Photos of Dinnah the lobster went viral and its owner is steamed
Christopher Stracuzza was vacationing in Connecticut when he decided to plan a massive cook-out for friends at his home in Georgia.
So he bought more than a dozen lobsters to take back with him on his flight home, including a massive one that weighed in at 9 kg, about 20 lbs. In honour of the meal it would become a part of, Stracuzza named it Dinnah.
But he soon learned that a photo of his lobster taken by officials with the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) has gone viral. And he's not happy about it.
On the TSA's website it states that while a live lobster is allowed through security, a TSA official will inspect the lobster before it is allowed on the plane.
Stracuzza spoke with As It Happens guest host Laura Lynch about why he's not upset about the inspection of Dinnah, but the lengths the officials went to get the picture. Here is part of their conversation.
LL: Mr. Stracuzza, when did you first see these pictures?
CS: I was sitting at work on Monday, Monday afternoon, and I got a call and it was like, "Hey, you won't believe this, but your lobster is all over the internet," and I was kinda like, "What are you talking about?"
I realized that TSA had went through my stuff, obviously, when I got home on Sunday. And then I really realized it, and the world… realized that there was a huge lobster that went through Boston's airport on Monday, I guess. And it just spread like wildfire after that.
LL: For our listeners who may not have seen it, can you describe the photographs and what the TSA people were doing to your lobster?
CS: Well, it was one of the dozen lobsters that I had. It was obviously the largest lobster that I had. The way I had it packed, largest at the bottom, six pounds, some three pounds in between that, and put damp newspaper in between him and then seven two pound lobster above that.
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I see this guy, this TSA agent with this ugly smirk on his face, holding my lobster up all over the internet. Just holding him up by its claws. I was like, there's no friggin' way. Because they had to pull all the lobsters out to get to him.
LL: But what's wrong with that? Because the TSA is allowed to search whatever you put on a plane. So what's wrong with what they did?
We called him Dinnah. I lived in Maine for a little while… and I caught onto their accent. Like, 'river' would be 'rivah.'- Christopher Stracuzza
CS: That's right, they are. But posting photos of other people's property on the internet, that's not a privacy issue? Which I believe should be a privacy issue. They may not have said, "Hey, this is Christopher Stracuzza's lobster," but it doesn't matter. I don't go through your stuff posting pictures of it online just for giggles and for whatever reason they had.
I took all the precautionary steps to try to keep these lobsters as calm and in a good state before I took them out to put them in the pot.
LL: So what do you think they were up to then? You don't think this was legitimate on their part?
CS: They had to pull a ton of lobsters out to get to him. I probably would have been less upset, you know, because you're stressing out the lobster already. You know, taking it out of its environment, putting it into a cooler then transporting it. But I had all intentions of just making it as less stressful as possible for the lobsters.
I hear it does something to the meat, possibly, the more stress that it has.
LL: So you were interested in taking care of the lobster because you knew eventually it was going to end up on your dinner plate.
CS: Yes, you know, it's like going to a restaurant. You don't want to tick off the waitress. Yes, they have obviously the right to search a bag that goes through their conveyer belt, but they also have X-ray machines that can sit there and look right through your body.
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LL: I understand you actually named the lobster.
CS: We called him Dinnah. I lived in Maine for a little while… and I caught onto their accent. Like, "river" would be "rivah."
LL: Some people might find it a little odd to hear you become so upset with what they did with your lobster when it was you who decided to drop it into a pot of boiling water.
CS: A lot of people get upset about a lot of things. I'm mostly upset that they're taking pictures of people's private property.
LL: Well, it wasn't like an intimate photograph.
Yes, it's a government agency, but they still don't have the right to do that . . . Realistically that's what it boils down to.- Christopher Stracuzza
CS: It doesn't matter.
Yes, it's a government agency, but they still don't have the right to do that. And if they do, why do they have the right to do that? They shouldn't have the right to go through and pick out what they want to pick out to post the photos that they want to post. Realistically, that's what it boils down to. Oh, that's funny, "it boils down to."
LL: Mr. Stracuzza, when you finally sat down to dinner with Dinnah, how did she taste?
CS: Oh, it was all good. All the lobster was gone. Next year, I'm going to buy an even bigger lobster, if I can find one.
This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity. You can hear more of Christopher Stracuzza's conversation with Laura Lynch above.