Is there no limit...

...to the depravity?

According to The Telegraph's (hideously newly-styled) website, Gordon Ramsay has plummeted to new depths in his quest to be the most sensational chef on TV.

On a trip to Iceland, Ramsay indulged in "sky-fishing", catching puffins in the net of what looks for all the world to be a large lacrosse stick. As the Telegraph states:

He caught one puffin in a net - viewers saw it bite his face as it struggled to get free. A hunter then snapped the bird's neck before Ramsay pulled out its heart, which he ate raw. The Michelin-starred chef later rustled up a dish of barbecued puffin with cucumber salad.

Interestingly, Ramsay seems to think that this is acceptable.

But I suppose he doesn't really see it as being any different from raising and slaughtering any number of other birds - chickens, turkeys, ducks etc. And, from my perspective, the fact that the rest of the world sees the distinction is also interesting. The article continues by saying that the

Media watchdog Ofcom is to investigating (sic) the programme after receiving a number of complaints from viewers, and animal-lovers have protested via the Channel 4 website. Previous shows have seen veal calves, pigs and turkeys being slaughtered.

So what, in the eyes of the general public, makes puffins instrinsically different?

Why should they be shielded from the barbarism perpetrated on their 'domestic' kin - the approximately 9 billion chickens raised and slaughtered for food every year in the US alone?

Let me just repeat that statistic: nine billion sentient creatures become so many burgers, nuggets, hot wings, casseroles, pot pies and pizza toppings.

I am not sure.

I fail to understand the selective compassion of the many: no, we can't catch and eat puffins, but yes we can confine, mutilate and slaughter 9 billion chickens.

I am possibly one of the last people to defend Ramsay, but his actions - and the public's reactions - do at least serve to throw the spotlight onto a terrible, endemic, insidious, creeping hypocrisy.

To read the full article, click here.

Oh, and if you are in the UK and want to register your reactions to this 'quality entertainment', you can call Channel 4 on this number:

Phone: 0845 076 0191 (lo-call number)

otherwise do click on through to Channel 4's comment page here and let them know just how much you appreciate the show!

Stay Vegan, Friends.