PETA

[Yellowrose]

I have an opinion on these types of groups.

They are fanatics. Plain and simple. They say the are an animal rights group but take it upon themselves to break the law at times to get their point across.

They, as far as I'm concerned can be judged as the terrorists of the animal rights world thinking that their extreme actions will result in getting what they want accomplished.

This accomplishes nothing but make the rest of us less receptive to their message and more receptive to organizations like WWF and a few others who have chosen the right path to make their message heard and recognized.

Animal testing is in some cases as stated earlier necessary but I feel after a test that they know has caused the animal discomfort and pain and could continue to do so the animal should be put down so it no longer has to suffer needlessly. We do this to our pets when they are suffering it just the humane thing to do.

All living things have a need for survival and all living things have an instinct to kill to survive. But all living things have different ways of accomplishing this. Some more painful and some very quick so there is no suffering at all. It's natural instinct to survive.

As humans we have governments who in some countries are there to watch over these things and regulate how animals for human needs are dealt with. To make things more humane for the animals we have to make sure as voters that our governments police these things the way they should be and not let inhumane practices to continue just for our benefit. This is a huge task and not always done to our liking and there are those and always will be those times when these things slip through and go undiscovered.

As a society and as members of that society it is our responsibility to make sure they are aware of these things but there is a right way and wrong way to go about it as with most things in life. PETA is just the wrong way to do it.

[sheltiefan]

Yes, PETA is extremely radical and the what I really hate about them is that as a result of their destructive protests etc they are giving people who believe in animal rights as a group a bad name. Many people now will tie extremist organizations like PETA to all vegetarians, vegans etc and that's simply not fair.

They don't earn respect through what they do either instead they tend to spawn in people a generalization that anyone who thinks that you shouldn't eat meat, or that are against animal testing etc are going to go out and take part in violent protests, or at least that seems to be my experience with the whole thing.

And if they cause people to think of all animal rights groups as being radical then really they are doing more harm than good, if they used peaceful means of getting their point across then I really think they'd be able to make a bigger difference.

That's just my two cents worth.

[Zoo Titan]

Theirs not much more to be said I think, we've covered it. PETA is bad and if you want animal cruelty prevention than go with the SPCA or WWF. What else can we say?

[happyholly]

[Zoo Titan]

That's just not right! You might consider donating to the SPCA (Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals). I don't know if they have that in the UK but its worth a shot, they only request $15.00 American Dollars here, which through the use of this nifty little currency calculator I found on the internet equates to about 7.6 British Pounds.

[ShenTirag]

[Hyena Girl]

[Isurus]

Well culling elephants sometimes has to be done. And a ocasionly bull shot by a tourist well help protect the other by paying the rangers wages. PETA are idiots, if we give them what they want thay will be after rights for bacteria.

[Crookshankz227]

You do not need to cull elephants. You can sterilize the females. Culling elephants causes the young generation to grow up as deeply disturbed animals, and they also lose much communal knowledge that has been handed down from generation to generation. The will grow up to be aggressive and dangerous animals, because they will associate human beings with carnage. Hunting for sport is just BAD. End of story. You are killing for fun.

Are you dismissing animal rights just because of one silly organisation? PETA isn't always composed of fools - they made our zoo move the tigers from pitiful indoor cages to outdoor enclosures. Animal rights aren't a joke.

Vegetarianism is also more ecologically manageable. Concerned about dolphin populations? Then stop eating their food!!

[mikaboshi]

And a ocasionly bull shot by a tourist well help protect the other by paying the rangers wages.

This is like the old economic story:

A vandal breaks a baker's window. The crowd is accepting of this destruction and even encourages it because they know that the baker must replace the window, meaning new work for the window-maker. They conclude that this unfortunate destruction has actually created work and thus improved the economy.

What the crowd does not see is the 'potential' the baker had to buy a suit (or something else) with the money he had to use for the replacement window. That would have been work for the tailor (or someone else). Either way, the baker creates work with his money. But, if his window wasn't broken, he could have had a window and a suit. Now he only has a window. The end result is loss.

Though that might not sound like it makes a lot of sense, neither does saying "poaching an elephant helps rangers get paid". Sure, if people didn't illegally kill endangered animals we wouldn't have much need for them. But then that ranger could be doing a job as doing something that IS necessary like helping animal populations in other ways. If people didn't poach, we wouldn't have as many endangered animals, and then people could have jobs doing better things that help more animals and people.

[Isurus]

Most animals right groups are just idiots they what total animal libration which is stupid. Most animals in zoos if they had a choice would pick a zoo. In a zoo you get food and mates deliverd. You never have to worry about predetors or illness. There is a penguin encloseure at dudley zoo which looks quite bad but is one of the best in the europe for breeding them.

[Crookshankz227]

I would like you to come to the zoos in India - animals in the zoo regularly die because of neglect. Till three years ago, the tigers and lions lived in concrete cages, built when the zoo was built, in the 1800s. The elephants didn't even have an enclosure - they were chained under a shed. They were never let out, or allowed to walk further than their chains would allow them. Which animal would like to live in this house of horrors?

A zoo is very useful. The fact that most animal rights groups are for total animal liberation isn't true, it's just propaganda against all animal rights - because one one extremist organisation. You must look beyond PETA.

PETA is NOT = animal rights.

[Isurus]

Its jsut such a waste of money. Im sure the zoo your talking about could easily be renovated or the animals releses to the wild with the money peta rake in.

[Alpha Dilophosaur]

Well, here in California, Zoos are Extremely well made. Not only do they have large enclosures, but they also have excellent enrichment, involved Zoo keepers, and highly trained staff. Out of the best of these would have to be the San Diego Wild Animal Park. It has a massive section of land, several acres wide and long, specifically for the animals of Africa. This includes giraffes, Zebras, rhinos, and many other creatures. The only way to see this section of the zoo is through a tram that runs along the side of the exhibit. The public is not allowed to walk anywhere near it. If the PETA says that this is a terrible thing to do, they are just plain wrong.

[Crookshankz227]

Its jsut such a waste of money. Im sure the zoo your talking about could easily be renovated or the animals releses to the wild with the money peta rake in.

You cannot release most captive animals into the wild - in any case, there isn't much of a wild left! Animal rights organisations have bettered the zoo, however. This is the zoo I am talking about: http://www.petaindia.com/zoo/westBengal-aliporeZoologicalGardens.asp PETA is not exaggerating, I have been to the zoo MANY times and I assure you it is all very true.

[Alpha Dilophosaur]

Well, the San diego Zoo and Los Angeles Zoo released several California condors to the wild, and actually saved it from extinction. There is absolutely no argument there. The PETA can't say that all zoos are bad...

[Crookshankz227]

The zoo had bred and trained the animals specifically for release. You can't just throw them out of their enclosures and into the wild!

[Isurus]

Thats why i said it would take money to train them to be wild. But PETA does think San diego Zoo is bad i heard they dumped a load of elephant poo on there entrence.

[Alpha Dilophosaur]

I didnt here anything about that... And PETA thinks all Zoos are bad. even if they are as great as a conservation cause as the San Diego Wild animal park or zoo. If the PETA had there way, California condors would not exist anymore.

[Isurus]

Nore would any captive animal. They would all die. To me that sounds insesative and lazy. Insted of improveing amimals live they will just make sure there are no more.

[Crookshankz227]

Well, considering the state of animals in factory farms, that wouldn't be a very bad thing now, would it? (not referring to pets) I think it's insensitive to keep the animals in factory farms!

[adam1990]

I heard this group was mean to animals, or something like that.

[mikaboshi]

PETA has some valid points, especially like Crooky said about the animal farm factories. I don't eat meat that doesn't have a happy life prior to me ingesting it. Now, PETA MAY not have the best way of handling things. Heck, they do 98% all wrong things. BUT the thing is, is they did one very real thing right - they got you talking about them, and about animal rights. And like I said, I don't eat factory animals, well, PETA is against them too. I don't mind Zoos while PETA is against them, but that's another thing that PETA let's you do: it makes you take a stand on an issue that if they weren't so radical you may never consider. Who has never heard of PETA? Hardly anyone, and it gets you talking about something that ordinarily you might never even think about. That is one reason they are so radical - because if they did it the nice casual way, no one would think about, talk about, do anything about animal rights. I had one friend say "What's the Sierra Club?" but then I mentioned PETA and they say "You know, I hate those guys but they bring up some excellent points about animal rights." DING DING. PETA is now officially effective in their goal, which may be different than it looks like - sure they would love complete eradication of zoos and pets, etc, but really what's more important is to get people and informed and maybe just MAYBE convert a few people to do something about animal rights. One person can't do much in a war but several people make up an army.

[Isurus]

Well peta values animals more than humans, which is plain wrong. If one rat were to die to get a cure for AIDs they would be against it.

[Alpha Dilophosaur]

Mika: they may get people talking about animal rights, but they may also give people the wrong impression that all animal activists are radicals and stereotypical "eat nothing that casts a shadow" people. The way they act is doing more against the animal rights cause then it is helping them.