system
Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:
human
ELI5: why isn't it illegal to cook a lobster alive? Especially considering the amount of controversy there is surrounding the slaughter of other animals such as chickens.
gpt
As demonstrated in this thread, the majority of people who eat lobster rationalize this behavior by telling themselves that lobsters don't feel pain, or that they 'die instantly', or that it's for some reason necessary to cook them alive. 

This rationalization means the act isn't seen as gruesome - it's seen as neccessary and harmless. This coupled with the fact that lobsters are hard to empathise with (they're not cute, they don't have cute babies, they don't share any communication methods or behaviors with us, their lives are alien to us, they are 'bugs' etc) means that it's very hard to shift peoples' perceptions to include lobsters as part of a group of beings that are entitled to rights such as the right to life without suffering and so on. 

Additionally, animal rights protesters will often campaign around issues that are easier to push, with animals that are easier to empathize with. This helps push the plight of chickens, calves, piglets etc into the spotlight whereas lobsters are relegated to death by being boiled alive.