Oct06
PETA Launches Cutest Campaign Ever
Posted at 07:30 PM | Permalink
| 
Comments (16)
I am thrilled to announce the launch of the cutest campaign ever to exist: Save the Sea Kittens! In an effort to get people to think about fish in a whole new way, we decided to change their name for a while. If people had to order "sea kitten sticks" at a restaurant, I guarantee that the world would think a bit differently. Imagine that you open your menu and decide on the salmon—and then this image pops into your head:
Yeah, I think you'd go with a different menu item after that little reminder (might I recommend this dish if you're craving that flavor, as it's delicious and causes none of the cruelty).
It's easy to order and purchase meat when it's wrapped in neat, clean little packages, void of all the blood and pain that goes into creating it. Fish get an especially bad deal. People go fishing (a.k.a. sea kitten hunting) all the time without a care in the world—because fish can't scream and force people to think about the cruelty of their actions.
So we're changing things up a bit now and helping to give fish everywhere a voice. When people realize how fascinating (and adorable) fish can be, they might think twice. I took it a step further and dressed up my own sea kitten (which you can do, too, by clicking here). I'm pleased to introduce you to Ruth, my new swimmy lil' pal:
Isn't she grand? Probably the best sea kitten ever created—but you can try to prove me wrong. Dress up your own sea kitten and leave me a comment to tell me his or her name. We'll have ourselves a little sea kitten party up in here! In our new feature, we've pulled out all the stops. You can read sea kitten bedtime stories, grab your own sea kitten computer décor, and even take action to try and stop sea kitten hunting.
Enjoy!
Posted by Christine Doré
TAGGED:
vegetarian fishing fish sea kittens
Comments
This is sooooo cute!!
Posted by: SASHA | October 6, 2008 09:50 PM
Isn't the problem that in reality they aren't called sea kittens?
I mean kudos for creativity and it dose look cute though. :)
Posted by: Ben Y. | October 7, 2008 06:09 AM
THey're sooooooo cuteeee!
Posted by: haaaaayleyzilla. | October 7, 2008 11:33 AM
I guess the difference here.. is that kittens and puppies are furry soft fluffy and cute.. and humans like to stroke cuddle, hug and pet them.. now .. fish.. they figure.. slimy wet.. cold ie. 'not something you would like to snuggle and cuddle up to'.. me thinks.. that's where the difference lies.. why they feel it's okay to eat one .. and not the other.. same goes for all the other farm animals.. but meat to me .. is still meat.. flesh and 100% protein.. frankly and simply you do NOT need to eat meat on a relentless daily basis.. your body does not need so much protein consumption on a daily basis in order to function.. once in a while I suppose.. but not grindingly relentlessly daily.. I for one could not and cannot face meat on a daily basis anyway.. once a week is more than suffice!
Posted by: liz | October 7, 2008 03:44 PM
Catfish Should definitly be renamed sea kittens.
Posted by: Flint | October 7, 2008 05:05 PM
Flint
Very clever!
Posted by: lynda downie | October 7, 2008 10:10 PM
Please.
If a meat tastes good, meat-eaters do not care if the animal is cute. This is silly and will not change any meat eaters minds.
If you want to encourage more omnivorous humans to treat animals more ethically, PETA should focus on educating people about factory farming and how EASY it is to get humanely raised, killed, and butchered food (just buy kosher (for kosher food, death must be instantaneous and clean) or go to a butcher that knows the farms his/her carcasses come from). The increase in price is actually negligible to all but the lowest-income families (who can't afford fake meats anyway) and the treatment of an animal on a real farm is SO MUCH BETTER than on factory farms!
Since the neuro-hormones that transmit pain, depression, and fear actually make meat tougher and less yummy, a decent butcher (no matter how cold his or her heart) will gladly direct you to meat that comes from humanely raised and killed animals.
Meat Eaters DO have a choice and CAN insist that their food animals experience a fear-free life full of the happiness of running free in a field and face a swift and merciful end - which is better than a mountain lion's lunch can hope for!
Posted by: Alex | October 8, 2008 03:46 PM
What, The natural biological wonder that fish represent does not provide sufficient sorces of compelling reasons to protect fish? Calling fish 'cats' in playfull cartoon themed ads only make childern more confused about the place of animals in the natural world.
Posted by: joanna | October 8, 2008 04:26 PM
That is so cute. Practice compassion. Go vegan.
Posted by: vegancoin | October 8, 2008 04:40 PM
their soooo ugly and weird and gross. where is the cuteness be honest people a fish wearing clothes! in reality the fish would be smuggled and die! THINK ABOUT WHAT YOUR SUPPORTING!!
Posted by: michelle | October 8, 2008 11:29 PM
Here's what bothers me about this: on one hand, I appreciate that the Sea Kitten is a sly comment about human hypocrisy toward animals (congrats on that), but on the other hand, it seems to be playing into that hypocrisy.
People love cats, I think, because they are so reminiscent of baby humans in the way they play, express affection, and mew when they're hungry. As long as they act cute, we're happy. When they display other signs of functioning adult cathood, like clawing things, fighting and spraying, we are annoyed. It is our humanization of cats that makes them appealing to us, not their innate selves. The fact that few people care about the plight of less-cute animals like fish is just the other side of the same coin. I think that, in order for humans to stop imposing our agenda of death and domination on other species, we all have to become "deep ecologists" - which means we'll all have to understand that living things have inherent value and a right to life even if they are slimy, scaly and cold.
Given that fish stocks are collapsing all over the world, and that we could witness the extinction of many important fish species, as well as their predators, within a generation, I think the most immediate issue is that we need to fish less and find dietary alternatives to fish in order to avoid devastating repercussions for the ecosystems that depend on fish populations, not to mention avoiding malnutrition or starvation for a significant percentage of the world's human population (it has to be acknowledged that not everyone has the option of going vegan - most people in the world are dependent on a few locally available staple foods for their survival). The idea that we should stop eating fish because they, like kittens, are sentient and potentially cute, is a little beside the point.
Posted by: Maren | October 9, 2008 12:13 AM
Fish in Fur Coats! Are you helping kids understand anything when you show a fish in a cute kitten coat. Maybe a kid will thing this ad is about getting a kitten jacket...maybe a kid will think this ad is about fish wanting to be cats...maybe a kid will think this ad is about kittens wanting to be fish...but I doubt a kid will think...hey I shouldn't eat fish becuase I don't eat kittens. It may be cute but it's also promoting fur jackets.
Posted by: joanna | October 9, 2008 01:47 PM
"think about what you're(sic) supporting!!"
In fact i do think about what i am supporting and what the reality is behind my next meal. i also seek to limit the amount of damage that i do to this earth and that includes the causes and effects that i am personally responsible for. And to that end i seek to live a compassionate, humane and caring lifestyle. That's why i'm a vegan.
Posted by: vegancoin | October 9, 2008 02:06 PM
As joanna said about one fish wearing fur and the other I found out was a rockers leather jacket.
Also one of the images was of a child holding one of the sea kittens. Surely this is a sign of supporting the removal of fish from their natural environment, and promoting their suffering.
Posted by: Flint | October 10, 2008 07:01 AM
Alex said, "just buy kosher (for kosher food, death must be instantaneous and clean)."
Did you miss the September 9 PETA Files:
"Last week, PETA revealed shocking new undercover footage of cruelty to animals at AgriProcessors in Postville, Iowa, the world's largest kosher slaughterhouse. I'm thrilled to report that as a result, the U.S. Department of Agriculture has issued a citation against AgriProcessors for violating the Humane Methods of Slaughter Act."
They've been busted in the past, too. So much for humane kosher slaughter.
Alex said, "Meat Eaters DO have a choice and CAN insist that their food animals experience a fear-free life full of the happiness of running free in a field and face a swift and merciful end."
You paint a very idyllic picture. I fail to see what is "merciful" about killing a healthy animal.
Animals used for food have a very abbreviated life that is far from happy. So-called "humane meat" does not comprise even 1% of the market. These animals still have to withstand the rigours of transportation, and the horrors of the slaughterhouse.
The humane choice is to forgo meat completely, and not just attempt to placate your conscience with the "humane" variety.
Posted by: Mike Quinoa | October 10, 2008 10:29 AM
What Mike Quinoa said. There is no such thing as humane meat and there is no such things as the humane slaughter of animals for food, kosher or otherwise. Be compassionate. Go vegan. There just is no other choice.
Posted by: vegancoin | October 10, 2008 01:59 PM