Would you eat your cat?

A confession: I eat meat. Not often and not a lot but I do. About once of twice a week. Chicken, beef, pig as well as fish. 'Fish'? Yes, the stuff that's attached to the bones of fish is called meat too. Even for those who prefer to say 'fish'. Using their logic I don't eat meat. Just 'chicken', 'cow' and 'pig'. And fish. 

Until the seventies you could order 'cat' in Italian restaurants and in many places around the world it's not uncommon to eat bats, guinea pigs or insects. In Belgium people eat muskrats. Although it says 'Water Rabbit' on the menu. In short: eating animals is not uncommon for humans.

'Insects!? Eeegh! I would never eat a bug! over my dead body!' Sorry to tell you, but chances are you already have. Not just the tiny spiders you accidentally swallow when you sleep with your mouth open or the occassional murdered bug that's been baked in the bread you had for lunch the other day. Nope. When you had chocolate you also ate some bug remnants. Yes, bugs can be found in many food products (click). Many colourings in chocolate and other candies contain chitine. Sounds harmless? Because it is. Except for people who are allergic to the substance that's extracted from insects. Oh, and shrimps are a kind of insects as well. Or at least closely related.

Early 2022 the EU approved the sale of bugs as 'food' in large parts of Europe. It took the believers in 'alternative facts' a year to find out and the New Age 'wappies' (Dutch umbrella term for covidiots, magats, racists, 'karen's', white nationalists, you know...believers in 'alternative facts') started spreading the message: 'We are afraid of nothing but 'they' want to force us to eat insects as part of Agenda 2030 and kill us all! Humans can't eat insects, only birds can. Stand up against eating bugs. Revolt!' 

Fun fact: on markets in many countries around the world (yes, Flat earthers, the planet is basically round) it's not uncommon to find grilled or baked insects being offered as a snack. Unless all those people are dead and images of those markets are just clever CGI and a billion people are in on the conspiracy, the wappies are wrong. Very wrong. As usual, I'd like to add.

Anyways, the documentary My Octopus Teacher got me thinking.

Many animals feel pain, have and share emotions...in short: are sentient. Should we eat them? 

==================

Want to read (more of) my short stories? My author page: Terrence Weijnschenk at Amazon

A donation (click) is much appreciated:

=================