Is an Octopus Too Smart For Us To Eat?

An anonymous reader writes: The New Yorker is running a piece on the ethical dilemma we face when considering octopus intelligence alongside our willingness to eat them. "Octopus intelligence is well documented: they have been known to open jars, guard their unhatched eggs for months or even years, and demonstrate personalities. Most famously, they can blast a cloud of ink to throw off predators, but even more impressive is the masterfully complex camouflage employed by several members of Cephalopoda (a class that also includes squid and cuttlefish)." While humans eat animals ranging widely in mental faculties, the octopus remains one of the smartest ones we do consume. And unlike pigs, for example, their population is not dependent on humanity to survive. As our scientific understanding of intelligence grows, these ethical debates will only come into sharper focus. Where do we draw the line?

Comments

Its not about intelligence

[Anonymous Coward]

its about cuteness.

Dog & cats = too cute to eat

cows & chickens = not so much

rabbits & horses = somewhere in between

Octopuses arent cute... so its okay to eat them.

Re:Its not about intelligence

[aevan]

They all get eaten when you're hungry. Necessity is a damned fine seasoning. Would that it were capable to experiment with a thousand PETA supporters, starve them and their families, their children... but offer them roasted dog meat for their hunger. Pretty sure convictions would be put aside for a majority. Cuteness, intelligence, whatever...they are still the 'them' to our 'us' in the end.

Re:People

[ugen]

Self-preservation. We are people, hence by social contract we (no longer) eat each other. That way each of us can feel safe that others will not consume him. We consider people who violate that rule criminals or insane and deal with them appropriately.

There is no such social contract with animals. We can eat them and they, occasionally, eat humans too.