Those fun people from PETA are at it again.

Those fun people from PETA are at it again.
The People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals -- a group of uptight, illogical nincompoops, to be kind -- are e-mailing people across the United States in an effort to do away with news about sportfishing.
The e-mails -- one of which was forwarded to me by an alert reader -- call for readers of newspapers to make an effort "to cancel your paper's fishing column!"
What PETA wrote
Karin Robertson, manager of PETA's Fish Empathy Project, writes in her e-mail, "On behalf of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, the world's largest animal rights organization, and our more than 800,000 members and supporters, I'm writing to suggest that it is time to abandon your paper's fishing column."
Robertson goes on the try to establish a link between fish and human-style feelings.
"More and more evidence from animal behaviorists shows that fish are sensitive, intelligent and interesting individuals," she wrote. "These fairly recent discoveries are driving PETA's new 'Fish Empathy Project,' and they lend strong support to the move to relegate fishing columns to the dustbin of history."
Some of the examples the e-mail lists include "proof" from "scientific" studies that fish are more intelligent than they appear, they have excellent memories, that they learn by watching the example of other fish and, finally, that "Oxford University research has determined that fish can complete some mental tasks that are too complex for dogs."
The e-mail concludes by saying nobody in their "right mind" could dispute that fish feel pain and that a newspaper would not dedicate space to the recreational abuse of dogs and cats.
My opinion
Well, it is MY opinion that nobody in their "right mind" would even think that recreational abuse of "DOMESTIC" animals such as dogs and cats was acceptable.
The illogic of Robertson's comments know no boundaries, apparently.
If fish are such smart creatures, on par with dogs by Robertson's definition, then how do millions of anglers catch billions of pounds of fish per year? Wouldn't it stand to reason, by PETA's very own comments, that all the fish would have learned by watching their companions that you don't bite on fish hooks? Or, if they slip a hook, then, by virtue of their excellent memories, wouldn't they NEVER bite again?
Eat and make little fishies
While some anglers do say that some fish can learn, the vast majority of subsurface species live to eat and make little fishies. I've seen fish bite on a hook, get thrown back, and come right back and hook themselves again.
Maybe it was a suicidal fish. Maybe I can get a government grant to study this phenomenon! Maybe PETA will give me a grant to study it. That would be a heckuva better use of their members' funds than sending out idiotic e-mails.
braun@vindy.com