What is Next?

I don’t know if there is a sign in Revelation about the oncoming Apocalypse but this should be.

Just recently, an Italian restaurant in Vicenza was fined 688 euros ($855 US) for displaying live lobsters on ice to attract patrons.

This ruling came about because of an strong anti-cruelty law in Italy. You see, Italy has some of the world's toughest animal rights laws. The city of Rome in October banned goldfish bowls, seen as cruel Up in Turino, they passed a law last year that would fine dog owners 500 euros unless they walked their canine friends at least three times a day.

It seems this case was brought about by Gianpaolo Cecchetto, a former environmental activist, who took his two young children to the Vicenza restaurant in May 2002.

According to reports, Checchetto said his children were shocked by the display and he immediately got in touch with the ENPA, which is a national animal protection entity in Italy. For course ENPA took care of this horrible and despicable abuse of animals.

The court ruled that the display was a form of abuse dooming the crustaceans to a slow death by suffocation.

And I thought only in America did the legal system go wonky. Absurdity lives in other countries. Once again misguided intentions become retarded.

If Rome banned fishbowls, then aquariums can’t be far behind. If I could be fined for not walking my dog at least three times a day, this leads to a scary scenario. I can see the misguided nuts setting up a hotline for anonymous tips to catch the nasty pet owners who don’t take Fluffy out enough times.

Thing is, I am not being flippant here. How would the authorities know if you didn’t take Fluffy out three times a day. Someone would have to keep tabs on that. That would be for family members and neighbours to do.

Now to the yummy crustaceans. What is the most absurd thing about this whole thing is Checchetto and/or his children were shocked by this display. Why? They are coming to a restaurant to eat. And eat meat.

If the lobster display was a way to attract clients into a furniture store or book store, then I can see something wrong. But the display is there so if you want lobster, you know they have it and can chose which one you would like to fill your gullet with.

And then the ruling. The display was dooming those poor crustaceans to a slow death by suffocation. Well, I hope not.The goal is the hot, boiling water. And then it is a fast death by scalding. Yet that is okay.

Once again, here we are seeing society with a skewed sense of reason. Women are out there being brutalized by their partners. And some men. People are living in abject poverty. Sick people are stalking kids on the Internet. Politicians focus on their personal gain, raping the people they represent. Old people have to stop taking meds because they need money just to eat.

Yet making sure an owner takes his mutt for a walk three times is important. Making sure crustaceans don’t slowly suffocate is court worthy.

Peoples’ priorities are becoming completely fucked up. All the money groups like PETA make, the money spent by celebrities to stop the seal hunt, the money wasted with this court case could have been all used to help our fellow man and woman. But no. I am seeing more compassion for the little seal pups or lobsters than I am for the people living on the street or for the woman trying to escape the abusive world she is in.

I said it before and I’ll say it again. If we can’t be kind and love each other, how can we do the same to the animals that live on the same world we do? But a homeless person or a battered woman doesn’t make a good poster and bring in the money, does it?