this post was submitted on 15 Aug 2023
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[–] [email protected] 97 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (15 children)

Just in case the textbook anti-PETA rhetoric comes into the thread...

This is why people hate PETA.

Yes, PETA does some crazy shit, but as with many things there are two sides to the story which is difficult to see when you get bombarded by anti-PETA stuff as is common on e.g. Reddit.

Anti-PETA efforts by the meat industry:

Sites like www.petakillsanimals.com are run by the Center for Organizational Research and Education, which is a lobbying platform for the fast food, meat, alcohol and tobacco industries. They also target the humane society, even John Oliver did a piece on them and their founder Richard Berman. That's just one outlet for their misinformation-campains, they are also cited in lots of blogs and "news articles" as well, so it's not always very obvious.

They are the driving power behind all the misinformation and PETA-hate that is spread around. PETA is actually doing a lot for animal rights, that's why they are such a big target for smear campaigns:

PETA and their kill-shelters:

PETA kills animals because unfortunately there are no better places for them. Blame the puppy mills and irresponsible short term owners that give up their pets a few days or weeks after getting them because they had no idea what they got themselves into. Those people create more pets than there are places for them, so instead of having them become strays and further add to the problem, PETA put down those they can't adopt out. Because PETA accepts all animals, even those that other shelters turn away in order to not sully their adoption numbers, PETA shelters end up with many more "hopeless" animals. See more here.

The case of the mistaken dog (and how PETA doesn't steal and murder pets):

A farmer asked PETA to euthanise a pack of stray dogs that were aggressive and violent towards the farmer's cows. Upon arrival, PETA found the pack of stray dogs, took them to the shelter and put them down, as a free service. Unfortunately it turned out, that one of the presumed stray dogs was a pet-chihuaha called Maya, that was not sitting on the porch, as often claimed, but running freely with the stray pack, without leash or collar or supervision. PETA fucked up, because they didn't wait the 5 day grace period to give the owners time to look for and collect their pet. That's why they had to pay a fine and apologized for it. http://www.whypetaeuthanizes.com/maya.html

The monkey selfie:

The monkey took the picture himself btw, the photographer just left the camera lying around. I am not saying the monkey should be copyright holder and it's an open-shut case, but it does raise the question about the photographer having ownership over something that was voluntarily and independently created by an animal. What if a painter would leave his brushes lying around and an animal would create a painting? The artist actually sees it the same way and settled for a compromise with PETA followed by a joint statement. This was a landmark case in copyright law.

PETA equating milk to racism:

White supremacists actually use milk to demonstrate their superiority over "inferior" (their words, obviously) lactose intolerant ethnicities. That's the reason behind their campaign on the issue.

Final thoughts (I promise):

PETA does a good job at raising issues and are one of the most successfull organisations to fight for animal rights. The granting of rights is the only real way to protect animals from unneccessary cruelty. Animal welfare will always be arbitrary, both in what species are worthy of protection, and the extent of protection they are worthy of. You cannot consider yourself an animal lover without recognizing the importance of that.

Sometimes PETA (intentionally?) overshoot, that happens when you try to move the border of current perceptions (i.e. animals are objects to be used for food, clothes, entertainment). I am not here to defend their tone or (lack of) tact, and there are a number of (sometimes downright stupid) PETA-campaigns I disagree with. I'm not trying to convice you to become their friend, but at least judge them for what they are doing, not for what they are said to do.

Most of the criticism of PETA you read on Reddit comes straight from the mouths of the Center for Organizational Research and Education (CORE), formerly known as the Center for Consumer Freedom (CCF). It's basically a corporate propaganda organization with donors like Tyson Foods, Wendy's, and Coca-Cola. They also run campaigns claiming obesity isn't that major of a problem and that you can eat 10 times as much mercury from fish as experts recommend. The vast majority of the animals PETA euthanizes are suffering and are brought to PETA's shelter by their owners specifically to be put out of their misery, but the CCF distorts that into "PETA is stealing people's pets off the streets" and Reddit gobbles it up.

The media also knows that PETA is an easy target. Years ago I read an article in one of the British tabloids (the Sun or the Mirror) with a headline something like, "PETA blasts child's bunny wedding!" But if you actually read the article, what happened is a kid dressed up some bunnies in wedding outfits, the "journalist" reached out to PETA and asked them to comment, and PETA said something like, "we don't support dressing rabbits in costumes because it may be stressful for them." And that was the end of the story, but that wouldn't get clicks so they distorted the headline to make it sound like PETA was protesting or attacking the kid on their own accord.

For the record, I think there are perfectly legitimate criticisms of PETA, like the sexist imagery they use in some of their ad campaigns and their welfarist (as opposed to abolitionist) approach to advocacy. It just gets to me that so many redditors claim to be rational and free-thinking but then read literal corporate propaganda about PETA and swallow it whole without a second thought.

Info continued here if anyone is interested.. https://sh.itjust.works/comment/2252698

Then.. https://sh.itjust.works/comment/2252784

Then.. https://sh.itjust.works/comment/2252805

[–] jefff 24 points 1 year ago

Thank you for this post; there's a lot of this that I didn't know, and I've always had a vague anti-PETA sentiment without really knowing why.

[–] [email protected] 18 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (3 children)

What about the other side of the coin. People who run shelters and rescues who have their own (from experience) criticisms about PETA? I remember a friend of mine who ran a rescue and had to arrange night transportation for a tentatively homed animal because the PETA shelter was going to euthanize in the morning. She was fucking pissed at them. Oh, and they wouldn't stay open late for her to pick the dog up, and they wouldn't let her pick the dog up first thing in the morning when they opened.

In fact, I've had the opportunity to know a lot of people involved in volunteering/running shelters, and they are as disgusted at PETA as apparently the meat industry is. Accusations of laziness, disinterest in the well-being of individual animals, etc. I remember one of the people dealing with them tell me "I think they'd euthenize a cow to prevent me from buying a bottle of its milk".

Also, to point to the Chihuahua story (since I care about this one). Nobody who claims to care about animal welfare should be euthanizing animals on pickup because they were asked to by someone that isn't their owner. My fucking VET won't even euthanize a healthy dog, and will insist on rehoming it if the owner wants to get rid of it. As someone who has helped pick up stray animals to transport to a shelter, the disposition of the person requesting the pickup is always ignored. No, we will not put down that cat who had kittens in your wall. But we will take it away.

EDIT: Also, what about the AKC? People forget that it's not just the meat industry, but animal rescue and animal rights groups, that criticize PETA.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago (11 children)

The thing people misunderstand is PETA isn't a monolith, there are always going to be outliers that the media can hold up as an example of why people shouldn't support them.

Sometimes PETA (intentionally?) overshoot, that happens when you try to move the border of current perceptions (i.e. animals are objects to be used for food, clothes, entertainment). I am not here to defend their tone or (lack of) tact, and there are a number of (sometimes downright stupid) PETA-campaigns I disagree with. I'm not trying to convice you to become their friend, but at least judge them for what they are doing, not for what they are said to do.

it might be against Reddit blind circle jerks but PETA has done heck a lot to fight against animal cruelty and they are extremely effective at passing legislations Here are just few examples.

1980’s

PETA’s first undercover investigation resulted in an end to crippling experiments on monkeys, the first-ever police raid on an animal-testing laboratory, the first animal experimentation case ever heard by the U.S. Supreme Court, and the first-ever prosecution and conviction of an animal experimenter on cruelty-to-animals charges. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silver_Spring_monkeys

A PETA undercover investigation results in the first conviction of an experimenter for animal abuse and the first withdrawal of federal research funds because of cruelty to animals.

PETA exposed and shut down the U.S. Army’s plan to shoot dogs at an indoor firing range, leading the military to ban the use of dogs, cats, and primates in wound experiments and training.

1983

PETA gets a U.S. Department of Defense underground “wound lab” shut down and achieves a permanent ban on shooting dogs and cats in military wound laboratories.

1984

PETA closes down a Texas slaughterhouse operation in which 30,000 horses were trucked in and left to starve in frozen fields without shelter.

1985

After PETA publicizes the gross mistreatment of animals at City of Hope in California, the government suspends more than $1 million of the laboratory’s federal funding.

1986

As a result of PETA’s campaign, the SEMA research laboratory in Maryland stops confining chimpanzees to isolation chambers.

1987

PETA stops a plan by Cedars-Sinai, California’s largest hospital, to ship stray dogs from Mexico to California for experiments.

1988

For the first time, PETA conducts a year-long undercover investigation at Biosearch, a cosmetics and household product testing laboratory, uncovering more than 100 violations of federal and state anti-cruelty laws.

1988

PETA President Ingrid Newkirk addresses some of the 35,000 people attending PETA’s Animal Rights Music Festival at the Washington Monument on June 11, 1988. It’s a breakthrough event that puts PETA on the pop-culture radar screen, with extensive coverage on MTV, thanks to headliners The B-52s, Natalie Merchant, and Howard Jones.

1989

PETA persuades Avon, Benetton, Mary Kay, Amway, Kenner, Mattel, and Hasbro to stop testing on animals. Note: Many of these companies have started testing on animals again in order to sell their products in China.

1990

After PETA exposes the backstage beating of orangutans by Las Vegas entertainer Bobby Berosini, his wildlife permit is suspended and his show closes.

1990

PETA’s first sensational vegetarian commercial is “Meat Stinks” with Grammy winner k.d. lang in July 1990. The spot gets her banned on country radio networks but draws such massive coverage that her album goes gold! Her gold record still adorns the walls of the Sam Simon Center, PETA’s Virginia headquarters.

1991

PETA’s “Silver Spring monkeys” case marks the first animal experimentation case ever heard by the U.S. Supreme Court.The court gives a unanimous, positive ruling

1992

PETA’s undercover investigation into foie gras production prompts the first-ever police raid on a factory farm. PETA convinces many restaurants to stop selling the vile product.

1992

PETA’s “Rather Go Naked Than Wear Fur” campaign is launched on the streets of Tokyo outside a Japanese fur expo on February 18, 1992. Led by PETA staff member Dan Mathews and Julia Sloane, the protest makes headlines around the world and leads to PETA’s iconic naked celebrity ad series.

1993

All car-crash tests on animals stop worldwide following PETA’s hard-hitting campaign against General Motors’ use of live pigs and ferrets in crash tests.

https://www.peta.org/blog/25-year-anniversary-peta-ends-car-crash-tests-on-animals/

1994

A California furrier is charged with cruelty to animals after a PETA investigator films him electrocuting chinchillas by clipping wires to the animals’ genitals. In another undercover exposé, PETA catches a fur rancher on videotape causing minks to die in agony by injecting them with a weedkiller. Both fur farms agree to stop these cruel killing methods.

1994

Less than a month after PETA supporters occupy Calvin Klein‘s office in New York—an action that leads to a meeting between the designer and a PETA representative—Klein announces that he will no longer design with fur, the first major fashion designer to do so.

1995

PETA persuades Mobil, Texaco, Pennzoil, Shell, and other oil companies to cover their exhaust stacks after showing how millions of birds and bats have become trapped in them and been burned to death.

1995

PETA’s efforts lead to the first-ever cruelty charges filed against a factory farmer for cruelty to chickens for allowing tens of thousands of chickens to starve to death. The president of the company ultimately pleads guilty.

1996

Following PETA’s campaign, NASA pulls out of Bion—a joint U.S., French, and Russian experiment in which monkeys wearing straitjackets were to have electrodes implanted in their bodies and be launched into space.

1996

PETA convinces Gillette to observe a moratorium on animal testing after a colorful years-long campaign, including the presentation of shareholder resolutions at Gillette’s annual meetings and support from compassionate celebrities Paul McCartney, Lily Tomlin, Hugh Grant, and Elizabeth Hurley.

1997

A PETA investigation that documented the anal electrocution of foxes leads to the first-ever guilty plea by a fur rancher to cruelty-to-animals charges.

1998

PETA succeeds in getting Taiwan to pass its first-ever law against cruelty to animals after the group rescues countless dogs from being beaten, starved, electrocuted, and drowned in Taiwan’s pounds.

1999

Undercover investigations into pig-breeding factory farms in North Carolina and Oklahoma reveal horrific conditions and daily abuse of pigs, including the fact that one pig was skinned alive, leading to the first-ever felony indictments of farm workers.

1999

PETA conducts an undercover investigation into the Nielsen Farmspuppy mill in Kansas, which reveals extremely small enclosures and rampant sickness, abuse, and death. Our investigation leads to the closure of the facility and a $20,000 fine from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). The Nielsens are also “permanently disqualified from being licensed” by the USDA.

1999

PETA’s grassroots campaign, Congressional testimony, and scientific documentation drivethe White House and the EPA to spare 800,000 animals from chemical toxicity testing in the high production volume chemical-testing program.

As many as 4.5 million animals were sparedfrom chemical tests in a massive European Union testing program after PETA provided documentation of duplicative testing. This may be the largest victory for animals that has ever occurred.

https://www.peta.org/blog/victory-45-million-animals-spared-toxicity-tests/

[–] [email protected] 8 points 1 year ago

None of this is good retort to the valid criticisms, and it is disingenuous to pretend it's all "big meat" doing it.

Literally everyone I know involved deeply enough in animal rights despises PETA the same way every Muslim I know hates Al Quaida. They hate them for what they stand for, and even more hate them for the reputation they give.

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[–] [email protected] 13 points 1 year ago (5 children)

What about the issues with Steve Irwin? There is also the "Got Autism?" campaign which was rather offensive?

I am sure what you are saying is true, that's why I want to know about these incidents as well to see if they are also been misrepresented.

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[–] [email protected] 9 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (3 children)

PETA kinda sucks sometimes but their opposition are almost always bad faith neo-nazis or sheep reactionaries ignorantly parroting all their talking points because they saw the first half of a headline once and used that knee-jerk reaction as evidence of their expertise.

[–] [email protected] 9 points 1 year ago (2 children)

PETA kinda sucks sometimes but their opposition are almost always bad faith neo-nazis or sheep reactionaries

Now that's a reasonable take lmao

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago

And on the Internet of all places, I am shocked.

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[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 year ago (4 children)

I wouldn't say their opposition is always bad faith neo-nazis, but the anti-vegan/anti-PETA movement definitely has a few bad seeds they should be burning out. There is no reason to combine ethical meat-eating with neoconservativism. It's bloody stupid.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 year ago (3 children)

The fact that they aren't should tell you everything that you need to know.

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[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 year ago (2 children)

PETA kills animals because unfortunately there are no better places for them.

Man that's rrrrough

[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 year ago (2 children)

It's also as often false as it is true. There is still such a massive demand for rescue dogs that people will pay a premium for them. There are foster households that are far from overfull. There are high-risk dog ranches that have room for more aggressive dogs, even human aggressive dogs.

Yes, there are times where you just cannot logicially find a match for a rescue. But there are also times where they put down a pet just miles away from someone who would foster or adopt them.

Unwanted animal euthanization rate in the US is arguably at an all-time low. And yet, PETA's euthanization rate is still high, high enough that groups like the AKC are openly criticizing them for it.

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[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 year ago

That's why it's important to reuse the scotch fillet, backstrap, topside roast and brisket.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago

Here is an alternative Piped link(s): https://piped.video/watch?v=Fmh4RdIwswE

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[–] [email protected] 27 points 1 year ago (2 children)

people don't even try when faking these lol

At least match the font if you're not gonna match the quality

[–] [email protected] 8 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Does it really matter? REALLY?

[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 year ago

Professionals have standards.

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[–] [email protected] 15 points 1 year ago (4 children)

PETA would never! They'd rather kill a dog.

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[–] Spudwart 13 points 1 year ago (3 children)
[–] SpaceNoodle 4 points 1 year ago
[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 year ago

Would be if it were real

[–] rafa 2 points 1 year ago

Very rare W in my opinion as well

[–] [email protected] 9 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Technically they didn’t name the cow… Soooo…

[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 year ago

They did tho

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago

That little kid in the corner is like this:

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago (1 children)

If you ignore PETA, there is nothing they can do. Weak dog barks the loudest.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 year ago

They could lobby

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