Spider Suffragettes and Lobster Labor Leaders

The Daily Mail reports:

The Department of the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs is investigating whether invertebrates—the family of animals that includes insects, spiders and molluscs—should get the same protection under the law enjoyed by dogs, cats and horses if they are kept in captivity.

The current state of the law is manifestly unjust–I triple-dog-dare you to read the next sentence with a straight face:

"While it is illegal to mistreat a goldfish, there is nothing to stop people mistreating pet tarantulas or lobsters kept in restaurant aquariums."

But don't worry, some things with eight arms will still be beyond the long arm of the law:

While [restaurant owners] would still be able to boil the crustaceans alive to kill them, they would have to make sure they are kept in clean, warm uncrowded tanks up to that point.

Similarly, while little boys will not be punished for pulling the legs off a back-garden spider, people with pet tarantulas will have to ensure they are kept warm and well-fed.

More on animal rights here.

Update: The original image expired, so I replaced it with something that demonstrates the appropriate human love for our invertebrate friends.