate universal computer between our ears, not specialized in any area so that we can adapt most anything for our purpose .. even if that means just picking up a rock and throwing it

 

[ONESPEED]

After yesterdays plane crash in the Hudson caused by the plane hitting geese, I sincerely hope PETA will begin a campaign to end air travel so we can save the "air kittens".

 

[J.R.]

I sincerely hope PETA will begin a campaign to end air travel so we can save the "air kittens".

... air-fishies... they are *SO* confused...

 

[J.R.]

Our gray matter would be useless without resources to make tools. Show me a human that can outrun or fight off a lion with sheer running power and their bare hands (not He-Man)

Ok... this is getting interesting... you're correct of course... a human can not... but then, as a biology major I'm sure you've studied adaptation... we don't outrun lions because we don't have to... and, as D_B pointed out... tools are everywhere... and we are NOT alone in using them.

The arguement that "if animials had guns" (or lasers)... or if we had to fight them with THEIR weapons some form of parity would exist that would make everything more *right* somehow is a false concept that is inherently useful only to try to pursuade the mouse to step into the trap... nature doesn't believe in parity... nature doesn't believe in 'even'... nature doesn't make things equal. Nature is much more like the Circus of ancient Rome... take two individuals... hand them different tools... stick them into the arena and peel a grape while you're waiting for the outcome...

Speed and stamina are their defenses.

Actually... no... working in herds where they run together and scatter to confuse lions is their defense... speed and stamina are usually overcome by the hunting tactics of the lions. Lions use stealth and don't rely on speed... because that isn't *their* strong point... their 'grey matter' has adapted them to develop tactics... and tactics will beat pure physical strength and speed every time.

For a marine example... take a look at those highly photogenic fish balls... the technique is the same... the outcome... the same...

Yes I do consider that "natural". In terms of sheer distance, it is not the same for a heron to fly 10 miles to another pond that for humans to carry sea-lion-kittens across the Atlantic.

*Scale*... it's simply a matter of scale. The human and the heron are exactly the same... both are transport mechanisms that perform their task without any real comprehension of the consequences (actually unknown until they manifest themselves)... of their actions. ... and Ma' Nature is peeling another grape...

 

[J.R.]

Damn, there for a minute I thought I stumbled into a dive forum. Guess not.

I like my steaks, I like my taters, and I like my cats. I think it's time you guys go diving.

Ken

Naw... the dive stuff is one click up... two back... re-select from menu... this is "Marine Science and Psychology/Marine Life and Eccosystems"... very little to do with diving...

 

[gNats]

What will those nuts at PETA think up next?
Their latest campaign which is currently debuting in North Carolina and later the rest of the country hopes to associate fish with kittens. Their logic: that nobody would kill a household animal like a dog or cat, so calling them "sea kittens" makes it so. So make sure to keep those sea kittens off the tip of your pole spear.
PETA // Save the Sea Kittens

When I read your posting header - I thought this was going to be something similar to a jackalope and a joke.

I am shocked, amazed, and astounded at this link.

I have both dogs and a cat. Last night, when my house dropped to a chilly 63 degrees my cat woke me enough to let her crawl under the covers. I could hear my dogs re-arranging their bedding to snuggle deeper.

The fish - yeah, they don't even have a heater in the tank because it stopped working and I haven't bothered to replace it. I wonder how cold they dropped down to.

Calling a striped bass a sea kitten will not stop me from ordering one up and squirting lemon on it. yummmm I am more than eager to have Striped Sea Kitten with capers for dinner.