Leave the fish in the sea...

(source: NY Times)            

I don't know about you, but I think these majestic animals are a lot more majestic when they're swimming around the ocean, even if I can't see 'em. A dead tuna is just an insult -- to the fish, to our self-respect, to all the delusions of dignity we entertain.  Tuna are evolutionary wonders: they are warm-blooded (rare for fish), and that warmth makes them fast -- up to 70kph (43mph). And they get big: a fish was sold on January 04, 2010 that weighed 232 kilos (513 lbs.) for $177,000 (Giant Tuna Fetches $177, 000 at Japanese Auction). What a waste of money and fish. These astonishing creatures are headed for extinction, or at least a severe crash, which will make them curiosities that our descendants will see in pictures. Our sorry offspring will marvel at the ephemeral image on their screen, while they try in vain to visualize these proud fish swiftly roaming the planet. Sorry, kids, we at 'em.

Can we not show a little humility and self-restraint? No one has the "right" to destroy a species, and anyone who fishes them or eats them is culpable. Would it kill us to eat more prolific species that are lower on the food chain (and less riddled with heavy metals)? No. Will we? Probably not. It's a classic "tragedy of the commons," and tragedies never end well, do they?

Happy New Year.