Articles PETA

Not in the Public Interest

PETA Headquarters on Front Street in Norfolk, VA. The name of the street is itself dripping with irony. PETA is little more than a front for Ingrid Newkirk’s dark impulses.

A City Council member in Norfolk wants a No Kill community. But the pet killers at PETA, headquartered in Norfolk, do not. They want the killing to continue, because if Norfolk becomes a No Kill community, the excuses they use to seek out and slaughter 96% of all animals will ring that much more hollow (while PETA wraps the killing they do in the language of pet overpopulation, the truth is that PETA kills because of Ingrid Newkirk’s dark impulses).

PETA sent a Freedom of Information Act request to Norfolk asking for all correspondence between the City and I.  Normally, a group that requests FOIA documents has to pay for their search and duplication, but PETA asked for a fee waiver saying the disclosure is in the “public interest.” Actually, PETA does not represent the public interest nor do they represent the animals’ interests. They represent the interest of a deeply disturbed individual  who has sought out and killed over 27,000 animals in the last decade.

And while PETA defends the killing, saying all the animals they kill are suffering, that is a LIE.  It is a lie because the numbers historically come from the State of Virginia’s reporting form which only asks for data for animals taken into custody “for the purpose of adoption.” It is a lie because PETA refuses to provide its criteria for making that determination. It is a lie because rescue groups and individuals have come forward stating that the animals they gave PETA were healthy and adoptable. It is a lie because testimony under oath in court from a veterinarian showed that PETA was given healthy and adoptable animals who were later found dead by PETA’s hands, their bodies unceremoniously thrown away in a supermarket dumpster. It is a lie because, according to the  Daily Caller, “two PETA employees described as ‘adorable’ and ‘perfect’ some of the dogs and cats they killed in the back of a PETA-owned van.” It is a lie because when asked what efforts they make to find animals homes, they replied “no comment.” And it is a lie because the Butcher of Norfolk herself admitted as much.

In a December 2, 2008 interview with George Stroumboulopoulos of the Canadian Broadcasting Company, Stroumboulopoulos asks Newkirk: “Do you euthanize those pets, the adoptable ones, if you get them?” To which Newkirk responds: “If we get them, if we cannot find a home, absolutely.” In short, Newkirk admits that PETA “absolutely” kills savable animals. Absolutely, absolutely, absolutely.

I’m going to spare the City of Norfolk some postage costs.

Hey PETA, here’s what I sent the Mayor and City Council on behalf of the No Kill Advocacy Center:

We were delighted to read about your desire to increase the save rate in Norfolk shelters. Today, there are No Kill communities (municipal shelters) in Kentucky, Virginia, Indiana, Utah, California, New York, Texas, and elsewhere. Why not Norfolk? No Kill is a humane, sustainable, cost-effective model that works hand in hand with public health and safety, while fulfilling a fiscal responsibility to taxpayers. The success of this approach across the country proves the viability of the No Kill model and the above principles.

 

If we can assist in any way, please do not hesitate to contact us.

With the following enclosures:

In other words, I told them the truth to counter your lies.  If you want to  send another letter threatening me, save yourself the postage and send it  here.

♦

An image from my upcoming book, Friendly Fire, which explores  the historical, sociological and financial motivations behind the killing, support of killing and opposition to No Kill from groups like PETA:

The dog was killed by PETA.

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