As far as we know, Linda Greenlaw is the only American woman to captain her own swordfishing boat. In the noted book The Perfect Storm, author Sebastian Junger describes her as “one of the best captains, period, on the entire East Coast.”
So when we learned that Greenlaw had written a memoir about her 19 years in the business, we were hoping for a dose of reality to contrast with the unscientific views of our oceans promoted by environmental activist groups. She did not disappoint. The following appears on page 144 of her book, The Hungry Ocean:
“I have always been happy to comply with regulations set forth by our country’s finest scientists and bureaucrats, and to observe boundaries, believing that laws will insure the future of swordfish and swordfishing. What annoys me are the actions taken by groups such as the head chefs of a number of fine restaurants who boycotted swordfish, taking it off their menus in their Give Swordfish a Break campaign. Give me a break! I wonder how these chefs keep themselves abreast of the state of the fishery and how they can be so conceited to presume they might know better than the fishermen and scientists who have been working together for years to keep the stocks healthy. In my opinion, little Chef Fancy Pants should work at perfecting his creme brulee and leave fisheries management to those who know more about swordfish than how best to prepare it.”
The same logic, we might add, ought to apply to the more recent boycott campaigns against Chilean sea bass and caviar from beluga sturgeon.
