cleverlymadeup said:
as was said watch the peta episode of bullshit
I did, and it was a good laugh. PETA certainly appears to be more "extreme fringe" than I previously thought; I knew there was some crossover with the ALF and other individuals and groups that condone violence in the name of animal rights, but I had no idea it was so pervasive. And learning that PETA endorses euthanizing animals rather than having them in captivity, regardless of the nature of that captivity, was eye-opening.
But my original statement still stands: Generally speaking, I do support a lot of what PETA is trying to accomplish. Not that "total liberation for all animals" bullshit (to borrow a term) but the decent, humane treatment of animals, including food animals. Some animals - chickens, cows, pigs - are bred for food, that's just the way it goes, but I think we could do a better job of handling them than we do now. Just because an animal is being raised as food doesn't mean it needs to suffer a miserable life and horrible death.
Do I support PETA's methods? Obviously not. But as far as the desire for a greater overall respect for animals of all stripes goes, I can go with that.
(Perhaps I do go to the extreme in some ways. Unlike Penn and Teller, I would happily kill every street junkie with AIDS in the world, with my bare hands, if it meant saving the bonobos or mountain gorillas. Well, maybe not all of them, but at least a hundred or so.)
I find Virgil's point interesting too, and accurate. For a cheap attention-whoring Flash game, Mama Kills Animals is really quite well done. There's been some real thought and effort put into it, especially compared to other, similar efforts by agencies you'd think could do better. Check out some of the UN's minigame about feeding refugees as an example; it doesn't have anywhere near the depth or production quality of MKA. (Going to have to Google it for yourself, though.) PETA obviously understands the value of a quality PR campaign.
