People magazine reports that Al Gore's daughter Sarah just got married, revealing in the course of the article that Chilean sea bass was served at the rehearsal dinner.
In the Daily Telegraph, Australian Humane Society Rebecca Keeble writes that "only one week after Live Earth, Al Gore's green credentials slipped." Why? Because Chilean sea bass is endangered.
ABC politics columnist Jake Tapper, smelling the kind of vapid, gimmicky story upon which his profession thrives, asks, "could this be seen as the environmentalist version of Sen. David Vitter's public sanctimony/private enjoyment of love with a red-lit glow?"
Blogger Digby points out, "Unless somebody at the wedding was schtupping the fish wearing a diaper, I'm not sure I see the analogy."
Sierra Club's Pat Joseph traces the fallout:
It doesn't take long for Tapper's readers to remind him that: a) the groom's family throws the rehearsal dinner, not the bride's; b) while sea bass is indeed a fishery of serious environmental concern, some of the fish are certified by the Marine Stewardship Council; and c) Jake Tapper is a two-bit hack.
It's a wonder Gore doesn't want to run for president.
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Comments
View as Flat
wiscidea Posted 10:28 am
18 Jul 2007
"Slow-growing fish that breed late in life, Chilean seabass are naturally vulnerable to overfishing. And illegal fishing is rampant, especially in remote Antarctic waters where law enforcement is difficult. Fishing methods cause more problems: Bottom trawling can damage seafloor habitat, and longlining can take a bycatch of endangered albatrosses and other seabirds, which get hooked as they try to snatch bait, then end up drowning. "
I suppose if you don't really care about eating threatened animals, damaging the seafloor, and killing endangered seabirds, there's nothing wrong with eating Chilean seabass. Perhaps you can purchase a "seabass offset" which will go toward stopping illegal fishing or restore the seafloor somewhere else on the planet. Hey, what could possbily be of value down there anyway? Crazy scientists, studying seafloors!
Cheers!
Forward!
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JMG Posted 10:44 am
18 Jul 2007
Can't say whether it's true, I'm jus' sayin.
Save the world: Reduce greenhouse gas emissions 5% annually.
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wiscidea Posted 11:11 am
18 Jul 2007
Forward!
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mstessyrue Posted 11:21 am
18 Jul 2007
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caniscandida Posted 7:47 pm
18 Jul 2007
So far as the state of journalism goes, there will always be people like Rebecca Keeble. It is far more disturbing that Sierra Club does not chuck the insensitive Pat Joseph overboard. He had done his job when he exonerated Al Gore. He did not need to go on and suggest irresponsibly that the eating of Chilean Sea Bass was a matter of indifference.
Chickens are our cousins!
So are other sensitive animals!
Enough is enough!
No more factory farms!
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wiscidea Posted 11:23 pm
18 Jul 2007
I've read that Buddhists (no, I'm not say Al's a Buddhist!), those who are vegetarians, consider it inappropriate to reject food freely given to one, even if it violates a dietary restriction. I think it has something to do with the fact that the animal is already dead and one should show some respect for its sacrifice, that it is inappropriate create a scene by condemning someone's behavior in public, and it is more valuable in the long run to preserve community harmony. Seems like a good idea.
So, unless Al took part in planning the meal, the press should leave him alone. It is really just another indication that Al Gore is a respectable person and would make a great President. The press appears desperate in its attempt to find some dirt to share. And all they can find is that his future son-in-law might not be as concerned about about the environment!
Perhaps Al should compensate for the Chilean seabass issue by quietly working to educate his future in-laws and other about threats to marine environments.
What really surprises me, however, is that the future in-laws would not be more aware of such environmental issues and have tried to show more respect for the Gore family!
Thanks Dave Roberts for the original post. It was very enlightening and encouraged me to think about these issues.
Peace.
Forward!
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TimLambert Posted 11:32 pm
18 Jul 2007
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odograph Posted 11:36 pm
18 Jul 2007
A lot of jumping-the-gun on this.
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caniscandida Posted 12:12 am
19 Jul 2007
Really, the answer is abstinence from Patagonian toothfish, for now at least. That would hardly kill anyone, would it.
Here is an interesting detail, from the National Geographic article, which overlaps the thread on the fishery off the coast of Mauritania:
<<
But not all pirates escape the net of law enforcement. Earlier this month, conservationists hailed the conviction of Spanish fishing kingpin, Antonio Vidal Pego.
He was caught importing over 50,000 pounds (22,680 kilograms) of pirated Chilean sea bass at a Miami, Florida, dock.
>>
Regarding the exhaustion of the West African fishery, it is made clear in that thread that subsidized EU fishers bear a great responsibility, if not the greatest. My guess is that most of those EU fishers are from Spain, which sends out some of the largest fishing fleets in the world.
As for poor Al Gore: WiscIdea is right on two counts.
It is polite to eat what your host serves to you as a guest. And it is a nice douceur, though hardly necessary, to know that the Buddhists will bless you for it.
In-laws can break either of two ways. Unfortunately for Al Gore, this bunch seems to have fallen out the wrong way.
Chickens are our cousins!
So are other sensitive animals!
Enough is enough!
No more factory farms!
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SustainableGreen Posted 12:19 am
19 Jul 2007
It ain't my fucking media. It probably isn't yours, or hers, or his either, nor is it ours. It is the corporate media, marketing the news and information they want us to have, to influence and even control what we think and how we act and what we buy and who we vote for. There are the exceptions that prove the rule: the independents, in print and on the Net. Attempts to marginalize and eliminate these exceptions also prove the rule.
Have I mentioned the Corporate Oligarchy?
David
Sustainability For Life
Messages done with sustainable energy, with Wind and Sun!
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SustainableGreen Posted 12:30 am
19 Jul 2007
Yeah, what we oughta do is start marketing fish offsets, so pretentious people can do nothing but what they have done, and overpay some salesman who will then pay some dumb bastard a nickel to plant fish.
Environmentalism? Bullshit.
Laziness and Greed? Uh, yeah.
David
Sustainability For Life
Messages done with sustainable energy, with Wind and Sun!
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eriqa Posted 2:23 am
19 Jul 2007
Imagine a world where the environmental costs of every purchase were reflected in the price. No more lectures. No more confusing rules. (No more Ask Umbra, but hey, everything comes with a price.)
We wouldn't have to take along our little wallet guides to sustainable seafood and carry out a research project during every shopping trip; we'd just get to the fish counter, notice that Patagonian toothfish cost approximately the same per ounce as Beluga caviar, and (rightly) conclude that it is rare, expensive, and not what we ought to be eating for Tuesday night dinner. Instead we'd go with something cheaper - maybe tilapia? - confident that, since environmental costs had already been factored into the price, we'd also be having a lower impact on the planet.
I believe most people, who have no particular desire to eat Chilean sea bass but just a general desire for fish, would be fine with that.
If I were in Al Gore's position, I'd say something like, "This proves how difficult and confusing it is to always make the right choices when the environmental impact of what we buy isn't clearly signaled at the checkout counter. If it's confusing for my son-in-law - who's heard a lot of lectures on the subject - it's even more confusing for the average American. This is why EPA needs to be allowed to do its job again, and why caring for our natural resources needs to be a nationwide effort."
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wiscidea Posted 2:40 am
19 Jul 2007
"...it's even more confusing for the average American. This is why EPA needs to be allowed to do its job again, and why caring for our natural resources needs to be a nationwide effort."
"...it's even more confusing for the average American. This is why EPA needs to be allowed to do its job again, and why caring for our natural resources needs to be a nationwide effort."
"...it's even more confusing for the average American. This is why EPA needs to be allowed to do its job again, and why caring for our natural resources needs to be a nationwide effort."
"...it's even more confusing for the average American. This is why EPA needs to be allowed to do its job again, and why caring for our natural resources needs to be a nationwide effort."
Forward!
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