Myth # 45 : " But I only eat fish , and they don ' t feel pain ."
Myth # 45 : " But I only eat fish , and they don ' t feel pain ."
Actually , this rationalization rests on a complete falsehood ; a myth of mere convenience as hollow as it is delusional . Research is now consistently showing that fish most certainly do feel pain when they are hooked , and that they most certainly do suffer immensely when pulled out of the water to suffocate to death on dry land ... (“ Oh , so that is what all that desperate gasping & frantic flopping around is all about .”)
Not only that , science is now finally beginning to consistently verify that fish actually exhibit many traits that show them to be creatures both highly intelligent & highly sensitive – with many of them possessing enough self-awareness to recognize individuals of other species and interact with others consciously , with many of them nurturing their young with an intimate tenderness that can only accurately be described as " love ", with many of them forming specific relationship-bonds with others that can only accurately be called " friendship "; and with many having unique behavior patterns & preferences – having what can only be appropriately termed as “ individual personalities ”.
Yes , it is a good thing for all cows pigs & chickens that you have chosen to stop supporting their enslavement & chosen to stop funding their murder ... and it is not a good thing that you do so at the expense of equally viable , equally sensitive & equally sentient beings – namely , the fish . For just because an animal looks completely different from you does not mean that its nerve-endings are any less sensitive … Just because an animal communicates differently than you does not mean that its fears are any less acute … And just because an animal responds more stoically to pain than you does not mean that its suffering is any less dramatic .
My Friends , rest assured that this information comes not from a place of judgment or arrogance , for I too once believed similar falsehoods about fish , and I too used my ignorance to justify eating fish for many years – up until the day I became aware of the needless suffering I was causing them – at which point I simply stopped doing so .
Unlike the brilliant complexity that is the average fish , it really is that simple .
“ The scientific literature is quite clear : Anatomically , physiologically and biologically , the pain system in fish is virtually the same as in birds and mammals .” ~ Donald Broom ( Cambridge University professor )
Current status of this Myth : Punctured Justification it provides for eating animals : NONE
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