If you owned a beloved pet X, and that pet became contraband, how would you
respond. Easy to think people could just slaughter their pets becaues of a
law.
> One other gripe: To suggest that restrictions on snakeheads will lead to
restrictions or bans on all tropical aquarium fishes is guilty of the same
"sky is >falling" mentality so often attributed to environmentalists.
If you were referring to my remark, it is not what I was saying-in-all. All
species are coverd by the ban. Not just those that pose a threat because
they can survive winter. That is why I said, why not ban all tetras and
other characins when pirhahna are banned, it's the exact same thing.
These bans do little to stop the problem. The orginal snakeheads that
started this ball rolling were NOT aquarium fish. They were food fish, not
used because of one reason or another. The person became attached to them
while holding them for the postponed dinner, and decided to let them go
rather than kill them. I guess this person was and idiot? I would say naive,
misinformed, but not an idiot. As for the idiots that would do it now, do
you know what happens to people who break rules regarding wildlife? Usually
it breaks down to large fines and property confiscation. Don't believe me?
Check out how many people not only had guns and ammo/fishing tackle
confiscated for poaching, missing daily season closeings, or screwing up on
bag limits, and had their vehicles taken, and more. These vehicles are not
returned after the trial, but auctioned off by the state.
That is my gripe. Meanwhile the most wide spread exotic fish, the carp, is a
common and promoted pet to garden ponds. Only in a colorful form known as
koi. Hmmmm. There is a difference between the sky is falling and
incrementalism. Looks like creeping incrementalism when a type of fish can
be quickly banned , while a fish with a large following is allowed with
little regulation-in-all. The same goes for that fish having its entire
genus banned, while other species in similar boats were singled out of their
genus. Why the double standard? Anytime there is a media circus, you can be
sure the laws will fly onto the books. Its all fun and games for these guys.
And ,again, my favorite quote from one of these people " Who needs those
thigns anyways"?
Ray
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