those wasteful, shortsighted buddhis

[Guest guest]

A few thoughts on Fish....<br>Many fish are

long-lived, have complicated nervous systems, and are capable

of learning complicated tasks. Guyton & Hall's

Textbook of Medical Physiology (1996) states, "The lower

regions of the brain [which all vertebrates have] appear

to be important in the appreciation of the suffering

types of pain because animals with their brains

sectioned above the mesencephalon to block any pain signals

reaching the cerebrum still evince undeniable evidence of

suffering when any part of the body is

traumatized".<br><br>This from a

<a href=http://www.veganoutreach.org/whyvegan/animals.html

target=new>http://www.veganoutreach.org/whyvegan/animals.html</a><br>Careful,

this site is not for the

squeemish.<br><br>Namaste,<br>Nada

[Guest guest]

I agree with nadayoga - as a marine biologist

specialising in fish ecology I can assure you that fish are

capable of complex behaviours and often live in

complicated social structures that we are only beginning to

understand. I'm not a Buddhist but isn't a fish just as much

a sentient being as a cow? What are the

requirements for being classed as a sentient being?

[Guest guest]

believe it or not: 1. i was joking about the

fish<br>2. i was wondering if my flip little comment might

draw the ire of fish friends and professionals. i had

flipped thru your site a week or so ago--great photos.

sentient beings? well i've never been in the water with a

grouper, but they seem to be fairly thoughtful, at least

they were portrayed so on a recent spot i saw on the

discovery channel. certainly more 'with it' mentally than

the typical brain dead cow. uh oh, here comes the

flame from fubarr

[Guest guest]

Have you ever witnessed the terminus of a Salmon

run? In this part of Alaska, where salt water hits the

fresh water is adjacent the mountains, so the Salmon's

spawning run can be measured in feet instead of big miles

like the Columbia River splitting Oregon and

Washington. Anyway, at the spawning season, the streams and

small rivers are full of fish, so thick you could

almost walk on them. They make their runs to try and

make it further upstream, fighting until their bodies

decompose as they swim. In a matter of time the "run" is

over, eggs are deposited and all the fish carcasses are

belly up, floating food for the eagles and ravens. In

late summer for the chum run, it is still warm and the

smell is very strong. This process happens several

times as the different species run at different

times.<br><br>My point? To observe the fish at close range,

fighting for an inbred challenge that will kill all who

attempt the run is facinating and an experience I

consider myself lucky to have observed. Do they know or

care if it is their turn to move up the karmic ladder,

I can't say. Their spirtualiity is being one with

the universe and currents of the oceans and streams,

no questions asked.