Better Dead Than Fed by fowlnews on Blogster

.....Better dead than fed........

Shouldn't That Read...... Better Dead Than Fed, Owned, Or Used.

.....where does the line between activism, hypocrisy and pure stupidity blur?.......

Could We Say........ At The Point Of Being An Animal Rights Criminal?

PETA, not the cuddly company you'd think
Dale Wilsey

When you think of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), you usually think of an organization dedicated to animal rights and liberation, not the destruction of animals that were promised good homes. You wouldn't think of an organization that supports arsonists or curbing research and organizations dedicated to finding a cure for AIDS or cancer "ethical."

No one wants to see animals harmed or killed, but where does the line between activism, hypocrisy and pure stupidity blur?

According to an article entitled "Were local animal rescue efforts in vain?" published in The Warren Record, on June 15, 2005, two members of PETA, Adria Joy Hinkle, and Andrew Cook, were arrested while dumping the dead carcasses of 18 animals into a supermarket dumpster. They were charged with 31 felony counts of animal cruelty each. The animals - which were euthanized in the back of a PETA van - had been obtained from a North Carolina animal shelter, where workers told authorities that the two arrested promised they would be given to good homes. Thirteen more carcasses were found in the back of the van.

Surely this must be an isolated incident involving two rogue members of PETA. Unfortunately, this is not the case. According to a June 2005 San Francisco Chronicle article entitled "Better dead than fed, PETA says", documents filed by PETA in the state of Virginia record that over 10,000 animals between 1998 and 2003 have been euthanized by the organization. In 2003 alone, PETA euthanized over 85 percent of the animals which it took in, while only about 14 percent were given to adoptive homes. The Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) in Norfolk, Va., found homes for 73 percent of its animals and the Virginia Beach SPCA adopted out 66 percent.

One would believe that an organization which has an annual budget of over $20 million would be able to find homes for these animals or at least board them until they could find homes. This is, after all, the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals we are talking about. Instead, PETA, according to a March 2006 article entitled "PETA takes its campaigns corporate," published in The Virginia-Pilot, uses their millions to finance their advertisements, and to buy stocks in such companies as McDonald's, Burger King, Wendy's, Denny's and Tyson Foods.

According to testimony given by James F. Jarboe, Domestic Terrorism Section Chief for the Counterterrorism Division of the FBI, before the House Resources Committee in February of 2002, they have also supported terrorist groups such as the Earth Liberation Front and the Animal Liberation Front. According to the FBI, These groups have committed over 600 criminal acts accounting for more than $43 million in damages. It's anyone's guess as to how much they spend on euthanizing all of the animals, which they say they protect.

According to their Web site, PETA believes that human suffering is just as much of a problem as non-human suffering, since we are all technically animals. They even state this within their FAQ on PETA.org: "There are very serious problems in the world that deserve our attention, and cruelty to animals is one of them. We should try to alleviate suffering wherever we can. Helping animals is not any more or less important than helping human beings-they are both important. Animal suffering and human suffering are interconnected." Why then, was PETA's president and co-founder, Ingrid Newkirk, quoted saying, "...even if animal research resulted in a cure for AIDS, we would be against it."?

Whether you like it or not, animal research has not only helped human beings in the quest for cures of genetic problems, it has also helped save some of our most beloved, four-legged family members in their time of need. To say that suffering throughout the entire animal kingdom is equal to human suffering, and then attack such organizations as the March of Dimes, the Pediatric AIDS Foundation and the American Cancer Society because of their research to end human afflictions, is complete hypocrisy.

Calling an organization that condones terrorist acts, the euthanization of homeless animals over adoption and in advertisements has promoted the drinking of beer over milk as "drinking smart" to college-aged students ethical is beyond unbelievable. If you truly feel for animal rights and liberation, I suggest you do what you can to raise awareness about such things as vivisection, factory farms, circus abuse and racing greyhound abuse, as well as other such issues. Feeding a hypocritical organization, like PETA, does nothing but help them raise more money to push their twisted agenda.

Dale Wilsey is a seniorEnglish/Professional Writing major.

Source: http://www.keystoneonline.com/story.asp?Art_id=1829

Bravo Dale Wilsey

2 comments on Better Dead Than Fed

roosterlady said 1 years ago
As long as the tax exempt status is available for these nut job organizations who say they can "speak" for the animals, the money will keep rolling in for them to push, push and push again. [THUMBDOWN]
fowlnews said 1 years ago
That is so true on the tax exempt status, why should organizations that work to enslave us granted tax free status. Maybe it's time for a petition again.