Pointless Protest

This is outright stupidity.

PETA was staging a protest outside Gordon Ramsay's restaurant at Claridges. What were they upset about?

It turns out that Mr Ramsay was planning to serve barbecued horse meat.

Is that really worth protesting? For goodness sake, in parts of Japan, horse-meat is eaten sashimi and has been for years. I don't see PETA protesting there.

Sometimes I have very little patience for these animal rights activists. What's the difference between eating horse meat and chicken? Neither are endangered.

I can understand if PETA were to protest against eating panda meat, for example. I would gladly turn up to support that protest and would even wear the panda suit but this is just stupid. No wonder PETA sometimes isn't taken seriously.

The reason for the protest is based on an assumption that the horse was inhumanely killed for its flesh. PETA doesn't know this for sure. There are probably many instances where horses are put down (other than by lethal injection) and it would be a shame to let all that meat go to waste. It could turned into pet food, or perhaps in this case, people food.

I say this partly because I've never had a horse as a pet and perhaps don't feel emotionally attached to it and therefore have no qualms about eating it. I feel the same way about eating other sorts of meat such as (but not limited to) chicken, beef, lamb and fish.

As for meat which might have formerly been a pet, I'd need to consider that very carefully. At the end of the day, I'd probably have no issues eating it, provided that a vet was prepared to certify that it was fit for human consumption. There's nothing you can do to bring a dead pet to life and all that's left is an empty shell and happy memories. In which case, there's no rational reason not to eat it as the meat would simply decompose (or be incinerated, as the case may be) if not eaten.

Taking this reasoning to its logical extreme, there is no reason why humans shouldn't eat dead humans (provided death occurred through natural courses). Again, provided that a doctor is prepared to certify the meat as fit for human consumption, apart from the innate squamishness of some humans about eating members of their own species, it's a morally neutral thing. Of course, the main consideration is whether the meat will taste good. If it's going to be tough as leather, it's pointless to even consider eating it, even if we can overcome our reluctance to eat members of our own species.

All this, of course, is easier said than done. That said, I'm as likely to eat human meat as I am to eat worms and grubs. I don't think I can get over the "yuck" factor.

P.S. The other reason why I was quite outraged about the protest was because I've been to Mr Ramsay's restaurant at Claridges on several occasions and I like the food there. PETA's protest is depriving me of my legal right to eat at the restaurant of my choice and that greatly annoys me as there is no logical reason why PETA doesn't also (apart from there being limited members who will be willing to carry out these protests) protest against the various other types of meat being served at all the restaurants in London. I have a suspicion that the protest is not so much directed against the eating of horsemeat but perhaps this particular PETA member has an axe to grind with Mr Ramsay. Alternatively, perhaps this particular PETA member is a horse-lover and has issues with people eating his favourite animal but himself has no issues with eating meat in general - the HYPOCRITE.