Lion is Eaten Tonite
(With Sincere Apologies to The Lion King, Lion Sleeps Tonite, & George David Weiss, Hugo Peretti, and Luigi Creatore, as well as Performer Lebo M, and especially the Tokens - Video 1961! )
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In the diner, the Mesa diner
Lion is eaten, and Cats wonder if this is right
In the diner, the Mesa diner
Lion is eaten, and Cats wonder if this is right
In many homes, many peaceful homes
The Feline sleeps fitfully tonight
In many homes, many peaceful homes
The Feline sleeps fitfully tonight
Hush, my Kitty, don't fear, my Kitty
IL Vinaio is not coming for you tonight
Hush, my darling, don't fear, my darling
IL Vinaio is not coming for you tonight
In many homes, many peaceful homes
The Feline sleeps fitfully tonight
In many homes, many peaceful homes
The Feline sleeps fitfully tonight
(Chorus)
My darling
Don't fear, my darling
My darling
Don't fear, my darling
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In case you have been snoozing, and napping, all morning, there is a story out there about a Phoenix/Mesa area Restaurant with Cat on the menu, in "honor" of the World Cup in South Africa.
Yeah, yeah, I know...
As Daddy said..."Just one more thing for folks to get mad at Arizona about." ;-D
This, however, is not something the State Government did with voter support, but something done by one restaurant, with mixed reactions coming in faster than they can cook up the meal.
And what they are doing, though disturbing to Pussydom Assembled, IS perfectly legal, and regulated.
Where THIS Opinionated Pussycat stands on the eating of Cat Burgers, and Cat, especially those like you and me, can be explored in this thorough expose I have done:
Healthy Living Thru Cats: An Expose
The Lion story came to my attention while watching America Live, on Fox News, this morning, and I found the story online.
Yes, for only $21 — including chips and a side of roasted corn on the cob — you can feast on the King of the Jungle set between the two halves of a potato bun.
IL Vinaio's owner, Cameron Selogie, says:
"Lion meat is extremely lean, so we have to cut it with 10 to 15 percent ground sirloin to hold it together."
And that's supposed to make me feel better? ( Daddy told me there was a place in Santa Ana that sold Lion Burgers, too, and on our Stroll, this afternoon, we stopped off there...Such a kidder, my Daddy... ;-D )
Selogie noted that the lion meat his restaurant is serving comes from "a free-range farm in Illinois, which is regulated by the U.S. Department of Agriculture." Additionally, he notes that "in Africa they do eat lions, so I assume if it's OK for Africans to eat lions then it should be OK for us." But as one might expect, IL Vinaio's latest menu addition hasn't been received well by animal-rights organizations.
PETA is less than pleased as the quote in the story makes clear: Restaurant adds menu item for S. African World Cup: lion Hat Tip to KC, of The Cat Blogosphere, for e-mailing with a few questions, leading me to do a Google.... "How true is it? -- This meat was purchased as a by-product of taxidermy, or something. It was not inspected, nor from any type of farm. Where are those free-range lion farms, anyway?" Turns out CNN did some digging..... From a story on the Out of Bounds NBC Sports Blog: "According to CNN, the USDA doesn't inspect or regulate lion meat. And the shipment actually came from a company called Czimer's Game & Sea Foods, a butcher shop just outside of Chicago, whose owner has served a six-month prison sentence for selling meat from federally protected tigers and leopards." "African" Lion IS listed, with prices, on the website, but if the product is not inspected, or regulated, the quality is under question, even if it's apparently legal for them to buy, and sell. Watch a Video, and read much more, here: Turns out there's something fishy about this lion burger meat ****END UPDATE**** ****UPDATE - 6/25/10**** From an excellent Alert Essay posted on the Big Cat Rescue website: The FDA, not the USDA, is charged with the responsibility of inspecting suppliers like Czimer's Game & Sea Foods, the butcher who sold lion meat to this Arizona restaurant. "FDA inspected" may reassure you, but it shouldn't... While a lion burger may sound like something different to try, if you eat one - make no mistake - you are fueling this underground world of illegal exotic animal murder and trade... By banning the breeding of big cats in the private sector, it would make it impossible for the dealers in the US to acquire and sell this meat. It would put an end to the horrible suffering and deaths we know are happening throughout the country everyday. So who is Big Cat Rescue? They began in about 1993, and are based in Florida, and their history, as detailed on the website, is fascinating to read. Big Cat Rescue, a non profit educational sanctuary, is devoted to rescuing and providing a permanent home for exotic (i.e. wild, not domestic) cats who have been abused, abandoned, bred to be pets, retired from performing acts, or saved from being slaughtered for fur coats, and to educating the public about these animals and the issues facing them in captivity and in the wild. The sanctuary is home to the most diverse population of exotic cats in the world, with 16 species and subspecies of wild cat represented among more than 100 residents. These include tigers, lions, liger, leopards, cougars, bobcats, lynx, ocelots, servals, caracals and others, many of whom are threatened, endangered, or now extinct in the wild. You can read the rest ofthe Alert quoted above, and visit their great website. ****END UPDATE****
I can only imagine. ;-D ****UPDATE - 8PM****
Me and Mommy ML had Googled trying to find tha Free Range Lion Farms here in tha US.
As if!
Furry good post, Nikita, only problem is, now we can't get that tune outta ours heads. ;-D
Nor tha chillin' words... but true????
Lion today... Tortie tomorrow?????
:: shudders ::
Love & Purrs,
KC
Posted by: KC | June 24, 2010 at 11:06 PM
That is so sad.
No respect for the King of the Jungle.
Posted by: Harry Spotter | June 25, 2010 at 07:27 PM