Mitsuwa Bluefin Tuna Cutting Demonstration

Here is a link
http://alineamosaic.com/forum/index.php ... #entry4041
to the Bluefin cutting demonstration I witnessed at Mitsuwa last fall. Certainly an event well worth experiencing if you can't get to Japan. I did some of my own photography in B&W but this fellow was much better postitioned than I was.
I did purchase some O-toro-, chu-toro and akami and I can tell you it was the best fresh bluefin I have ever had and I usually have Browne Trading send me some when its in season around Maine in the late summer.-Dick

I've seen this impressive display in the past too.

Today, most experts agree that the bluefin tuna is on the brink of extinction and butchering one is akin to butchering a panda bear.

http://www.montereybayaquarium.org/cr/S ... spx?fid=60

Best,
Michael

eatchicago wrote:I've seen this impressive display in the past too.

Today, most experts agree that the bluefin tuna is on the brink of extinction and butchering one is akin to butchering a panda bear.

http://www.montereybayaquarium.org/cr/S ... spx?fid=60

Best,
Michael

Is panda tasty? I kid. We ought to give the bluefin a break for a few years.

"Today, most experts agree that the bluefin tuna is on the brink of extinction and butchering one is akin to butchering a panda bear."

I don't believe this is a political Forum.
If you wanted to make a political comment, you could have sent me a PM instead of turning the Post into a Forum for your beliefs whether or not they hold water.
Do you drive a vehicle that consumes gasoline? Do you have AC in your vehicle and home? Do you use plastics and other non renewable items in your everyday life? Of course you do and these are using up a non-renewable energy source and raw materials from around the world. Bluefin tuna is not even at the tip of the iceburg in terms of real problems facing the human race but all these items are for a political Forum. Keep your political comments for another Forum.-Dick
BTW. bluefin taken off the coast of Maine are taken as an adjunt to commercial swordfishing and would die if released because of the injury and exhaustion of the fish. TV Shows where you see fish released that are bleeding, manhandled out of the water and exhausted have led many to believe if you just throw a fish back, no harm. Not so.
I have fished off the coast of Maine both from shore and on charter boats and on inland waters in the US and have seen the results of both pleasure fishing and commercial fishing.
There are a lot of things to be up in arms about but if you respond to any and all forms of information with a negative critique on the Internet then you will be Posting a lot!

budrichard wrote: Bluefin tuna is not even at the tip of the iceburg in terms of real problems facing the human race

Maybe not, but I think the point was that over-fishing/consumption are the biggest problems facing bluefin tuna stock.

budrichard wrote:There are a lot of things to be up in arms about but if you respond to any and all forms of information with a negative critique on the Internet then you will be Posting a lot!

I'm with you bud, no one better make fun of my world wide internets!

I like blue fin tuna. I like it so much I want my grandchildren to enjoy it. So I'm laying off for a few years. It's easy. I've eaten my share. If you haven't, then bon appetit.

I don't believe this is a political Forum.
If you wanted to make a political comment, you could have sent me a PM instead of turning the Post into a Forum for your beliefs whether or not they hold water.

it's really a shame that you think overfishing is some kind of political issue; i'd like to think that sensible people of all political persuasions can agree about the need to let bluefin repopulate. the real possibility that bluefin might be fished to extinction in the near future just so some folks can eat sushi is not a 'belief' but almost an inevitability. faith in the existence of santa claus is a belief. the perilous status of bluefin tuna is a fact. justjoan

I don't think that any of the responders understood or chose to even considered what I Posted and whether or not my Post made any sense but just responded in a knee jerk manner.
Yes, bluefin tuna fishing and any every other issue is political, if political means to you, contrived than you don't understand politics. Whether or not real or scientifically based (BTW many issues scientifically based have undergone 180 degree revisions when new data and/or analysis are employed), the disposition of any issue is based on politics, no matter what the political system. Bluefin tuna fishing will not be curtailed until a majority of the nations conducting the fishing, decide to ban bluefin fishing. Public curtailment of consumption will not make a significant difference and castegating individuals on Forums will not make ANY difference at all. I never Posted one way or the other about whether bluefin fishing should be banned or curtailed, what I did say is that the bluefin I ordered in the past were caught as an adjunct to swordfishing, so to curtail bluefin catches, we should also ban swordfishing.
What I did Post is that it is a shame when ever someone offers some information, that some individual or individuals jump on thier political bandwagon(s) and find the need to Post that belief, its like a religious fever. Well if that is how the majority wish to conduct themselves on this Forum, then I certainly can play that game. As I stated, this is NOT a political Forum but if you wish to make it so, then it is. The choice is really up to you and the Moderators.
Frankly I found the demonstration I witnessed extremely interesting and wished to convey that information. If the Moderators of this Forum, wish that information not be conveyed that might be against someones beliefs, then they can inform me and I will Post no more.
You make the choice.-EOT

mmmmmm; regardless of your political affiliations, if enough people stop eating bluefin tuna, then, perhaps, probably, it will not be over-fished. And if enough people spread the word about the perils of eating bluefin tuna, then even more people will stop eating bluefin tuna.

budrichard wrote:I don't believe this is a political Forum.
If you wanted to make a political comment, you could have sent me a PM instead of turning the Post into a Forum for your beliefs whether or not they hold water.
Do you drive a vehicle that consumes gasoline? Do you have AC in your vehicle and home? Do you use plastics and other non renewable items in your everyday life? Of course you do and these are using up a non-renewable energy source and raw materials from around the world. Bluefin tuna is not even at the tip of the iceburg in terms of real problems facing the human race but all these items are for a political Forum. Keep your political comments for another Forum.-Dick

Dick,

As someone who spent a great deal of time as a moderator of this very forum, I am well-versed in what types of discourse are
inappropriate or disallowed on this forum. As a direct result of your vigilante-style moderation above, I contacted the moderators directly for their input (a board protocol you clearly chose to ignore). Not only does my post stand, but one of the very same moderators has since contributed to this thread.

I did not send you a private message because I had no issue to take up with you personally. I do not want your post removed nor do I believe you should not have posted it or that you should change a word of it. From my perspective, I provided a fact that adds to this open discussion. You consider it to be a political position, I disagree. I'm not interested in having a philosophical quibble over what constitutes a political belief. Although, I suspect your response would have been similar had I simply linked to a table of data without any shred of commentary.

My post stands, be it a statement of fact or a radical political position.

This forum has a long history of lively discussion centered around culinary "hot-button" issues. Lively debates about foie gras, conventional agriculture, sexism in restaurants, and other "political" topics have started and continued from a simple informational post. The key to the success of this forum is open an honest debate that avoids personal attack and honors everyone's right to be heard. I made no attack against you or your behavior, nor did I tell you that your post was inappropriate. By telling me that I am not entitled to post what you call a "belief", you act as though starting this thread grants you ownership rights to it and the right to control how the discussion will develop. This is simply not so. The moderators of LTHForum are the only ones with the authority here to deem a post inappropriate, not you.

So, Dick, thank you for telling me what to do with my post and my comments. I would tell you what to do with your response, but again, I am acutely aware of the posting rules of LTHForum.

All the best,
Michael

I haven't eaten bluefin in years, but I have some sympathy for Dick's comments about this issue. I'm not so sure that eating a species into extinction is any worse than keeping one alive by forcing it through a life of torture. I don't eat tortured animals at home, but every time I order a carne asada taco at Las Asadas, the garlic ribs at TAC, or scrambled eggs at Moon's, I have a pretty good idea where those meats and eggs have come from. It's a lot easier to give up bluefin because it was such a tiny part of my life even before the known threat of extinction. For others that may not be the case, and I don’t feel like I’m in much of a position to judge their choices.

I'm not so sure that eating a species into extinction is any worse than keeping one alive by forcing it through a life of torture.

Well, one is potentially improvable.

I also think there's a difference between staples and luxuries. True, it's a difference that's easy to demagogue (see the foie-gras debate), but still, the cost to human nutrition of not hunting bluefin away is significantly more minor than the cost of banning chicken factories would be. It's easy to give up bluefin because it's easy to give up bluefin.

Mike G wrote: the cost to human nutrition of not hunting bluefin away is significantly more minor than the cost of banning chicken factories would be. It's easy to give up bluefin because it's easy to give up bluefin

I think you've mixed the individual choice question in with the regulatory question, which makes this tough to argue. I agree that it would be easier for regulators to ban bluefin fishing than it would be to ban factory farming. But I'm not sure that's relavant to the question about what individual choices one should make.

It's important to make a distinction between a discussion about politics and a discussion about ethics. We have discussions about ethics (or "the right thing to do") all the time, and they seem appropriate for this forum. Discussions about ethics can be heated, but that's not a problem as long as the conversation remains civil and respectful.

"I would tell you what to do with your response, but again, I am acutely aware of the posting rules of LTHForum."

I never made any such statement to you or anyone else on this Forum. Your response is simply unacceptable.

is this tuna cutting demonstration an annual event? if so I would be interested in checking it out next time around.

jimswside wrote:is this tuna cutting demonstration an annual event? if so I would be interested in checking it out next time around.

It happens at least once a year. Sometimes it is posted on the Events board. I have not yet gone, though I am keenly interested to see it, too.

Regards,

I really shouldn't get involved in yet another heated discussion on the Internet, but I think this debate is important. This is a board about food -- where to eat, what to eat, where to buy ingredients, and how to cook. I think that a discussion (not flamewar) about bluefin tuna is perfectly relevant.

It is a food that is rapidly approaching extinction, which means that if nothing is done we won't need to worry about it on this board again. There simply won't be any left to eat. I think some discussion before it reaches that point it warranted.

Ethics discussion aside, here are my photos from last year's event.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/bobthewond ... 73/detail/

Llama, that last pic with the cats is hilarious--the tuna looks amazing. i bet it tastes even better than it looks.

Not to add fuel to the fire, but...

Interesting article on bluefin tuna in the NY times this week

thaiobsessed wrote:Not to add fuel to the fire, but...

Interesting article on bluefin tuna in the NY times this week

Thaiobsessed, thanks for posting this extraordinarily informative article.

thaiobsessed wrote:Not to add fuel to the fire, but...

Interesting article on bluefin tuna in the NY times this week

thanks, i would have missed this concise and moving story of bluefin tuna. a lot of it i had learned from the great documentary, 'end of the line', but much was new to me. i'm in the camp of those who would choose to ban all bluefin tuna fishing and eating forever; just as we no longer eat lions and tigers. these warmblooded fish are extraordinary creatures and there is absolutely no necessity anywhere in the world to consume them. justjoan

justjoan wrote:

thaiobsessed wrote:Not to add fuel to the fire, but...

Interesting article on bluefin tuna in the NY times this week

thanks, i would have missed this concise and moving story of bluefin tuna. a lot of it i had learned from the great documentary, 'end of the line', but much was new to me. i'm in the camp of those who would choose to ban all bluefin tuna fishing and eating forever; just as we no longer eat lions and tigers. these warmblooded fish are extraordinary creatures and there is absolutely no necessity anywhere in the world to consume them. justjoan

Lion burger (http://leisureblogs.chicagotribune.com/thestew/)

budrichard wrote:BTW. bluefin taken off the coast of Maine are taken as an adjunt to commercial swordfishing and would die if released because of the injury and exhaustion of the fish.

Is this true for longline fishing only? My limited understanding is that harpooning results in little, if any, bycatch while longline fishing is responsible for a lot of bycatch.

An interesting and very engaging book on tuna -

Tuna: A Love Story by Richard Ellis.


http://richardellis.info/9.html

I have read lots of books on the ocean and the fishing industry in the last several years. It is a very delicate balance between making a living and over-fishing and I don't believe it has been figured out yet. I am not one to pounce on others with my beliefs but I do feel strongly that we - as humans - need to really watch what we do or be prepared for the consequences. As a result of my readings and my own research on the fishing industry, I rarely eat fish or shellfish anymore. Maybe once a year and that is if I know it is sustainable. I do miss sushi something fierce but that's my price for my beliefs.

Thanks - SL (major lurker)

Anyone know when it is this year? Last year it was in November on the 14 & 15th, I believe. The website only shows it happening in NJ the 20th & 21st...

I end up missing this event every single year! I hope to make it one of these years

dan