Is this trend good for the hobby?

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The orginal NY Times article is here, complete with slide show of the tanks and links to related articles:

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/19/garden/19aqua.html?src=me&ref=general

Hyper-affluent Manhattanites showing off to their rich friends. Now you know where some of those sky-high Wall Street bonuses have gone.

I don't think it does much harm. With maintenanace fees of ~$1000/month I'm sure the fish are adequately cared for. As a phenomenom it's probably isolated to the ultra-rich enclave of lower Manhattan and maybe a few others. If it helps give fishkeeping an allure of "cool" and trendy" that can't be too bad.
 
I'll go a step further...

I think the fish are being well taken care of, and that's important. Are all of them being appreciated for what they are? Maybe not, but what does that really mean? I appreciate my fish in a way that's probably much different from how you do, yet we both appreciate our fish, right?

Second, trends typically start in places of money and power. Someone famous, or influential, will do something outlandish as a shock value, or simply to please their eccentric tastes. The result though, is that other people begin copying it to the best of their ability. Many times, they don't have the same resources as the first person though, so they have to either cut corners, or downsize the idea. The same is true of these very expensive and outlandish tanks. The result will be some very expensive and bizarre tanks, but it will trickle down until many people own the tanks, but can't afford the upkeep. Then, they get their hands dirty the same as we all did when we entered the hobby. Some will fail, some will be cruel, but others will become avid aquarists like we are.

I don't think the linked article changes anything overall except perhaps exposing more people to both fresh and salt water tanks and their inhabitants.
 
neither good 'nore bad. exposure of the hobby is good, some people will "get into it". Others will use and abuse the concept. though someone mentioned aquarium upkeep as a "neccisary evil" to have a nice looking tank.. yes and no. I get joy, and a sense of accomplishment knowing i did it myself. Every now and then it'de be nice to have a break from my "choirs" but i find it personally silly to have someone come and take care of my tanks for me.
 
knox_rbp;4397759; said:
While I can agree to some extent about owners not caring, there was also a guy that was very passionate about his fish. You didn't mention him though....I also think that coming to a conclusion about "rich" people and fish after hearing from just a few interviews would be like pulling 6 random people from here to represent more common fish keepers. I'm pretty sure that several would be people that are new to the hobby or perhaps just disagree with "common" practice when it comes to aquaria. It would quite possibly mean easy misrepresentation of our end.
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while I agree about those people who are very passionate about their fish that puts them in a different category as true hobbyist with with alot of money. the other people are just using them as decoration as a lamp or a sofa or some shiny thing as soon as having fish stops being chique fashionable or a symbol of status those fish might just end up on the curb.
its good though cause it exposes some people to the hobby and they end up falling in love with it an probably expanding from not only shiny fish but other fish as well
 
3dees;4397656; said:
actually, don't we all do the same thing on a smaller and cheaper scale? if money were no object I would love to have something like that and have someone come and clean my tank. I'll bet there are very few of us who do wc's, clean the glass and filters, etc because it's fun. we do it cause it needs to be done if we want great looking tanks and healthy fish.
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Actually, I personally wouldn't want someone else to clean my tank for a few reasons: tbh, I wouldn't trust anyone else to do it (other than maybe just cleaning the glass), it would make the hobby less interesting to me, and I would no longer get the same level of satisfaction that comes from raising your own fish from the time they are only 1-2" to when they are 2'+ monsters, because it would feel more like someone else did it for me. I have no problem with others doing it though, I just wouldn't want to, even if I could afford it.
 
TaylorD;4397704; said:
.. I wanna be the guy who gets payed $5000 a month to look after Mr. Joe's fish
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noyt even that much, my dad just put a 300g saltwater in his wall in between the kitchen and living room, pay about 500$ a month for maintenance and cleaning.
 
Planetnicolas;4401867; said:
while I agree about those people who are very passionate about their fish that puts them in a different category as true hobbyist with with alot of money. the other people are just using them as decoration as a lamp or a sofa or some shiny thing as soon as having fish stops being chique fashionable or a symbol of status those fish might just end up on the curb.
its good though cause it exposes some people to the hobby and they end up falling in love with it an probably expanding from not only shiny fish but other fish as well
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i also belive your wrong. I know if i my self had the money to not clean any fish tank i have or will have i would hire some one. Working 70-80 hrs a week doesent allow much time for maintenance, i clean my fish tank, but if i had the doe i would hire some 1, does not mean im not a true hobbyist, dont get me wrong tho, when i clean my tank and it looks nice its a good feeling..
 
RMorrow;4397551; said:
Check out this link. http://www.ndtv.com/article/world/6-figure-aquariums-the-new-status-symbol-45655

Do you think this trend is good for the hobby? Of course it is good for the aquarium maintenance companies and to the aquarists and hobbyists involved. Doesn't this add to the mindset that these animals are just novelty decorations and not living creatures? Curious?
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Do you think this trend is good for the hobby? Personally, I do not feel this is a good trend for the hobby.

It's an excellent example of highminded, condecending people, who lack the interest of knowing their fish on a personal level as we MFK members do.

They want to impress their other hob-nobbing social class friends and boast about it, just for the pleasure of saying, "Yeah, this is my outragous tank I was telling you about, that cost me $250,000 bucks to purchase and another $1,200 to $60,000 to hire someone to come in and maintain it for me. Don't ask me what type of fish these are that are in the tank, I know they are (saltwater/freshwater; which ever applies). I don't know much about caring for them actually, I just feed them. I also sit back and look at them when ever I'm not playing golf (cow pasture pool) at the Waverly Country Golf Course, or at the Playboy Mansion Member's Only club house trying to play tennis, hob-nobbing with my business associates and contempoaries."

These type of people use these tanks and fish as a status symbol. Nothing more. And like it was stated in an earlier post, when they tire of them, they will end up on the curb. It's sad yes, but only to true.

Yes, we boast about our aquatic creatures, tanks, and ponds, along with our accessories and ideas of fish keeping, but for a more educationally defined and legitament purpose. We do it to gain ideas of doing things at a higher level of stewardship and keeper's of aquatic life. To gain a greater knowledge of the aquatic life we keep on a personal level and to share a deep and meaningful relationship with the aquatic life which we keep.

So, is this trend good for the hobby? I'd rather see a blind dog leading the blind, than to see what type of fate awaits the fish in those tanks.
 
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