The Sad World of PETA



There was a time when I wasn’t quite so alarmed by the organization known as People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals. Any of us who has ever owned a pet knows that animals have the ability to love, to hurt, to feel; what sensible human being can possibly oppose a group of people dedicated to assuring the protection and fair treatment of these helpless creatures? Well, such groups do exist, but unfortunately PETA is not one of them.

I can point to many examples illustrating the ruthlessness, hypocrisy and overall threat of PETA, but I think I’ll stick with the most recent example. Two PETA workers, Adria Joy Hinkle and Andrew Benjamin Cook, are on trial for thirty-one felony charges of animal cruelty and nine misdemeanors relating to trespassing and the illegal disposal of dead animals (1). I repeat: These are PETA workers, who were allegedly on a job to deliver the animals to PETA’s Norfolk Virginia headquarters for (and this is where it really gets good) euthanization (2).

So in other words, the two ethical animals lovers were sent by their ethical animal loving organization to collect innocent animals for slaughter, when they decided to just say “Screw it” and inject the furry little bastards themselves, before giving them a proper ethical burial in a nearby dumpster. Well, at least they didn’t test any cosmetics on the puppies they massacred.

Now let me point out that I am in no way against the ethical euthanization of animals. In my short, twenty-two-year life, I have had to watch a number of my beloved pets be “put to sleep,” as the euphemism goes, one as recently as a few months ago. I’m not appalled that PETA practices euthanization; what appalls me is the fact that they euthanize animals (two thirds of the animals they rescue, by some estimates; as many as 81% by others), while condemning, threatening and intimidating people who do the same thing. Remember, it was PETA’s president and Supreme Overlord Ingrid Newkirk who called numerous times for (in her own words) “total animal liberation” (3). Now I ask you, does it constitute ‘total liberation’ when human beings take it upon themselves to decide the fates of countless animals? Newkirk also said that “sometimes the only kind option for some animals is to put them to sleep forever,” pointing out that “a dog living in a cage walking in circles for the rest of its life in a dog prison is [not] a swell thing” (4). So much for total animal liberation.

I agree with Newkirk that sometimes death is the only ethical option. Why then is her humble organization so vitriolic when dealing with animal shelters that perform lethal injections? As Newkirk’s own organization has demonstrated, nobody has the resources to give every animal the life of the Hilton sisters. Not even PETA. The great irony is that now it is PETA that is being charged with animal cruelty. Hinkle and Cook are set to be tried next months for the numerous charges against them, but Newkirk is confident of their innocence, saying (and I love this part), “PETA has never made a secret of the fact that most of the animals picked up in North Carolina are euthanized” (5). Wow. Perhaps the 81% estimate is too conservative.

We should all be concerned about the treatment of animals. As magician Penn Jillette pointed out on an episode of his Showtime program, that is why we have the Federal Animal Welfare Act (apparently the Department of Agriculture isn’t completely useless) (6). But PETA is an organization that opposes the use of animals for meat, fur, medical testing, ritualistic sex rites and even private ownership (by the way, the fourth one was a joke; don’t freak out on me), in spite of the fact that these champions of animal liberation are huge purveyors of animal cruelty, as the current trial demonstrates. Does anyone else see the irony here? If the feds are this tough on fanatical PETA members who kill and dump innocent animals, then the lobbyists at PETA must be doing their job. Way to go, guys! You’ve been so effective in pushing for tough animal cruelty legislation and drawing attention to the issue, you now have members of your own team on trial for heinous felonies! Call it a mixed blessing.

But here is the bottom line. If you wear fur, eat at Mickey D’s or take penicillin, you are an enemy to the radical animal rights movement, i.e. PETA. PETA uses intimidation and harassment against people whom they see as enemies to their cause (for instance, Star Jones), they fund animal liberation terrorists like Rodney Coronado, and yet now we see them involved in the very activities they condemn. The animals killed by Hinkle and Cook, according to police, were supposed to have been given homes, and the two perpetrators had apparently made such a promise to veterinarians and animal control officers (7). So in other words...they lied. They promised to find home for the animals and instead opted to destroy them without even trying. But you won’t hear any objections from the Supreme Overlord. While Miss Newkirk was upset to learn of the dumping, she has assured the media that the animals were killed humanely and that the felony charges are baseless. Thank goodness for that.

But wait a second. Adria Hinkle and Andrew Cook promised to find homes for the animals, as I just said, but instead they killed them…I know this sounds redundant, but some things bear repeating. Think about it. Animals that did not need to die were killed. Big deal, right? Well it should be for PETA. Whenever animals are needlessly killed for things that actually have benefits, such as food or clothing, the holier-than-thou nutjobs at PETA have an utter conniption. But when two PETA employees kill a bunch of dogs and dump them in a garbage can, Ingrid Newkirk comes immediately to their defense. I’ll say one thing: Those disposable dogs are of more benefit to our society than anybody working for PETA. Next time you find yourself empathizing with the PETA agenda, just remember the names Adria Joy Hinkle and Andrew Benjamin Cook.


Sources
1) Sue Lindsey, “PETA President Denounces Dumping, Defends Workers,” Associated Press.
2) Ibid
3) Penn and Teller’s “Bullshit!” PETA episode, season 2.
4) Matthew Barakat, “High-Profile PETA Euthanizes More Than 1,000 Last Year,” Associated Press. July 29, 2000.
5) Lindsey article (see #1).
6) Penn and Teller (see #3)
7) Lindsey article (see #1).