As students at Palm Springs Middle School were being let out for the day, they encountered a big blue fish with a simple message: Please don't eat me. Freda Fish (get it, free-da-fish?) was asking students to "Look not Hook" and handed out a pamphlet from People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, "The Secret Lives of Fish." Unfortunately for Freda, the kids weren't buying it. "What the hell is that? Get that out of here," yelled eighth-grader Hart Martinez. "To me, they're dumb," said seventh-grader Julissa Arana. But Karin Robertson, a.k.a. Freda, claimed victory: "A lot of kids had seen 'Finding Nemo' and understand that fish are individuals." Others demurred. Eighth-grader Manny Rodriguez had a message for Freda in case she thought of coming back: "I'll eat you. You're nothing but sushi to me." No word yet on when Gunter, the talking pistol who delivers NRA safety manuals, will arrive at the school.
"Students have some other fish to fry," by Rebecca Dellagloria, Miami Herald, April 5, 2005. (registration required)