Together We Can Stop This Cruelty

As bloggers sometimes we have a responsibility to bring attention to an act of cruelty, something that bothers us, that we want to change.

Some fellows talk about cruelty to dogs, some highlight the plight of dolphins in nets used to catch tuna fish. Others talk about the ways in which some animals are used for lab experiments and other talk about the cruelty inflicted upon foreigners by Darwin.

Different folks eat different things around the world, I think that's acceptable and understood by all. But, whilst in Singapore last week, I came across something that made me feel ashamed and a little queasy. They like their fat on meat over there, they're keen on dishes with "lard" in the name and they have items on menus that just sound wrong to me. I saw a menu with "glutinous chocolate rice" listed. Luckily there was a picture and I saw that it was what I would have called "chocolate rice pudding".

The thing, the outrageous one, the one that has made me feel sympathy and pain for the poor creatures involved in this frankly barbaric dish, must be banned. If I knew how to start an online petition and put a link to it in this post I'd do it. If my Dad was an MP I'd ask him to put in a word to the Prime Minister. That's in the UK, in Sri Lanka I'd use his status to allow me to do anything I wanted in nightclubs.

It's one thing for some countries to kill dogs and eat them, it's one thing for people to refuse to eat factory reared chicken because of the conditions the birds are kept in, that's all well and good. But how come no one has spotted the intense pain and cruelty that surely must be involved in what I saw brazenly being served to anyone who wanted it?

My understanding is that it's perfectly legal in Singapore, I saw a few stalls openly advertising and selling the stuff in hawker markets without the slightest hint of embarrassment or shame. These people are profittering from cruelty and must be brought to justice.

Yes, it's fish ball soup. As I write this I think of those poor fish being led to the ball cutting off place. I bet they're not even blindfolded when it's done. It's the ultimate cruelty, to deprive fish of their manhood like that. No wonder you never see a fish swimming along happily with its bollocks dangling freely. They've all been chopped off and made into soup or added to noodles.

I saw these fish balls for sale and it dawned on my why I've never seen a couple of fish mating, I've never received an email of fish porn and I've heard stories about cod and other fish becoming scarce.

So I respectfully ask all of you to join my campaign to stop this hideous and despicable treatment of fish. We can get together, organise marches and send petitions to people in power. Maybe a concert would be a good idea to raise awareness and highlight the issue. Perhaps a photo spread in Hi! magazine with some famous fish. An "at home with the fish" feature would be nice.

Hopefully it's not too late and we can save the fish. but, in the meantime please stay away from fish ball soup, noodles with fish balls and any other variants. Of course Sri Lankan fish balls, the fried type with chillie and maldive fish, are fine. But they're lovely, we all know that.