Rats with wings is how many of us perceive pigeons. However, I agree with Alexis Madrigal that a pigeon can serve a greater utility on our dinner plates, and the birds are more accurately described as “waste-scavenging, protein-generating biomachine[s].” Pigeon is some good eating and I like the reasoning that:

Really, all pigeons need is a re-branding. Just as the spurned Patagonian toothfish became the majestic Chilean sea bass and the silly Chinese gooseberry became the beloved kiwifruit, pigeons can merely reclaim their previous sufficiently arugula-sounding name: squab.

The term squab now refers to the meat of the baby pigeon, but it can also mean pigeons in general, so we can simply extend the brand back to its historical proportions. In fact, some companies like Bokhari Squab Farms are already doing good business selling the stuff: A dozen of Bokhari’s live squab goes for $60.

Imagine this:

can turn into this:

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