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PETA Is Not Happy That Google Used a Camel To Get a Desert "StreetView"

First time accepted submitter flopwich writes Google used a camel-mounted camera to get a 'street view' of a stretch of desert in the United Arab Emirates. PETA's director Ingrid E. Newkirk is upset about it, saying they should have used jeeps. "These days, jeeps are in common use in the desert, as are light planes and even dune buggies, and satellite images could also easily have been taken instead," she said. "(Google) should leave camels out of its activites altogether."

367 comments

  1. And? by Hartree · · Score: 5, Funny

    It's Ingrid Newkirk. What did you expect?

    1. Re: And? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Funny

      Would someone please think of the camels?!?!?!?

    2. Re:And? by exploder · · Score: 0

      "Stuff that matters", indeed.

      --
      Yo dawg, I heard you like the Ackermann function, so OH GOD OH GOD OH GOD
    3. Re:And? by MickyTheIdiot · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Seriously. If the Camel wasn't hurt shut the fuck up.

    4. Re:And? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

      PETA never shuts the fuck up, ever. Even if you cave to them on something, they just start screaming at you about something else. You see PETA isn't in it for the animals, they're not in it for winning victories, they're not in it to make the world a better place. They're in it for one reason and one reason only: To promote PETA.

    5. Re:And? by jedidiah · · Score: 4, Insightful

      It's the animal's native environment.

      They have been roaming those desserts long before man came along to pollute air or spoil the environment just to support internal combustion vehicles.

      --
      A Pirate and a Puritan look the same on a balance sheet.
    6. Re:And? by Dishevel · · Score: 5, Informative

      Just came here to say .... "Fuck PETA"

      --
      Why is it so hard to only have politicians for a few years, then have them go away?
    7. Re:And? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Doesn't PETA have a horrible track record of killing most of the animals it "saves"?
      When will someone really stop and think of the animals, and I mean Think about them, like oh hey Camels are pack Animals that have been doing hard labor in the desert for thousands of years.

      If PETA were truly concerned about animals they would have done something about the stray problem here in America first before moving to other areas.
      That or maybe protected the White Rhino or any other animal that is or has been poached to death.

      Fuck PETA and their so called Agenda. They cause more harm than good.

    8. Re:And? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      PETA should just eat a bag of camel dicks.

    9. Re:And? by SQLGuru · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Can't we sick Greenpeace on PETA -- get two of most polarizing groups fighting each other? The camel wasn't injured (was probably well taken care of) and was more environmentally friendly than a Jeep.

    10. Re:And? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Informative

      Doesn't PETA have a horrible track record of killing most of the animals it "saves"?

      Yes.

    11. Re: And? by NEDHead · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Hey! Camels gotta earn a living too. Think of their families!

    12. Re:And? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      every breath their founder takes is because of dead horses and animal testing.

    13. Re:And? by bondsbw · · Score: 5, Funny

      I worked at a Chick-fil-A about 15 years ago. A man walked up to me and asked for the corporate office number.

      Me:

      Sure thing, can I ask what this is in regards to?

      Him, holding up a table-top display:

      I am a member of PETA. I do not like what you are doing to these cows, making them stand up and hold signs while wearing costumes.

      I'm pretty sure I started laughing, until I noticed the guy was completely straight-faced.

      --
      All my liberal friends think I'm a conservative, all my conservative friends think I'm a liberal.
    14. Re:And? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I would have continued laughing and when I stopped and he was still there, I'd threaten him with the police if he didn't leave immediately.

    15. Re:And? by gman003 · · Score: 4, Interesting

      Several of their "animal shelters" were closed because the government was going to force them to call themselves "euthanasia clinics" because they killed so many animals. PETA closed them rather than accept the more accurate name.

    16. Re:And? by CanHasDIY · · Score: 2

      Funny, just before I read this comment I was thinking, "someone should send a letter to Greenpeace about PETA's lack of regard for the environment."

      Nothing like sicking 2 terrorist organizations on each other and watching the fun unfold.

      --
      An enigma, wrapped in a riddle, shrouded in bacon and cheese
    17. Re:And? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      I don't know if they've really crossed the line into cult land, but they do like to tap-dance around it.

    18. Re:And? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Or ... you could point out that the drivers from other Google vehicles wore an asortment of wool and leather garments. And point out that the leather jacket came with ready made holes and shred patterns.

    19. Re:And? by craigminah · · Score: 1

      "These days, jeeps are in common use in the desert..." Last time I checked, camels are also common in the desert so what's the problem?

    20. Re: And? by Firethorn · · Score: 4, Insightful

      That was pretty much my thought. A camel that's truly pissed off isn't going to be helping you. They're big ornery creatures, after all. Meanwhile in getting the camera view the camel was provided with fodder, water, medical care, as well as all the other help that a domestic camel gets in exchange for walking around.

      --
      I don't read AC A human right
    21. Re:And? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Ahhh, the Enumclaw Defense!

    22. Re:And? by chuckugly · · Score: 2

      Whereas being turned out to starve and/or be eaten by predators is sweet sweet freedom. Nutcase.

    23. Re:And? by laejoh · · Score: 1

      perl -e 'use Modern::Perl; say "Fuck PETA!";'

    24. Re:And? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0, Informative

      > It's the animal's native environment.

      Actually, No. Camels are only in desert areas because they were domesticated and bred to survive there. Their native environment is plains and tundra.

    25. Re:And? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Funny shit, read up on Barnum and Baileys and PETA. Current VP is ex CIA and only around to spy on employees and fuck with PETA.

    26. Re:And? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Fuck PETA and their so called Agenda. They cause more harm than good.

      THIS. A thousand times this. They have gone beyond irrational cult behaviour, and have been bordering terrorism for too long.

    27. Re:And? by apraetor · · Score: 1

      "...sometimes the only kind option for some animals is to put them to sleep forever." ~Ingrid NewKirk. She's right, I know one animal I'd like to see put to sleep.

    28. Re:And? by Immerman · · Score: 0

      Sadly, idiocy is not a crime. And I don't think that's going to change so long as idiot politicians get to make the laws.

      --
      --- Most topics have many sides worth arguing, allow me to take one opposite you.
    29. Re:And? by Sperbels · · Score: 1

      If PETA were truly concerned about animals they would have done something about the stray problem here in America first

      They were. If you took a stray to a PETA shelter, they euthanize it. Problem solved, no more stray.

    30. Re: And? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      People only care for animals because animals are SLAVES!! Otherwise the camels would be humping along in the desert happily without human interference....

    31. Re:And? by tsa · · Score: 1

      I've eaten quite a lot of desserts in my life but I never found any camels in them.

      --

      -- Cheers!

    32. Re:And? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Agreed.
      On the other hand, what would Greenpeace say over the proposed PETA solution?

    33. Re:And? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      No, but refusing to leave a place of business when requested to is a crime - the OP said he'd threaten him with the police "if he didnt leave immediately".

    34. Re:And? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Mmm Sahara Desserts. :)

    35. Re:And? by reboot246 · · Score: 1

      They've definitely crossed the line into lunacy. They've totally lost touch with reality and must be living in a dream world. It would be best if we forcibly have them committed to an asylum.

    36. Re:And? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Sadly, idiocy is not a crime.

      If you think prison overcrowding is bad now...

    37. Re:And? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Sounds like our political parties...

    38. Re: And? by painandgreed · · Score: 4, Insightful

      That was pretty much my thought. A camel that's truly pissed off isn't going to be helping you. They're big ornery creatures, after all. Meanwhile in getting the camera view the camel was provided with fodder, water, medical care, as well as all the other help that a domestic camel gets in exchange for walking around.

      It's been said before, might as well say it again: Stop thinking of PETA as a pro-animal group, and rather think of them as an anti-human one.

    39. Re:And? by davydagger · · Score: 1

      >implying greenpeace and PETA are a terrorist organizations.

      exactly what we meant when the word "terrorist" has become an overused buzzword for everyone we don't like, in order to bypass any and all laws regarding their rights and saftey.

      PETA might be an absurd organization, thats laughable, but terrorists they are not.

      Greenpeace might be a little harsh, but they are also not terrorists.

    40. Re:And? by JThundley · · Score: 1

      Right, this is the woman that thinks that NOBODY should EVER use ANY animal byproducts, except when it comes to her life-saving medicine made from animal byproducts because she fights for animals and therefor is the only exception of the rule she wants to impose on everyone else. She is the fucking dictionary definition of "hypocrite".

    41. Re:And? by rHBa · · Score: 1

      Citation Needed.

      Camels have been bred, as a beast of burden, by humans since recorded history began. As far as we know a modern camel is as natural as a domestic dog.

    42. Re: And? by davidshenba · · Score: 2

      I am thinking about camel toes!

    43. Re:And? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Sounds like PETA is run by black women. You know that specific type of woman that argues about anything. That includes a position they normally would find reprehensable or just plain stupid. It is the sort of thing that make the "Housewives of Whatever" popular. I know, I am a coward for not wanting my name known, but I am all too familiar with scorn + fury + a woman = more trouble than you want to deal with.

    44. Re: And? by kyjellyfish · · Score: 1

      "PETA is not happy" = Status quo

    45. Re:And? by Reziac · · Score: 1
      --
      ~REZ~ #43301. Who'd fake being me anyway?
    46. Re:And? by Reziac · · Score: 1

      But PETA gives a lot of money to outfits like ALF that *are* terrorist organizations. Starter kit:

      http://archive.adl.org/learn/e...

      http://news.heartland.org/news...

      --
      ~REZ~ #43301. Who'd fake being me anyway?
    47. Re:And? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Replace "PETA" with "feminist videogame journalists" and "animals" with "women" and this statement still holds true.

    48. Re:And? by davydagger · · Score: 1

      There are a handful of links between PETA and ALF, but the two are radically diffrent organizations. That said, PETA does not engage in terrorism on its own right.

      I personally think PETA is fucking insane, but terrorists they are not, and you've shown me nothing conclusive that PETA is actively involved in terrorism, other than linking to ALF. Don't get me wrong, I'm not apologizing for PETA, and I think they are a bunch of jackasses, but I really don't think they are any worse than garden variety trolls. The major diffrence is that if you ignore PETA, they'll go away. If you ignore ALF, they'll blow you up.

      ALF(like their inspiration ELF), are, as you've stated real terrorist groups. PETA and greenpeace are not. There are much broader implications than PETA and greenpeace in being overly broad with your classification of terrorism and terrorist groups. This, and how the US government treats terrorism are a far bigger issue that effects far more people than terrorism itself.

    49. Re:And? by Reziac · · Score: 1

      Even if PETA doesn't directly participate in terrorist acts, they do support ALF and the like financially, and have done so consistently and for a long time, and it's not like they don't know what ALF uses the funds for. PETA has also said flat out that in their opinion ALF is not a terrorist group.

      So I guess it depends where you draw the line on what qualifies as supporting terrorism. You don't have to be active yourself to cheer them on and help them behind the scenes.

      --
      ~REZ~ #43301. Who'd fake being me anyway?
  2. dolphin? by leomekenkamp · · Score: 5, Funny

    If Google had used a dolphin, I would say that the PETA would have a point.

    --
    Wenn ist das Nunstueck git und Slotermeyer? Ja! Beiherhund das Oder die Flipperwaldt gersput.
    1. Re:dolphin? by Overzeetop · · Score: 4, Funny

      Especially for a desert data collection mission.

      --
      Is it just my observation, or are there way too many stupid people in the world?
    2. Re:dolphin? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Thanks for explaining the joke. I don't think I would have gotten it otherwise. Can I please nominate you for the Nobel Peace Prize?

    3. Re:dolphin? by Austerity+Empowers · · Score: 4, Funny

      The standards are pretty low... you may as well.

    4. Re:dolphin? by Zontar+The+Mindless · · Score: 1

      It sounds like the camel had a better day than I did. WTF?

      --
      Il n'y a pas de Planet B.
    5. Re:dolphin? by Yakasha · · Score: 1

      The standards are pretty low... you may as well.

      The explanation was modded +1 Funny... I think the nobel prize committee is already here, modding slashdot.

    6. Re:dolphin? by ColdWetDog · · Score: 2

      It probably got to spit on it's handlers, something you likely have never been able to get away with.

      --
      Faster! Faster! Faster would be better!
    7. Re:dolphin? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      that was the joke, dumbass.

    8. Re:dolphin? by CanHasDIY · · Score: 2

      Thanks for explaining the joke. I don't think I would have gotten it otherwise. Can I please nominate you for the Nobel Peace Prize?

      Sure, but under the line where it asks why you're nominating the person, just put "for not being George W. Bush."

      He'll be sure to win.

      --
      An enigma, wrapped in a riddle, shrouded in bacon and cheese
    9. Re:dolphin? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      If Google had used a dolphin, I would say that the PETA would have a point.

      Yeah esp in a desert!

    10. Re:dolphin? by Zordak · · Score: 1

      Thanks for explaining the joke. I don't think I would have gotten it otherwise. Can I please nominate you for the Nobel Peace Prize?

      The GP post was fairly bad, but I doubt it actually killed anyone, much less enough people to be eligible for a Nobel Peace Prize.

      --

      Today's Sesame Street was brought to you by the number e.
    11. Re:dolphin? by pubwvj · · Score: 1

      What do you have against dolphins?!? They want jobs too so they can earn money to buy shiny trinkets, fish and sponges. By the way, dolphins have a word for PETA but I can't print it here because it's not polite.

  3. Google, those bastards by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Better still we should quarantine the animals altogether...

  4. Summary by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    PETA is never happy. Ever.

    Then again, they are a bunch of hypocrites that kill healthy animals that need new homes because they'd rather see them dead than as pets.

    So yeah....PETA can stuff it.

    1. Re:Summary by Iniamyen · · Score: 1

      The "E" in "PETA" stands for "Ethical," not "Efficient."

    2. Re:Summary by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Also, doesn't their leader survive because of insulin injections, which wouldn't exist unless animal testing took place, and until recently needed cows and pigs to be produced? Hypocrites.

  5. PETA won't be happy until all animals are extinct by Grantbridge · · Score: 5, Informative

    PETA don't like animals having any relationship with humans. They put down the vast majority of dogs they recieve rather than re-home them because they think that's more "humane" (and it's cheaper..)

    They would rather you killed the camel and used a jeep to travel across the desert.

    They are scum, and they won't be happy until there are no animals left on planet Earth except mankind.

  6. Sheesh, what's the problem? by andyring · · Score: 2

    I assume they put a decent camel jockey on the animal, probably brought it food and water, etc. I bet that camel's day was a lot better than it would have been if Google hadn't shown up to put a camera on its back.

    Aren't the PETA folks big environmentalists too? I would imagine a camel puts out a lot less carbon and CO2 than a Jeep.

    1. Re:Sheesh, what's the problem? by dontbemad · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Aren't the PETA folks big environmentalists too?

      In a word, no. PETA doesn't concern itself with topics of sustainability and preservation of the planet. It prides itself on a hyper-sensationalized message about how humans are evil and can literally do no right to animals.

      It really is unfortunate. Where there is room for a decent, effective animal rights group to help solve problems of animal abuse and cruel treatment, PETA has decided to completely occupy the space with its lunatic and extreme ideals, berating or silencing anyone that dares oppose their just and righteous mission.

    2. Re:Sheesh, what's the problem? by amiga3D · · Score: 2

      I'm thankful that we have PETA. Without them the level of comedic material would drop drastically.

    3. Re:Sheesh, what's the problem? by michaelepley · · Score: 1

      Agreed. How was this not an ethical use of an animal? Camels have been selectively breed over the course of thousands of years for precisely this sort of task.

    4. Re:Sheesh, what's the problem? by NormAtHome · · Score: 1

      Yeah right, did Google abuse the animal?; work it too hard?; not feed or water it enough?; not give it regular breaks as it's traipsing across the hot dusty desert?

      You make a good point on the environmental issue. Also Google's helping out the local economy by employing local people and resources, doesn't that count for anything.

    5. Re:Sheesh, what's the problem? by hey! · · Score: 1

      It really is unfortunate. Where there is room for a decent, effective animal rights group to help solve problems of animal abuse and cruel treatment, PETA has decided to completely occupy the space with its lunatic and extreme ideals, berating or silencing anyone that dares oppose their just and righteous mission.

      Did the ASPCA go out of business?

      --
      Post may contain irony: discontinue use if experiencing mood swings, nausea or elevated blood pressure.
    6. Re:Sheesh, what's the problem? by bluefoxlucid · · Score: 1

      Actually, a jeep would produce soil (sand) compaction and more destruction of habitat. Its high-torque tires would roll in a straight line, rather than stepping, increasing the likelihood of injury and death of small desert animals. Largely, rolling vehicles over non-developed land kills a whole bunch of animals in the process.

    7. Re:Sheesh, what's the problem? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Spot on!

      I think Ingrid E. Newkirk needs to be called on the carpet for unethical use of PETA

    8. Re:Sheesh, what's the problem? by scubamage · · Score: 3, Interesting

      Shhhhh! Don't ruin the head-in-the-clouds holier-than-thou bubble that they try to live in! That's like trying to tell a vegan that anywhere from tens to thousands (depending on which study you look at) of animals are killed per hectare in the commercial production of vegetables! Not to mention the native species that go extinct due to native vegetation being felled to make room for their kale smoothie ingredients. Tillers aren't too kind to field mice, worms, or bugs they encounter. But PETA (and vegans) only really give a damn about animals they find "cute."

    9. Re:Sheesh, what's the problem? by ColdWetDog · · Score: 1
      --
      Faster! Faster! Faster would be better!
    10. Re:Sheesh, what's the problem? by CanHasDIY · · Score: 1

      Did the ASPCA go out of business?

      Nope, still going strong thanks to members like myself.

      Thing is, just like moderate politicians, the ASPCA doesn't try to find the loudest megaphone possible to scream through, so media-wise they tend to get drowned out by the lunatics.

      --
      An enigma, wrapped in a riddle, shrouded in bacon and cheese
    11. Re:Sheesh, what's the problem? by Mike+Van+Pelt · · Score: 1

      Heh... I just saw a commedian on TV last night who said "I hate PETA. I would eat a cat just to piss PETA off." The audience roared with laughter.

    12. Re:Sheesh, what's the problem? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      ASPCA is not an ALF off-shoot terrorist group like PETA, I think you are thinking of "The Humane Society of the United States"

  7. but by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    But then environmentalists would be unhappy that Google used fossil fuel burning Jeeps and not a greener mode of transportation like camels. Can't win with everyone.

    1. Re:but by SydShamino · · Score: 2

      No kidding. Those burning fuels will kill more animals in the long run than the .... zero animals likely hurt by Google.

      --
      It doesn't hurt to be nice.
    2. Re:but by Austerity+Empowers · · Score: 1

      Sand Dune Tobogganing! http://www.seemoretonisland.co...

      Now to be honest that was something I yanked out of my ass, but I googled it and it's a real damn thing.

    3. Re:but by Zeek40 · · Score: 1

      Google has killed at least one deer. http://www.streetviewfun.com/2...

    4. Re:but by ColdWetDog · · Score: 1

      So have I, along with the majority of drivers in rural America. I'm still working at my first pedestrian in a wheelchair, though.

      --
      Faster! Faster! Faster would be better!
    5. Re:but by oobayly · · Score: 1

      They're overrated - getting all the spokes out of the carcase is worse than plucking a pheasant any day. Also, the thighs don't tend to have much meat on them.

    6. Re:but by davydagger · · Score: 1

      I don't think anyone actually supports PETA. I think the vast majority of the nerd population is fine with camels, or at least from reading this thread.

      PETA concerns itself with nothing more than self-promotion than anything else, and they are they are obviously the "westboro baptist church" of protest organizations.

      I think I speak for everyone when we consider anyone following the advice of PETA an extremely bad thing, and any organization that actually listens to PETA would be strikes against them.

      I would be really disapointed in google if they listened to a word PETA says.

  8. PETA is not happy? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Ok guys, Google is considered "good" for the entire day today!

  9. WTF? by B33rNinj4 · · Score: 3, Informative

    PETA needs to focus on real issues. It's not like those cameras were tremendous burdens, or that the camels were abused.

    1. Re:WTF? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      They also use bicyclists for their bike trail street view. Unethical treatment of hipsters?

    2. Re:WTF? by B33rNinj4 · · Score: 1

      I don't know why you were modded down. I thought it was funny.

    3. Re:WTF? by PPH · · Score: 1

      It was only invertebrates.

      --
      Have gnu, will travel.
  10. Reminds me of an old advertising slogan by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Ingrid E. Newkirk would walk a mile for a Camel.

  11. Let's get our priorities straight here! by FooAtWFU · · Score: 3, Funny

    Google feeds their employees dead cows and chickens on a regular basis. They should have used plants. These days, quinoa is in common use in foodservice, as are beans and eggplants, and lentils could also have been easily used instead. Google should leave beef out of its activities altogether.

    :b

    --
    The World Wide Web is dying. Soon, we shall have only the Internet.
    1. Re:Let's get our priorities straight here! by scubamage · · Score: 1

      1 hectare of ruminant foraging pasture leads to approximately 7.5 animal deaths (about the number of cattle that can graze on one hectare). 1 hectare of plant producing land produces tens to thousands of animal deaths (depending on the study and what animals are included in it). Essentially, according to most "least harm doctrine" studies, the most ethical approach is in fact to eat MORE meat, because less animals overall are killed in its production.

    2. Re:Let's get our priorities straight here! by bigtrike · · Score: 1

      ...assuming it's grass fed and not factory produced, which is also far less cruel to the animals and doesn't require high doses of antibiotics. Factory farming requires more plant input per calorie of output than if people simply ate the plants, resulting in more deaths from farming alone. Grazing requires quite a bit of land per calorie of output, and IIRC we'd have to cut down lots of rain forests to feed all 7 billion people that way.

    3. Re:Let's get our priorities straight here! by scubamage · · Score: 1

      That is a fair point. Most of the least harm doctrine studies have pointed towards a 50% approach (at least for Australia). Those studies are a few years old, so it's likely they've had time to do more work since then.

    4. Re:Let's get our priorities straight here! by jc42 · · Score: 1

      Heh. The example I like to use is to point out that killing one cow (or steer) means around 100 meals for a human, while eating a single slice of bread means you're responsible for the death of around 100 baby wheat plants (and probably a thousand living, breathing yeasts). Or: When you eat a hamburger, the meat part is entails less than .01 deaths, while the bread part caused the death of 100 to 1000 living creatures. So it's the vegetarians that are doing the real mass killing of prey.

      Of course, this is a bit disingenuous, since the animal was probably fed on grains. But you can confuse this issue a bit by pointing out that cattle actually evolved as grazers mostly on the vegetative parts of their grassy "prey", not the seeds, and the plants can quickly regrow their leaves. Our feedlots are responsible for lots of deaths of little baby grains, true, but naturally-raised beef wouldn't do this. They do ingest at least a few of the seeds, so the issue isn't quite so clear, but it's basically accurate.

      For some reason, people with ethical concerns about eating animals never seem to consider that plants are also living creatures. They seem to think that killing a single animal is something horrible, while there's nothing wrong with mass murder of baby grain plants. But you can confuse them a bit by talking about the plants as living creatures. Produce the image of an animal thousands of times our size, collecting our babies and tossing them alive into large hoppers, to be ground to a paste for the next meal. That's what we do to wheat plants. Hiding it in a grain mill doesn't change the fact.

      Unfortunately, we're animals, and we can't get our food from the sun, air and dirt. To live, we must kill other living things and eat them. There are marginal cases, such as fruits that were evolved as animal food (to trick animals into transporting the seeds). But we humans can't live on fruit alone; we do have to kill other species for most of our food. This slightly complicates the moral and ethical issues.

      --
      Those who do study history are doomed to stand helplessly by while everyone else repeats it.
    5. Re:Let's get our priorities straight here! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      The flaw in your argument is that 1 hectare of ruminant foraging produces the same amount of food as 1 hectare of vegetables; it does not. It's more like 10:1 in favour of vegetables and grain.

      A reasonable argument in favor of eating less meat, is that it decreases land use for food production, keeping more land for reserves, and potentially increasing the availability of food to the poor (whether this actually happens is highly debatable).

  12. Hey, wait a minute... by exploder · · Score: 5, Interesting

    When did "News for nerds, stuff that matters" disappear from the Slashdot homepage?

    --
    Yo dawg, I heard you like the Ackermann function, so OH GOD OH GOD OH GOD
    1. Re:Hey, wait a minute... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Funny

      News for Nerds is still on the beta page, but stuff that matters is gone all together.

    2. Re:Hey, wait a minute... by MickyTheIdiot · · Score: 5, Insightful

      That's because the world is fucked and nothing maters. At all.

    3. Re:Hey, wait a minute... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      When Slashdot started accepting Microsoft Adverts.

    4. Re:Hey, wait a minute... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Just take a look at the front page... An article about PETA has over three times as many comments on it than two other articles about physics and software development combined
       
      It's all about the page hits. Few Slashdotters can seriously discuss coding and physics so they editors need to promote the flame bait articles. They know on which side their bread is buttered and the selection of articles and community activity confirm this.
       
      If you're still under the illusion that Slashdot is a fortress of logic and intelligence I'm afraid I have some bad news for you... Slashdot is just another website trying to make cash from clicks. I won't be surprised if they go to the "slideshow" model in the near future.

    5. Re: Hey, wait a minute... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      There is always soylent news...

    6. Re:Hey, wait a minute... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Most of those comments would be assumed to be ridicule of PETA as they are hypocrites and do not represent what an animal rights organisation is, now the RSPCA is an animal rights organisation.

    7. Re: Hey, wait a minute... by cout · · Score: 1

      They need to rename it though to anti-systemd propaganda news.

    8. Re:Hey, wait a minute... by JWW · · Score: 2

      Actually Google using a camel to get street views in the desert is kinda nerdy.

      On the other hand PETA having a cow about google using a beast of burden to ya know do something considered burdensome is bullshit that should be ignored.

    9. Re:Hey, wait a minute... by cellocgw · · Score: 2

      That's because the world is fucked and nothing maters. At all.

      Nice Freudian typo there!

      Anyway,
      "Nothing really matters, any more"
      or
      "It's the end of the world as we know it, and I feel fine."

      See, the musicians have it covered.

      --
      https://app.box.com/WitthoftResume Code: https://github.com/cellocgw
    10. Re:Hey, wait a minute... by ultranova · · Score: 3, Funny

      something considered burdensome

      Isn't "walking around with a camera and photographing everything" considered a vacation, usually?

      --

      Forget magic. Any technology distinguishable from divine power is insufficiently advanced.

    11. Re: Hey, wait a minute... by Immerman · · Score: 1

      Meh, every forum has it's spammers and trolls. After you've gotten acclimated they fade into the background. Hell, just take a good hard look around here and you'll realise how very many "special interest" idiots you've simply tuned out.

      --
      --- Most topics have many sides worth arguing, allow me to take one opposite you.
    12. Re: Hey, wait a minute... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Are you aware of what host file can do for your lovelife?

    13. Re:Hey, wait a minute... by Bradmont · · Score: 1

      It's still in the tag of the main page, it just gets replaced by an article count in some javascript. Take a look at the source, or reload the front page keeping an eye on the title bar of your browser. Though I agree it should be on the page too...

    14. Re:Hey, wait a minute... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      That's because the world is fucked and nothing maters. At all.

      "That's because the points don't matter."
          - Drew Carey

  13. PETA can kiss my algore by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    'nuff said

    1. Re:PETA can kiss my algore by I'm+New+Around+Here · · Score: 2

      *sniff* *sniff*

      Excuse me sir. Your algore smells like an asshole.

      --
      If you think I voted for Trump because of this post, you're wrong. I voted for Dr. Jill Stein of the Green Party. Again.
  14. Hello PETA my old friend by Gerafin · · Score: 5, Insightful

    I hope that everyone gets a good chuckle out of this story and then moves on. Just like the Westboro Baptist Church, PETA keeps pulling stunts designed to incense rational people and get free advertising (I know that the point of WBC is litigation rather than advertising, but I still see parallels). Remember how PETA protested the game "Super Meat Boy" with a "Super Tofu Boy" parody? Don't fall for the trap - keep your emotions in check - smile & keep scrolling.

    1. Re:Hello PETA my old friend by oobayly · · Score: 1
    2. Re:Hello PETA my old friend by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      This. Thanks for your comment- I couldn't remember the name of the idiots at Westboro but my brain was drawing the analogy.

  15. What about the environment? by ugen · · Score: 5, Insightful

    So they prefer that Google use large vehicles that consume fossil fuel, emit greenhouse gases and may damage fragile desert ecosystem with their tires? Way to go PETA. I hope a few environmental groups take you on on this one.

    1. Re:What about the environment? by ripvlan · · Score: 1

      Yeah exactly! I feel PETA is saying, blah blah blah - use petrol and kill off the animals.

      Wait - the "slow food" movement would say "go local."

      I'm so confused. Is global warming coming or not?!

    2. Re:What about the environment? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Agreed! That was also my first thought given that animals suffer more from environmental disturbances than humans. What a ridiculous stance for PETA to take. Just shows why their organization is continually marginalized for their extremist behavior.

    3. Re:What about the environment? by jc42 · · Score: 1

      Yeah exactly! I feel PETA is saying, blah blah blah - use petrol and kill off the animals.

      Wait - the "slow food" movement would say "go local."

      I'm so confused. Is global warming coming or not?!

      Nah; it's not coming at all. It's here. And we're not gonna do a thing about it, so we'll just have to adapt. And migrate inland as our coastal areas slowly flood out.

      Here in New England, one of the running jokes for the past decade or so has been for one person to ask what time the robins arrived this year, and another person says "They didn't return; they never left."

      Actually, it is a bit more complicated than that. They're one of the many semi-migratory birds now. Part of the population heads south when it gets too cold. But we've seen robins in our yard (in a western suburb of Boston) every month of the year for about 10 years now, while before that, they were almost never seen in December, January or February. This was never exact, though, since their normal winter range did extend to around New York (and southern Nova Scotia ;-), and they were reported around Boston occasionally during warm winters. If you look in older bird books, you can see the robins' winter range ending somewhere south of us, depending on the book, while the current books show it extending to around the New Hampshire border.

      But still, they're a locally obvious sign that the climate has shifted north by a hundred miles or so. And a casual search of the topic will make it clear that the US government and most of the population have no intention of doing anything serious to change the trend. The scientists have clearly pinned the blame on human activity, and the engineers point out that this means we now know how to control the climate if we want to. But we (collectively) don't want to.

      (Then there's the local joke about all the folks in New Hampshire and Maine who think global warming sounds like a fine idea. Myself, I intend to plant a palm tree in our yard as soon as they become available in the nurseries, which may happen soon. ;-)

      --
      Those who do study history are doomed to stand helplessly by while everyone else repeats it.
    4. Re:What about the environment? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Jeep has an iridescent green electric Wrangler. I'm sure Googs could have borrowed that if they wanted to.

    5. Re:What about the environment? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      So they prefer that Google use large vehicles that consume fossil fuel, emit greenhouse gases and may damage fragile desert ecosystem with their tires? Way to go PETA. I hope a few environmental groups take you on on this one.

      I'd laugh if Greenpeace decided to publicly berate PETA on this one.

  16. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by i+kan+reed · · Score: 4, Insightful

    It's not so much that they're scum, it's that they mistake "ethical" with "imaginary line-in-the-sand absolutist moral law based". Ethics are difficult and nuanced, and sometimes raise questions you don't have the answer to. Those sorts of things aren't especially convenient for large groups united for the sake of ad campaigns and political lobbying.

    If you actually asked the question of "what does ethical corporate usage of beasts of burden look like?", you'd end up with a very complicated answer.

    You'll see this symptom with every political group that's actually genuinely grassroots and purpose oriented.

  17. jeeps and planes? by jehan60188 · · Score: 4, Insightful

    if google had done that, they'd be criticized for not caring about carbon emissions

    1. Re:jeeps and planes? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      And again I say unto you, It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.-- Matthew 19:24

      While the camel could make it though that gate in Jerusalem, a big fully decked out Google executive's high end four wheel drive certainly could not without destroying part of the wall. Maybe now they can use Google Maps to zoom in for a look.:P

  18. In the wrong catagory again. by LWATCDR · · Score: 1

    Put this in Politics where it belongs.

    --
    See my blog http://ilovecookes.blogspot.com/ for light hearted technical information.
    1. Re:In the wrong catagory again. by amiga3D · · Score: 1

      Come on...think of the chi...uh, camels!

    2. Re:In the wrong catagory again. by LWATCDR · · Score: 1

      I use the feature on Slashdot to exclude the politics category so I do not want to see political posts on Slashdot. Frankly Slashdot is so bad at anything involving poltics that is down at the FOX News and MSNBC level of trash.

      --
      See my blog http://ilovecookes.blogspot.com/ for light hearted technical information.
    3. Re:In the wrong catagory again. by Dragonslicer · · Score: 1

      Put this in Politics where it belongs.

      Uh, as opposed to Idle?

  19. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by Sigma+7 · · Score: 2

    PETA don't like animals having any relationship with humans.

    Not quite true - PETA is okay with using animals as long as VP MaryBets Sweetland can get the insulin shot. Everyone else should avoid anything to do with animals.

  20. Cue the fat and lazy camels by m_chan · · Score: 2

    "leave camels out of its activities altogether." If not being herded around in the desert, handled by camel herders, then what are camels for? Advertising smokes I guess. And more importantly, won't somebody please think of the dromedaries?

  21. PETA are still hypocrites by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Wow, just wow. "Instead of doing minimal harm to a few pack animals that were specifically bred for this job, you should have used a vehicle that destroys the desert ecosystem because we have no idea how animals actually work."

  22. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by delt0r · · Score: 5, Insightful

    There is nothing even that consistent with their thought process. They are closer to a terrorist group looking for reasons to justify violence. At least at the top.

    --
    If information wants to be free, why does my internet connection cost so much?
  23. dolphin? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    As long as the eat the animal after they are done with it, I am satisfied.

  24. Don't feed the trolls by Trailer+Trash · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Remember? Rule #1 of the internet? PETA wants attention, positive or negative. Just ignore them. Please.

    1. Re:Don't feed the trolls by Nimey · · Score: 1

      And yet, here you are commenting on a troll article.

      --
      Hail Eris, full of mischief...

      E pluribus sanguinem
    2. Re:Don't feed the trolls by Trailer+Trash · · Score: 1

      And yet, here you are commenting on a troll article.

      Yes, telling people to not respond. I didn't read the article nor will I read any more. PETA will cease to matter when ad revenue on PETA clickbaits moves toward $0.

    3. Re:Don't feed the trolls by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Actually just shoot them. Please!

  25. *sigh* by Ignacio · · Score: 2

    I swear, they must do this because they have a moral imperative to remind everyone just how completely batshit insane they really are.

    1. Re:*sigh* by PPH · · Score: 1

      PETA is goint to get you for that "batshit insane" remark. It's about time we stopped blaming bats and other animals for PETA's mental shortcomings.

      --
      Have gnu, will travel.
  26. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by compro01 · · Score: 1

    Is animal-sourced insulin even used anymore? I was under the impression that it was cheaper to produce it using modified bacteria.

    --
    upon the advice of my lawyer, i have no sig at this time
  27. Fuck PETA by Xaemyl · · Score: 2

    srsly

    1. Re:Fuck PETA by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Big time

  28. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by i+kan+reed · · Score: 4, Insightful

    No, they're pretty consistent that they just don't want people to affect animals. Which is impossible. But they insist on it anyways.

    And they're not terrorists. Stupid, yes. ALF-like-terrorism, no.

  29. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by Gerafin · · Score: 1

    This part of PETA's doctrine is particularly amusing. It displays such a rudimentary view of how nature works. If all domesticated animals were to just die off over a few generations, think about the ramifications up and down the food chain. Domestication has been around for so long that it's an integral part of our ecosystem - an ecosystem that is precariously balanced and would be quite disrupted by such a sudden and dramatic change.

  30. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by Major+Blud · · Score: 4, Funny

    Please think of the bacteria!

    --
    If you post as Anonymous Coward, don't expect a reply.
  31. these mfers don't know camels by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    camels don't care about carrying a camera through the desert

  32. The sliding scale of activist groups. by jellomizer · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Animal Abuse - Sure a no brainier.
    Fur Coats - I can see that we don't need Fur Coats anymore as there is a big selection of cheaper and effective other sources for coats. (Fur as in they need to kill the animal)
    Food from babies - Veal and Lamb. Tasty but the animal is so cute I loose my appetite when I think of it that way.
    Food meats - Sure people are happy being vegetarian. I tried it myself my body hated me for it. (I will need to add leather although it isn't food, but a product from the animal from the processing of the rest of the food)
    Anything made from animal - Wool, Egg, Milk products come to mind. Now we are going to the crazy zone. These animals although are in sub-human conditions are still much better off then if they were out in the wild fending for themselves. Efforts should be towards improving their conditions not stopping their usefulness.
    Pets and worker animals - These are like family to us, and are treated extremely well often much better then most people who care for them live. Pets like Dogs have evolved (threw breading) to really like being around humans and helping us out. To say the dogs should be wild is actually making go against their nature.

    --
    If something is so important that you feel the need to post it on the internet... It probably isn't that important.
    1. Re:The sliding scale of activist groups. by Mr+D+from+63 · · Score: 2

      Camels and other domesticated animals have been bred for years to do the tasks they do. They are not going to be 'happy animals' if they can't perform those tasks. If left to PITA, they would be cruelly denied what they are born to do.

    2. Re:The sliding scale of activist groups. by jedidiah · · Score: 1

      > Fur Coats - I can see that we don't need Fur Coats anymore as there is a big selection of cheaper and effective other sources for coats. (Fur as in they need to kill the animal)

      Fur is still quite superior to any attempts to replicate it with artificial means. It's more effective than the alternatives and much more durable.

      It's like Tyler Durden's ode to leather in Fight Club. A fur coat can last you the rest of your life.

      As long as you eat the relevant animal (arctic Mink farmers do this), then you aren't wasting anything in the process.

      --
      A Pirate and a Puritan look the same on a balance sheet.
    3. Re:The sliding scale of activist groups. by scubamage · · Score: 1

      This is correct. To this day if you travel to deep in the arctic/antarctic, you NEED a fur lined coat. Nothing else will provide enough warmth to keep you from freezing to death.

    4. Re:The sliding scale of activist groups. by ColdWetDog · · Score: 1

      Camels aren't 'happy' no matter what they are doing or where they are. They are the most mean, cruel and foul tempered ungulates you've ever set eyes on.

      --
      Faster! Faster! Faster would be better!
    5. Re:The sliding scale of activist groups. by Khashishi · · Score: 1

      Farm animals are not much better off than if they were in the wild. Sure, they get food, but they are slaughtered as soon as they reach full size. Dairy cows might have it a little better, depending on your point of view, but most of their babies certainly don't have it better.

      What is animal abuse? Going by what gets media and court attention, it seems like the definition of animal abuse in America is treating dogs and cats as farm animals.

    6. Re:The sliding scale of activist groups. by Rob+Y. · · Score: 1

      That's like saying because you need an off-road vehicle in the arctic/antarctic, it makes sense to have one in your suburban driveway.

      --
      Posted from my Android phone. Oh, I can change this? There, that's better...
    7. Re:The sliding scale of activist groups. by scubamage · · Score: 1

      Not at all. The original statement was that we don't need them anymore. I provided a current example of a place where they are needed. You're trying to take that example out of context.

    8. Re:The sliding scale of activist groups. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Eh. I think they're like a lot of my coworkers. Happiest when they have something to complain about.

    9. Re:The sliding scale of activist groups. by praxis · · Score: 1

      No, it's like saying: in the artic, fur is the superior material. No one said anything about wearing a fur coat anywhere else. I think you might be putting words into the conversation that weren't there.

    10. Re:The sliding scale of activist groups. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      The fur/leather and meat industries are completely and 100% unrelated.

      It is a very common misconception that leather is a byproduct of the beef industry.

      fur/leather animals are for raised solely with fur/leather in mind -- I dont know what they do with the bulk of the leftovers, dogfood maybe, idk, but it doesn't end up on anyone's plate.

      So the "fur/leather is OK because it means we're using all the parts of the animal" argument is a bullshit argument.

      We're not talking about some woodsman making fur coats to survive the winter... we're more likely talking about some douchbag in New Jersey wearing mink boots or some stupid shit.

    11. Re:The sliding scale of activist groups. by JDevers · · Score: 1

      They live in a very cruel and unforgiving environment, that "independent streak" was pretty purposefully bred into them I would imagine.

    12. Re:The sliding scale of activist groups. by XxtraLarGe · · Score: 1

      Camels aren't 'happy' no matter what they are doing or where they are. They are the most mean, cruel and foul tempered ungulates you've ever set eyes on.

      This camel is happy. Your argument is invalid.

      --
      Taking guns away from the 99% gives the 1% 100% of the power.
    13. Re:The sliding scale of activist groups. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Making dogfood out of them is still a use of the meat, and using the "whole" animal. The bones are probably made into bonemeal and used as fertilizer. Some parts might be used to make gelatin. and so on.

    14. Re:The sliding scale of activist groups. by operagost · · Score: 1

      Where in his post did he say everyone should have a fur coat?

      --

      Gamingmuseum.com: Give your 3D accelerator a rest.
    15. Re:The sliding scale of activist groups. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Since Cows don't exist in the wild anymore yes they are better being bred for food then not existing period

    16. Re:The sliding scale of activist groups. by CanHasDIY · · Score: 1

      Fur Coats - I can see that we don't need Fur Coats anymore as there is a big selection of cheaper and effective other sources for coats. (Fur as in they need to kill the animal)

      FYI, "nobody needs X" is as piss poor and invalid an argument as "for the children." Nobody needs a lot of the stuff you use every day either, but equally nobody else has the right to tell you "you can't have that stuff because you don't need it."

      Food from babies - Veal and Lamb. Tasty but the animal is so cute I loose my appetite when I think of it that way.

      You don't have to be a member of a terrorist group to feel that eating babies is wrong. Side note, I find it funny that when people talk about "eating baby animals," PETA people included, most people don't mention chicken eggs. MMmmm, delicious poultry fetus...

      --
      An enigma, wrapped in a riddle, shrouded in bacon and cheese
    17. Re:The sliding scale of activist groups. by jellomizer · · Score: 1

      No you wrong.
      Some will be slaughtered when the get size, others will be saved for breeding.
      Granted they won't live to old age, but they live longer on average with people feeding them, protecting them from predators and illness.
      A properly raised animal should have only one bad day in its life.

      --
      If something is so important that you feel the need to post it on the internet... It probably isn't that important.
    18. Re:The sliding scale of activist groups. by mythosaz · · Score: 1

      Most wearable leather comes from the same places that make cheap clothing. Herds of cows are death-marched out of India into Pakistan (where it offends fewer people to slaughter them and labor is even lower) so cheap leather garments can be made -- or at least where expensive leather garments can be made cheaply.

      Little is done to salvage the animal. Generally speaking it arrives nice and skinny, just in time for, uh, skinning.

      I don't care about the cruelty aspect so much. It's not any more or less awful than keeping a cow in a pen about 1mm bigger than a cow for its entire life. ...but just know that leather clothing comes from places where clothing is cheap to make. We're not raising free range leather here and shipping it to China for manufacturing.

    19. Re:The sliding scale of activist groups. by sfcat · · Score: 1

      Farm animals are not much better off than if they were in the wild. Sure, they get food, but they are slaughtered as soon as they reach full size. Dairy cows might have it a little better, depending on your point of view, but most of their babies certainly don't have it better.

      What is animal abuse? Going by what gets media and court attention, it seems like the definition of animal abuse in America is treating dogs and cats as farm animals.

      I'm not sure you understand what a dairy cow actually is from your post. You seem to be confusing dairy and beef cows which are completely different breeds, literally. A dairy cow isn't slaughtered for meat unless its diseased and going to be made into dog food. In that case, euthanasia is actually the most humane treatment (a short quick death instead of a long suffering death). And the female babies become dairy cows...the male babies become studs (a better life is hard to imagine) or veal. This mimics how cow herds actually work in the wild with females being preserved and males in a feast or famine situation. Generally a dairy cow has a pretty good life, the beef cows, not so much.

      As someone who grew up on a farm, one of the biggest complaints I have about PETA (and their ilk) is that they seem to know nothing about how agriculture actually works but are very eager to change farming. This is a bit like putting hair dressers in charge of IT in your company. They are great at getting attention, as to producing the desired results, not so much...

      --
      "Those that start by burning books, will end by burning men."
    20. Re:The sliding scale of activist groups. by AvitarX · · Score: 1

      Most people don't eat chicken eggs with fetuses in them...

      --
      Wow, sent an e-mail as suggested when clicking on "use classic" banner, and got a fast response that addressed my msg
    21. Re:The sliding scale of activist groups. by Rob+Y. · · Score: 1

      I doubt PETA rages on an on about fur coats in the arctic (though i guess I wouldn't be that surprised if they did - my point isn't to defend PETA, who are being dicks in this case). In any case, to bring up an outlier like the arctic in the context of a general discussion about the morality of wearing fur is not to discuss the practicality of wearing fur at all. It's just an attempt to deflect criticism - much as bringing up the need for rescue vehicles with huge wheels and high ground clearance in the context of a discussion about what ordinary people should be driving is an attempt to change the subject. In that sense, my analogy holds.

      --
      Posted from my Android phone. Oh, I can change this? There, that's better...
    22. Re:The sliding scale of activist groups. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I seem to recall something about arctic researchers overheating when using manmade aerogel insulated coats.

    23. Re:The sliding scale of activist groups. by Lotana · · Score: 1

      I heard chicken eggs being reffered to in another delicious way:

      Chicken periods.

      Yuummmm...

    24. Re:The sliding scale of activist groups. by Khashishi · · Score: 1

      What percentage of male calves become studs? Only some very lucky ones.

  33. It never ceases to amaze me by MikeRT · · Score: 0

    How the same type of people who froth at the mouth because someone wants to "legislate morality" they believe an ancient religion taught them is based in the will of a deity will seek to shame or impose on people the most meaningless "morality" based purely on their own asinine opinion (that doesn't even have the pretext of being a high power's will or rationally transcendental).

  34. Was it Joe Camel? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Were the Googlers riding Joe Camel?

    Maybe the People for Ethical Treatment of Toons (PETT) would object.

  35. Happy by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Any time PETA is mad about something, it makes me happy. Unless it is the other PETA group... People for Eating Taste Animals.

    The PETA group really need to stop wasting their time and do something productive with their lives.

  36. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by Andy+Dodd · · Score: 2

    Nope, it hasn't been used in ages. It was largely obsolete even back when I was diagnosed with Type I diabetes close to 2 decades ago.

    I'm not sure if it's cheaper, but human insulin IS more effective than pork/beef insulin. Also, pork/beef consumption was going down and insulin demand was rising decades ago, which is why insulin-producing bacteria are one of the first genetically modified organisms ever created.

    These days, human insulin isn't actually that common - there has been a move to modified insulins that have slight differences from human insulin to achieve certain goals. (Lispro/aspart aka Humalog/Novolog reduce insulin's tendency to "clump", which greately speeds up the time to take effect when injected. Insulin glargine, aka Lantus, is designed to provide a very long "peakless" baseline effect for 24 hours.)

    --
    retrorocket.o not found, launch anyway?
  37. PETA is the debian tech commitee of action groups! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I think the title sums it all up :)

  38. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by Austerity+Empowers · · Score: 2

    No, they're pretty consistent that they just don't want people to affect animals

    I'd have more sympathy for them if they were PETP - People for the Ethical Treatment of People. A cause I can get behind is the "leave me the fuck alone" cause.

  39. I'm thinking.... by bobbied · · Score: 2

    We make sure we hire a Jeep with leather seats, burning beef tallow based diesel fuel to keep the AC going and make sure we staff the car with hamburger eating Google engineers wearing natural fur coats. Attach a trailer with a nice BBQ and make sure to hand out as much tasty meat as can be obtained, cooked and dispensed along the way to any hungry persons who asks. THEN we make sure to get a number of camels to pull the jeep along and make meat deliveries. Attache a big sign that says "People Eating Tasty Animals" too.

    Any other ways we can anger the PETA folks?

    These people are fruit cakes... WITH too many nuts. Go back to rescuing abused pets....

    --
    "File to fit, pound to insert, paint to match" - Aircraft Maintenance 101
  40. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by delt0r · · Score: 1

    They have been caught funding ALF like stuff.

    --
    If information wants to be free, why does my internet connection cost so much?
  41. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by Oligonicella · · Score: 4, Informative

    "they're pretty consistent that they just don't want people to affect animals" - I'd have to say outright killing +90% of the animals they take in for "adoption" is affecting those animals, wouldn't you? They're scum.

  42. Pretending to be unhappy is PETA's schtick by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    PETA exists in order to

    1) provide a lucrative living for its senior staff
    2) provide a cause for which limousine liberals can express their passion in order to impress other limousine liberals
    3) denigrate modern society and humanity in general

    So, let the silly throw their money at PETA, laugh at them and be always on guard to prevent PETA from receiving any tax dollars whatsoever.

    1. Re:Pretending to be unhappy is PETA's schtick by scubamage · · Score: 1

      This is actually one place that I have to actually say PETA does buck the trend. Newkirk only makes about 38k a year through PETA as the CEO. Now, that doesn't preclude her from cashing in on lucrative speaking engagements all over the place.

  43. Mod me down by ruir · · Score: 1

    Fuck PETA. And why do you give it airtime?

  44. and this matters because... by derideri · · Score: 1

    Maybe if anyone besides PETA cared about what PETA thinks this would be news, otherwise I have to quote John Oliver on this: "Hey everyone, we can just ignore them!"

  45. Comment removed by account_deleted · · Score: 1

    Comment removed based on user account deletion

  46. Satellite images? by wjcofkc · · Score: 1

    "...and satellite images could also easily have been taken instead,"

    I don't think that works quite the way she thinks it does. Oh well, this is the same group that was recently up in arms over over Mario 3 because Mario transforms into the mythical Japanese tanooki.

    --
    Brought to you by Carl's Junior.
  47. that, and its horrendously inefficient. by nimbius · · Score: 1

    Camels are slow, tempermental, and require constant supervision during data collection to ensure they dont decide to just wander back to the starting point or destroy the expensive rigging on them. And while they can survive for months without food or water, their human caretakers cannot and should be considered the abused animal, not the camel.

    Google should have used an autonomous vehicle; it is after all one of their strong suits. Strap solar panels on it and guide it with satellites, make a youtube series on it and sell advertising revenue, then give it a google plus account and let people 'friend' the rover, allowing the company to garner more personal information on thier users. Finally, sell the whole thing to national geographic.

    --
    Good people go to bed earlier.
  48. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    By "vast majority" it is 95%

    http://dailycaller.com/2012/02/24/documents-peta-kills-more-than-95-percent-of-pets-in-its-care/

  49. PETA by Instantlemming · · Score: 2

    PETA wants attention like a 3 year old with a tin whistle.
    There is no such thing as negative attention; as long as they are in the news, they will be happy.

    1. Re:PETA by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      It should have stopped after the first four letters.

  50. Does PETA also oppose horse riding by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    or any other things similar?
    Or is it only Google using a camel that irks them ?
    If humans are not to use camels in the desert, as they have had for centuries now, what do they propose? Walk on stilts across the desert.

    1. Re:Does PETA also oppose horse riding by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Yes, they oppose all animals. We should kill all of them so they don't have to suffer by living.

  51. The Neverending PETA Story by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Because they should have used creatures that live natively in the desert and... wait, what?

  52. Case for no animal exploitation by Blaskowicz · · Score: 1

    Humans are animals obviously, it follows that all human exploitation should cease immediately. Quit your jobs and live a peaceful existence!

  53. On the wrong track by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Its about the cameras radiation that might fry its brain and blow up its water tank you insensitive clod ! :D

  54. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by Jason+Levine · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Sadly, they see that as consistent with their philosophy. In that putting those dogs in loving homes would be exposing the dogs to human contact for years versus a quick, one-time human contact that ensures that dog won't have to deal with humans ever again.

    When people's beliefs get this twisted, there's no reasoning with them. Just back off slowly and keep a good distance from them.

    --
    My sci-fi novel, Ghost Thief, is now available from Amazon.com.
  55. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by kenj123 · · Score: 1

    I agree with parent. PETA thinks: 1. Domesticated animals are exploited by people so domesticated animals shouldn't exist anymore. 2. Pets need a health care plan that rivals human health care, so nobody can afford a pet anymore. 3. Nature with its predators and parasites is so cruel that wilderness should be eliminated too. They've been talking about eliminating the horse drawn carriages in NY central park and replacing them with electric cars because 2 horses have been involved in traffic accidents in the last 30 years. The horses will be sent upstate and live out retirement just grazing in a pasture. But that's not without danger either. they could bet bit by snakes, hit by lightning, or break a leg in a gopher hole. To eliminate all suffering, its better if they just euthanize the horses now.

  56. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by Major+Blud · · Score: 1

    Being a Type 1 myself, these things interest me as well. The FDA has a nice write-up on it:

    http://www.fda.gov/Drugs/Resou...

    "The manufacturing of beef insulin for human use in the U.S. was discontinued in 1998. In 2006, the manufacturing of pork insulin (Iletin II) for human use was discontinued."

    --
    If you post as Anonymous Coward, don't expect a reply.
  57. Fuck PETA. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    lameness filter is lame.

  58. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by BarbaraHudson · · Score: 5, Informative

    I was skeptical about the claim that PETA euthanizes so many animals, but studies say it's true, and may even understate the situation.

    The Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services report on their investigation found that 94% of the animals given to PETA for adoption were instead euthanized, 90% within one day.

    This is not ethical treatment of animals. There's no "nuance" here. Putting the vast majority of healthy pets to death rather than trying to find homes for them is cruel and highly unusual.

    Of course, with $35 million in annual revenue, who can afford to take care of the animals, what with paying all the salaries for the people working for PETA to exploit them? PETA's job is to raise funds to pay PETA salaries. The animals are just raw material to be exploited, then tossed in a dumpster

    --
    "Transparent" is a shit show that trades on every stereotype going. A man in drag is NOT a transsexual.
  59. What the f........ by EmperorOfCanada · · Score: 1

    Maybe if they were grinding up the camels live (legs first) for fuel for their streetview vehicle. Or were dragging the camels behind the streetview vehicle, then they would have a point.

    I see PETA about the same way I do see camels, ornery, biting, spitting, smelly, animals

  60. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by afgun · · Score: 1

    But what about those poor bacteria's feelings !?!? They're slave labor!

  61. If two PETA members.... by Killer+Instinct · · Score: 2

    "If two PETA members are fighting, do we still call it a beef?"

    --
    #include bier;
    1. Re:If two PETA members.... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      A fight would break out if this happened

      Employee 1: "That's it! I'm joining a real animal rights organisation"
      Employee 2: Oh yeah! What would that be then
      Employee 1: The RSPCA.
      Employee 2: Put 'em up!

  62. How to make headlines by HnT · · Score: 1

    It is hilarious how these "ethics warriors" like peta and greenpeace always piggyback onto "hot" company names in their headlines. When anyone else is using a camel, seems like they don't care. If they can get a name like "Google" or even better "Apple" into the headline, oh then they jump right into action!
    Same with Greenpeace, the headline would be "APPLE datacenter directly burns the ozone layer" when actually Apple, amazon and a few others are sharing that new data center and the data center turned out to be using a surprising amount of renewable energy.

    This clearly shows how manipulative these so-called "NGOs" are and when you point this out you will quickly hear the self-proclaimed "ethical people" argue how the ends justify the means and "that's just how you do it" in the flood of information these days.

    So here is a nice headline like that: PETA murders more pets a year than any industry in the world! Oh and Hitler was a vegan, do you really want to be in THAT company?

    --
    "Only one thing is impossible for God: To find any sense in any copyright law on the planet." - Mark Twain
    1. Re:How to make headlines by davydagger · · Score: 1

      please don't lump PETA in with greenpeace.

      I mean greenpeace might do some dumb shit, but they aren't this level of dumb.

      If you need someone to lump PETA in with, make it the Westboro Baptist Church.

  63. Re: PETA won't be happy until all animals are exti by bickerdyke · · Score: 2

    I had sympathy during the short time when they were known as "people eat tasty animals"

    --
    bickerdyke
  64. PETA is a PITA by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Enough Said.

  65. PETA by GlennC · · Score: 2

    The headline could have stopped after the first four words.

    --
    Go on, citizen, stamp the vote card. R or D, your choice.
  66. They didn't used camels.. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    It was a dromedar.

    Just saying...

  67. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by Type44Q · · Score: 1

    Holy shit, man... I believe that might very well have been the most astute, intelligent and objective I've seen you post yet.

  68. Just can't win... by Skylinux · · Score: 2

    Use a drone -> Told you! They produce equipment for the military or CIA.

    Use a plane -> You know how many birds die to props each year? Murderers!

    Use a jeep -> Ohh gawd the environment!

    User solar powered vehicle -> WTF? You never get the energy back!

    Use a camel that is probably better cared for then dogs in PETA kennels -> Think of the animals!!!

    You just can't win.

    --
    Everyone who buys Wild Hunt will receive 16 specially prepared DLCs absolutely for free, regardless of platform.
    1. Re:Just can't win... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      relax, its just the equiv of the westboro baptist church

    2. Re:Just can't win... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      relax, its just the equiv of the westboro baptist church

      Either that, or the church of Scientology.

    3. Re:Just can't win... by Pontiac · · Score: 1

      Hot air balloon heated by the fury of enraged PETA members.

      --
      If you think it's expensive to hire a professional to do the job, wait until you hire an amateur. --Red Adair
    4. Re:Just can't win... by davydagger · · Score: 1

      If by win, you mean "please everyone on planet earth", then no.

      But if you read the rest of the comments, you'll see the rest of us think PETA is flaming mad, and need to shut the fuck up.

      Add one more to your list:

      More people would seriously be pissed at google for kow-towing to PETA that people would ever be pissed at google for using the camels.

      I think we need to revamp all articles about PETA to "PETA threatens technology XYZ with their batshit insane ramblings"

  69. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by Sarten-X · · Score: 1

    If you actually asked the question of "what does ethical corporate usage of beasts of burden look like?", you'd end up with a very complicated answer.

    On the other hand, why should there even be the concept of a "beast of burden"? The real question is "what does ethical interaction with animals look like?", and PETA seems to have taken the position that there is practically no such thing. To the PETA fanatics, any deviation from an animal's natural life is cruel. To an extent, they have a point - where mankind once relied on animals to provide capabilities humans do not possess, technology has now progressed to the point where there is little need for domesticated animals.

    Like in so many cases, the madness is perfectly reasonable from a particular perspective.

    --
    You do not have a moral or legal right to do absolutely anything you want.
  70. tell PETA to go pound sand by ChipMonk · · Score: 1

    Oh, wait, the camel already beat them to it.

  71. No link to PETA, PETA has no article by userw014 · · Score: 2

    The original article doesn't link to any kind of article on PETA's web site. In fact, the only reference I can find to this issue is from Mr. Clint Davis of Scripps.

    This is clearly troll-bait for people unhappy with PETA, whether PETA is engaging in a coverup of sorts, or Mr. Clint Davis has falsely attributed a quote to Ms. Newkirk.

    1. Re:No link to PETA, PETA has no article by ColdWetDog · · Score: 1

      Oops. STOP THE PReSSES!

      Oh. Wait.

      (Dumb caps filter)

      --
      Faster! Faster! Faster would be better!
    2. Re:No link to PETA, PETA has no article by SpankiMonki · · Score: 1

      mod up pls

  72. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Bacteria are not animals. Protozoa we might bitch about, but bacteria are off limits.

    Signed,
    PETA

  73. Flip this around in your head by jones_supa · · Score: 1

    Try this mental experiment. What if the article described Microsoft using camels for Bing map service? Would it change your view?

    1. Re:Flip this around in your head by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      About PETA? No.

      PETA does not act rationally. They act irrationally. No matter how people act they want more. The only logical answer is to ignore any request they have.

    2. Re:Flip this around in your head by ColdWetDog · · Score: 2

      Well yes, of course. Google likely used a Dromedary Camel as is standard for most uses. Microsoft would have used a Bactrian camel just to be different. That extra hump would have certainly changed the view.

      --
      Faster! Faster! Faster would be better!
    3. Re:Flip this around in your head by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      No.

  74. Fuck PETA by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Seriously. What a bunch of attention seeking whiners.

  75. PETA by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    People eating tasty animals

  76. Camels need jobs! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Trying to take jobs away from camels, and replace them with machines!?

  77. PETA is Not Happy by cout · · Score: 1

    The rest of the title was superfluous.

    1. Re:PETA Is Not Happy by WorBlux · · Score: 1

      Not true, voluntarily extincting yourself would make them very happy.

  78. And back to the regularly scheduled samzenpus FUD! by damn_registrars · · Score: 1

    It took a little while, but I knew we could count on him to promote another "look at the silly liberals" article to the front page. It had been almost a full week, so he was clearly due.

    --
    Damn_registrars has no butt-hole. Damn_registrars has no use for a butt-hole.
  79. So? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    If PETA had something to be happy about, that 'might' be news. The only thing interesting about them otherwise is their naked protests.

  80. PETA are not p.e.t.a. by tverbeek · · Score: 1

    People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals are an embarrassment to most people who are for the ethical treatment of animals. They are the intellectual equivalent of anti-vaxxers, homeopaths, and people without celiac disease who won't eat gluten.

    --
    http://alternatives.rzero.com/
    1. Re:PETA are not p.e.t.a. by davydagger · · Score: 1

      they are even below that, to the level of the westboro baptist church.

  81. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by mrbester · · Score: 1

    My pets have always had medical insurance. I have never had it. True, I'm in UK where it could be argued that I do because of the NHS, but they don't fund *everything*, unlike my pet's insurance, which is comprehensive and includes palliative care. My pets have better coverage than I do. So fuck you PETA.

    --
    "Wait. Something's happening. It's opening up! My God, it's full of apricots!"
  82. Animals aren't slaves! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    They're FOOD not slaves. Stop playing with your food and start eating it. To make your creatures work before consuming them is a kin to slavery. -peta

  83. New campaign by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    PETA out to destroy the environment. Suggests using carbon spewing modes of transport over greener options.

  84. The Camel Union. by geekmux · · Score: 1

    "These days, jeeps are in common use in the desert, as are light planes and even dune buggies, and satellite images could also easily have been taken instead," she said. "(Google) should leave camels out of its activites altogether."

    Aaaaand this is the part where we find the Royal Union of Camel Jockeys refused to allow Google to use anything but their approved methods of transport across said desert.

    Ironically, this has been a camels job for a few thousand years now, so I fail to see any inhumane treatment here. I'm assuming Google also should refuse the use of donkeys when documenting the grand canyon as well, or did they?

    In other words, When in Rome...

  85. PETA Is Not Happy by YrWrstNtmr · · Score: 1

    PETA is *never* happy. No matter what you do.

    Take care of animals? You're enslaving them.
    Leave them be? You're allowing them to be killed and eaten by other animals
    Bash their head in with a rock?? You murderer. Oh wait...that's OK.

  86. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    PETA don't like animals having any relationship with humans. They put down the vast majority of dogs they recieve rather than re-home them because they think that's more "humane" (and it's cheaper..)

    They would rather you killed the camel and used a jeep to travel across the desert.

    They are scum, and they won't be happy until there are no animals left on planet Earth except mankind.

    When that happens, the rest of us will happily hunt down the last remaining animal on the planet.

    I call it The PETA.

    It will soon be extinct after that. After all, they've served their purpose. No sense in keeping any of those animals around around after that.

  87. Fact Check Please!!! by halfdan+the+black · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Is this even true? I did some goggling, and could not find *any* official or otherwise direct statement from PETA.

    In any case, I think PETA badly dilutes its message by frequently saying borderline ridiculous statements.

    No living being should be subject to the kinds of torture in medical tests, period!.

    That begin said, there is no problem with animals and humans cooperating. Camels carry a load, and in return they are fed and cared for. Whats wrong with that. Its called a *symbiotic* relationship in case you forgot sixth grade ecology. If farm animals are well cared for, and killed instantly for meat, well, I guess I'm sort of essentially OK with that.

    1. Re:Fact Check Please!!! by SpankiMonki · · Score: 1

      heh, I didn't see your post before posting myself - or I simply would've replied to you. The only places on the net using the quote attributed to Newkirk are Scripps outlets, and they're all running the same story by the same author. Check out this.

    2. Re:Fact Check Please!!! by radarskiy · · Score: 1

      "I think PETA badly dilutes its message by frequently saying borderline ridiculous statements."

      They should stick to plainly and completely ridiculous statements.

  88. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by JerryLove · · Score: 1

    It relies on the premise that "killing is superior to interaction".

    "Don't ride horses: kill the horses to make way for an automobile factory and roads. That's more ethical"

    Since any position is going to be arbitrary (theirs or mine), I can't really dispute the conclusion (unless there's inconsistancy); but it seems a rather dumb one.

    To super-smart aliens. I'd rather you interact with me in a kind way than kill me.

  89. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by MtHuurne · · Score: 4, Informative

    In the particular case of dogs, I'd argue that having contact with humans is their natural way of living. Over ten thousand years of contact with humans has shaped the species. There is no way you can consider any dog to be not exposed to humans: it's in their genes.

  90. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by Dragonslicer · · Score: 1

    On the other hand, why should there even be the concept of a "beast of burden"? The real question is "what does ethical interaction with animals look like?", and PETA seems to have taken the position that there is practically no such thing. To the PETA fanatics, any deviation from an animal's natural life is cruel. To an extent, they have a point - where mankind once relied on animals to provide capabilities humans do not possess, technology has now progressed to the point where there is little need for domesticated animals.

    I guess that at least would make their killing of animals consistent with their ideology. For all of these species that only exist because of humans, they have no natural life, so the only solution is to eliminate the species. I still completely disagree with it, but maybe that's their end goal.

  91. You can't win with PETA by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Bunch of liars and they would complain that the jeep hurt some animals too.

  92. PETA by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Why the hell does People Eating Tasty Animals care about Google's camel? Is it because they didn't eat it? Are camels even tasty?

    Sheesh.

  93. Camel needs to feed his family by Aeros · · Score: 1

    But a camels got to make money to put food on the table for his family. Why is she trying to take that away?

  94. Damned if you do, damned if you don't. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Jeeps burn fossil fuels. Will someone please think of the environment??

  95. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    there has been a lot of good research done on dogs recently, and documentaries to go with it :P (i think one of them was done by NOVA)

    One theory suggests dogs sought out us and evolved into to domestication.

  96. Something's not quite right about this story by SpankiMonki · · Score: 1

    The only places the PETA president's quote can be found are Scripps media outlets, and they're all by the same author, and they all use the same friggin web template.

    "Google has no business using camels to 'cutesy up' its data-collection imagery," said Ingrid E. Newkirk...

  97. PETA... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I'm all for ethical treatment of animals, though I'm not at the stage of eliminating my animal-protein intake (though I have high hopes for lab barbecue).

    Leaving aside parallel questions of how we deal with global warming -- does Greenpeace also wants us to use a jeep? -- what is ethical regarding a camel? Must camels be left to ramble?

    I may be confused, but I had this vague idea that man is also a member of the animal kingdom... thus we can form simbiotic relations with other animals. Aside from the idea that we kill cattle to eat, growing them for milk seems beneficial for both species. Likewise, man and camel survive better together, supposedly, than alone. I think PETA should take that into consideration...

    There are other questions involved, but I'd like to see the local people's views on the issue. In principle, Google equipment makes sure someone is tracked constantly and so, I hope, easy to locate and save.

  98. The camel was going there anyways by csb · · Score: 1

    It was scheduled camel service; a re-positioning caravan back to the regional hub.
    You can easily search Camelaware for deadhead trips starting with 9xxx.

    To paraphrase Arianna Huffington on her private-jet travel (all while she was loudly decrying fossil fuel use):
    "The camel was going there anyways".

    --
    We reserve the right to serve refuse to anyone. -management
    1. Re:The camel was going there anyways by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      PETA should stop using fossil fuels. Those dead animals deserve to be buried in peace!

  99. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by Jason+Levine · · Score: 1

    Oh definitely. I absolutely don't subscribe to PETA's views. It's a shame really. I'm for the humane treatment of animals and hate seeing animals abused. However, PETA takes this reasonable position and then continues into Crazy Territory of "Any contact with humans is abuse." I grew up with dogs in our house. They were like members of the family and weren't abused at all. They led wonderful, full lives and were loved. If it weren't for various reasons (allergies, financial constraints, living space issues), I'd probably have a dog now also.

    --
    My sci-fi novel, Ghost Thief, is now available from Amazon.com.
  100. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by bluegutang · · Score: 2

    Of course, with $35 million in annual revenue, who can afford to take care of the animals, what with paying all the salaries for the people working for PETA to exploit them? PETA's job is to raise funds to pay PETA salaries.

    Reminds me of the Westboro Baptist Church...

  101. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by macs4all · · Score: 3, Interesting

    The Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services report on their investigation [huffingtonpost.com] found that 94% of the animals given to PETA for adoption were instead euthanized, 90% within one day.

    Are you kidding me, Barbara???

    Yow!!! As someone who still has nightmares about the two pets (dogs) I have had to have euthanized, one with Osteosarcoma at 17 years old in 2009, and the other with Cronic Renal Failure and Adrenal Gland Cancer at age 13 just last July, something like that makes me insane...

    At the risk of getting flamed for "Godwin-ing", I just thought they were a way-over-the-top animal protection group; not the ones who had the "Final Solution" to animal cruelty...

  102. And then... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    There was this!

    https://www.google.com/maps/@29.9801434,31.1329167,3a,61.6y,7.2h,75.7t/data=!3m5!1e1!3m3!1s4kMVBkAqHDtn1GlhULzpFA!2e0!3e5

  103. Fuck BETA by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Fuck PETA

  104. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by BarbaraHudson · · Score: 2

    A lot of people are noticing the similarities between the two. Crazy over-the-top behavior and a holier-than-everyone-else attitude.

    --
    "Transparent" is a shit show that trades on every stereotype going. A man in drag is NOT a transsexual.
  105. Speaks volumes for PETAs acceptance by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Have any of you ever read an article involving google and *ANY* other party, where people unanimously seem to side with Google on this site!?.

    Good job PETA you for the first time on /. have united the people.

  106. And...? by Anonymous+Psychopath · · Score: 1

    No one cares what PETA thinks except PETA. This is because reasonable people still outnumber the idiots, even though it doesn't seem that way most of the time.

    --

    Eagles may soar, but weasels don't get sucked into jet engines.

  107. CITATION NEEDED by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I see a lot of Faux News talking points in this discussion. Any actual, you know, PROOF?

  108. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by ilparatzo · · Score: 1

    I would imagine that many groups that started out fighting for what they felt was a good cause, eventually reach this point as they grow in numbers, strength and financial backing. I suppose they reach a point where they need to get into the limelight in any way that they can to keep the money coming in to fund the bloat. Not to mention to keep the fanatics within the ranks satiated.

    I would imagine that deep in the tombs of PETA headquarters is a document that shows the worst outcome that could arise due to the organization .... they get everything they ask for and they no longer have a place in society.

  109. NOT a Tasty Animal! by jlv · · Score: 1

    Yuck. I wouldn't want to eat a Camel. That's it, the PETA sticker has to go from my car.

  110. I agree! by Lumpy · · Score: 1

    Camel is a nasty tasting meat.

    google should have used a different animal that is far tastier.

    Wait, PETA stands for People Eating Tasty Animals....... right?

    --
    Do not look at laser with remaining good eye.
  111. Re:PETA Won't be Happy by sudon't · · Score: 3, Interesting

    They remind me of a certain person I know who, rather than give away a pair of cats she could no longer keep, had them euthanized. Her logic was along the lines of: No one could love them, or give them a better home than me, so they're better off dead.

    In terms of what they do with their funding, i.e., pay out very nice salaries, PETA is no different from other charities. The biggest beneficiaries of most charities are the executives of that charity.

    --
    -- sudon't

    Air-ride Equipped

  112. Re: PETA won't be happy until all animals are exti by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    They still are. They have to do *something* with the animals they put down.

  113. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by CanHasDIY · · Score: 2

    Put both groups in a sealed room with a puppy, a gay baby, and enough cudgels to go around.

    The problem will solve itself.

    --
    An enigma, wrapped in a riddle, shrouded in bacon and cheese
  114. Did anyone ask the camel? by Jodka · · Score: 1

    I do not know any camels personally but I grew up with horses and I can tell you they like to work. Sure, they would always rather be eating, like pigs but with longer legs. Yet some of them seem to enjoy the company of people and are eager to please. Imagine a large vegetarian dog. Camels are a different species but the point here is that there is no basis a priori to believe that the camel was abused or even inconvenienced by taking a walk in the desert with a camera on its back. Sure, it seems miserably hot and dry, but we are anthropomorphising;Camels are adapted to the desert.

    Some animals do suffer terrible abuse in the hands of people which makes it especially unfortunate that an organization dedicated to their rescue and protection is governed by batshit crazy people like Ingrid Newkirk. Unfortunate both because their antics discourage mainstream donations and support, and because the donations which they do receive are often misdirected to this kind of bullshit. (or camelshit.)

    That is the problem with "good causes." They can be perverted or hijacked to serve any end and are impossible to oppose successfully. Who strongly defended Bill Clinton's serial molestations and ignored Bob Packwood's? Women's rights activists. What group works hardest to trap poor children in failing schools by blocking reform? The National Education Association. What legislation encroaches on the rights of patients, guarantees profits for insurance companies and is making health insurance increasingly unaffordable for the middle class? The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. And remember the Patriot Act?

    Self promotion of your own virtue is a gambit. A good cause is a power grab. If you want to succeed in acts unpopular, illegitimate, or harmful, first enshrine yourself as a public symbol of virtue.

    --
    Ceci n'est pas une signature.
  115. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by CanHasDIY · · Score: 1

    To super-smart aliens. I'd rather you interact with me in a kind way than kill me.

    If they're super-smart, they'll avoid interaction with the criminally insane primates who rule this planet all-together.

    --
    An enigma, wrapped in a riddle, shrouded in bacon and cheese
  116. People by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    And people should ride horses, even though they can no longer survive without humans (much like camels)

    1. Re:People by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      shouldn't, typo ;)

  117. Re:PETA Won't be Happy by brunes69 · · Score: 1

    I will never understand why people euthanize cats instead of at least driving them out into the middle of the woods and setting them free so that they have a shot at life. Cats are APEX PREDATORS. They can do just fine without you. Let the kitten grow a month or two until it is a decent size, then set it loose.

    If PETA's problem with this is "cat overpopulation", then they are being quite hypocritical because it's nothing more than a human invention; the most natural thing to do is just let wild cats be and let nature take care of the population dynamic.

  118. Camels are sustainable by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Jeeps are not.

    PETA are a bunch of global warming deniers!

  119. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by bluegutang · · Score: 1

    Put them in a sealed room with a gay puppy and enough cudgels to go around. Problem solved :)

  120. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by Gaalin · · Score: 1

    Where's the study on what PETA does with the animal corpses? I'm forced to wonder who benifits from a policy that exterminates 94% of the charges in their care, it certainley isn't the animal.

  121. FUnny logic by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Sp PETA is ok to use jeep that causes harm to fragile decert enviroment instead of using camels that have been there thousands of years and are very enviromental friendly?

  122. Why by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Why are we giving these pathetic losers attention?

  123. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    When they run out of animals, they'll start with humans, first the asylums ... then the prisons ...

  124. PETA = The Onion by superdave80 · · Score: 1

    Seriously, PETA sounds stupider and stupider every time I see them mentioned in the news. They are actually upset that A CAMEL WAS ALLOWED TO WALK IN THE DESERT! The Onion couldn't have come up with a better headline to make fun of PETA with. Does anybody actually take PETA seriously anymore?

    1. Re:PETA = The Onion by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Sorry. My reply is lost in the grass because I'm AC. Maybe you won't see this, either.

      A great Onion story on PeTA

  125. Don't worry, PETA by Mike+Buddha · · Score: 1

    Don't worry PETA, I'm sure they killed the camels like you do with all the animals in your shelters.

    --
    by Mike Buddha -- Someday the mountain might get him, but the law never will.
  126. PITA IS UNHAPPY by JimSadler · · Score: 1

    PITA is always unhappy. PITA is misrable. PITA is a scew ball org. that can not discern the difference between cruelty and reality. No sane person wants animals mistreated. But the nature of PITA is such that tossing a frisbee to my dog would be seen as an assault on the dog. They are simply sick old women with amplified sensitivities many of whom seek a career with a pay check and some power. Did they ever bother to think about how many camels would exist if they were not working animals? How many chickens would be alive if we gave up eating chicken and eggs? In my area if race horses and polo horses and show horses were banned we would never see a horse. PITA simply fails the sanity test.

    1. Re:PITA IS UNHAPPY by viperidaenz · · Score: 1

      It's PETA, not PITA

      I'm pretty sure it's People Eating Tasty Animals, not Pain In The Ass.

  127. Use or Lose by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Quite right too! Camels are for eating, not using.

  128. Won't somebody think of the Sea Kittens! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I'll take this protest about as seriously as I would from any organization who proclaimed forevermore that all fish be called Sea Kittens . I shit you not.

  129. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by i+kan+reed · · Score: 2

    Any living creatures are going to evolve from simpler species that needed to struggle with each other for resources to survive. Any species which has some way to maintain knowledge for advanced scientific study is going to have to evolve/learn to work together more recently in their past, or else knowledge dies with individuals.

    The reality is that while morphological and chemical and genetic differences with extraterrestrials will doubtlessly be profound, the inevitable common backstory of evolution will give them some behavioral similarities. "Criminally insane" is our modern, cooperative brains examining our more competitive behavioral roots and seeing the innate conflict.

  130. Attentian Whores by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    PETA is a group of hypocritical attention whores.

    Best thing is to ignore them.

    Way to go /. giving them what they want.

  131. No. by faedle · · Score: 1

    Can we just stop giving PeTA any attention? They're 100% trolls. The sooner we all ignore them the sooner they go away.

    1. Re:No. by Firethorn · · Score: 1

      The problem is that they still get money from normal people who don't realize their real agenda. It's a bit like smoking way back in the day - people didn't know it was harmful*, the tobacco companies were pushing untrue messages, etc...

      PETA, the organization is a lot like that. They push a specific variation on their message to the world(be ethical about the treatment of animals!) that is non-offensive to the majority of people. As a result, pet owners will donate money to them, thinking that PETA is a bit like the old NRA(which put the money towards safety education, safe firing ranges, and such) - that their money would go towards animal shelters, education, fighting animal abuse, etc... They don't realize that their money is used to fund overpaid executives and push radical agendas.

      As such, we need to scream it to the rafters until enough people know to give to their local animal shelter over PETA and PETA goes bankrupt.

      *Well, many did, but it wasn't advertised, there were a lot of truly ignorant people.

      --
      I don't read AC A human right
  132. Silly PETA - It wasn't a camel... by jpellino · · Score: 1

    it was a horse designed by committee.

    --
    "Win treats sysadmins better than users. Mac treats users better than sysadmins. Linux treats everyone like sysadmins."
  133. People Eating Tasty Animals by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    So what would be better, for the camel to be used to do what it does best - walk the desert - or be turned into McArabia hamburger?

  134. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    "They are scum, and they won't be happy until there are no animals left on planet Earth except PETA members."
    TFIFY

  135. STFU by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Dear Peta,

    In that part of the world, the camels ARE the Jeeps! They're used for transportation probably more so than horses.

    Get over yourself already!

    Jeez!!!!

  136. So we got ISIS, EBOLA and war by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    But pleaseeeeee save the camels.....

    Seriously don't these people have anything better to do?

  137. Fuck PETA. by BenLutgens · · Score: 1

    No additional comment necessary.

    --
    "If you love someone, set them free. If they come home, set them on fire." - George Carlin
  138. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Not enough of it for them to say "I kill me!" and then follow through with it.

    Also, the cat had to be terrified.

  139. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by quantaman · · Score: 1, Interesting

    I was skeptical about the claim that PETA euthanizes so many animals, but studies say it's true, and may even understate the situation.

    The Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services report on their investigation found that 94% of the animals given to PETA for adoption were instead euthanized, 90% within one day.

    This is not ethical treatment of animals. There's no "nuance" here. Putting the vast majority of healthy pets to death rather than trying to find homes for them is cruel and highly unusual.

    Of course, with $35 million in annual revenue, who can afford to take care of the animals, what with paying all the salaries for the people working for PETA to exploit them? PETA's job is to raise funds to pay PETA salaries. The animals are just raw material to be exploited, then tossed in a dumpster

    I'm not a fan of PETA by any stretch but I can't criticize them for this.

    I'm sure PETA would adopt out all of the animals they were given if there were enough people willing to adopt them. But the fact is there simply aren't that many people looking for pets, and the people who are looking generally don't want the kinds of pets who are given up for adoption.

    So given there's no one to adopt those animals what do you propose they do with them? Pets require a lot of food and care, you basically have a choice between storing them in conditions that are slightly expensive and really horrific, really expensive and somewhat pleasant, or cheaply euthanizing them. Given the fact that $35 million is completely insufficient to humanely care for that many animals what would you suggest they do instead?

    --
    I stole this Sig
  140. Re:PETA Won't be Happy by Somebody+Is+Using+My · · Score: 2

    Because most house cats are actually unable to live that well in the wild. Though they have the hunting instincts natural to their species, it actually requires some experience (usually learned during kittenhood and young adulthood) to put those instincts to best use; most cats cannot hunt well enough to sustain them long enough to gain the necessary skills.

    Obviously cats which have lived outdoors - farmcats or free-roaming pets - have a better chance at survival than indoor-only house-cats, but even free-roaming pets fare poorly compared to feral animals that have lived their lives entirely on their own wits.

    Cats also aren't safe from predation; owls and hawks won't pass them by when they are young and even after they achieve full size, coyotes and foxes are known to go after them. Housecats also have a poorer chance at finding good shelter in bad weather, and usually have to fight feral cats for territory, which further hampers their chances.

    Putting a pampered house cat into the wild and expecting it to survive because "it's a cat" is thoughtless; it will likely live a very short life before dying miserably in a ditch somewhere.

    Whether that option is better than euthanizing the animal is debatable and probably dependent on the beliefs of the owner. The proper option is to spend the time and money to get the animal properly placed, but dumping the feline is cruel and shouldn't even be a consideration.

    Sad caveat: the ferals and strays in my town are very well cared for by well-meaning locals; many are fed daily, and have had their shots and been neutered. Unfortunately, this care just encourages more people to dump the animals in our neighborhood.

  141. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by CanHasDIY · · Score: 1

    Your opinion has been noted. I argue that human behavior in general (ie, as a species) is not confluent with the aforementioned belief, and submit pretty much every news broadcast I've seen in my lifetime as evidence.

    Agent K said it best: a person is smart; "people" are dumb, panicky animals, and you know it.

    The only attribute he left out was "violent"

    --
    An enigma, wrapped in a riddle, shrouded in bacon and cheese
  142. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by BarbaraHudson · · Score: 1
    I still miss my newfie, my st. bernard, and my other newfie. (I stole the second newfie from a city pound when an animal rescue group got hold of me and told me it was going to be put down first thing in the morning, just walk in and take it, the person working there would look the other way provided I got there within the next 15 minutes - the other two were also from pounds). Cancer got the two newfs, and a wasting disease of the hind legs was the indirect cause of the infection that got the st. bernard.

    I've got my mutt (who's now also getting old), and a couple of dogs from two neighbors (one who thinks he lives here, and one who wants to live here :-) So sorry for your loss, because I know what it's like.

    Anyway, gotta go walk the dogs ...

    --
    "Transparent" is a shit show that trades on every stereotype going. A man in drag is NOT a transsexual.
  143. Re:PETA Won't be Happy by brunes69 · · Score: 1

    What you say above is absolutely not backed up from what I read. Source:

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/F...

    A long-term study of a trap-neuter-return (TNR) program in Central Florida found that despite widespread concern about the welfare of free-roaming cats, 83% of the cats studied had been present for over six years, with almost half first observed as adults of unknown age. These time spans compared favourably to the average lifespan of 7.1 years for pet cats reported in a 1984 study,[8]:45 and to the finding that only 42% of the pet cat population in the U.S. is more than 5 years old.[9]:1358

    Adult feral cats without human assistance have been found in surprisingly good condition. In Florida, a study of feral cats admitted to a trap-neuter-return (TNR) program concluded that "euthanasia for debilitated cats for humane reasons is rarely necessary".[10] A further study of over 100,000 community cats (feral and stray) admitted to TNR programs in diverse locations of the U.S. resulted in the same 0.4% rate of euthanasia for debilitating conditions.

  144. Re:PETA Won't be Happy by BarbaraHudson · · Score: 2

    They remind me of a certain person I know who, rather than give away a pair of cats she could no longer keep, had them euthanized. Her logic was along the lines of: No one could love them, or give them a better home than me, so they're better off dead.

    ^ THIS.

    We were discussing the killing of his two children by cardiologist Guy Turcotte yesterday (found not criminally responsible, now under appeal). I was arguing with my sister, saying that you'd pretty much *have* to have something wrong in the head to kill your own kids - even if it doesn't rise to the level of insanity. She was saying, No, she could see how some people just get really pissed off and kill.

    I guess if people can think this way about defenseless pets, it might be the same for their children. But it still seems royally messed up to me. If I were a juror on that case, I would want to hear the experts before making a decision, because that whole way of thinking just doesn't compute.

    --
    "Transparent" is a shit show that trades on every stereotype going. A man in drag is NOT a transsexual.
  145. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I in no way support PETA, but before we all jump on the crazy hate bandwagon PETA do have a point here:

    "PETA told the Daily Mail that the animals they take in at the center are usually difficult to find homes for and would presumably end up being euthanized anyway: “Most of the animals we take in are society’s rejects: aggressive, on death’s door or somehow unadoptable,” Dollinger noted"

    I think we would need to take a closer look before judging. Of course I have not gone to the source myself and read all of it so......

  146. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by hondo77 · · Score: 1
    --
    I live ze unknown. I love ze unknown. I am ze unknown.
  147. I hate Peta but why not use a jeep? by thetoadwarrior · · Score: 1

    A camel seems really inefficient. I'd say eat camel for lunch while riding your jeep around the desert.

  148. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by BarbaraHudson · · Score: 2

    Come on, putting down an animal just hours after you get it? Not using their network of supporters to say "here, we have these animals that need homes?"

    Given the fact that $35 million is completely insufficient to humanely care for that many animals what would you suggest they do instead?

    They took in just under 30,000 animals. $35 million pays for a LOT of pet food (and pet food manufacturers are big donors to shelters, so even that expense can be mitigated). And shelters use volunteer staff, which, last time I volunteered, didn't cost them a penny.

    Fostering animals out to temporary homes usually costs just the food, while the animal waits for a placement - and a lot of times those foster homes end up keeping the animal rather than let it go back to the pound.

    $35 million a year, to place less than two thousand animals annually? Really? That's a pure for-profit business. Disgusting.

    --
    "Transparent" is a shit show that trades on every stereotype going. A man in drag is NOT a transsexual.
  149. Re:PETA Won't be Happy by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    If you're going to do something like this, at *least* make sure it's spayed/neutered first. But then think of the damage you could do to an ecosystem if injecting said ecosystem with cats were done on a big enough scale.

  150. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    If the 90% euthanization rate within ONE DAY is true, then do you really think that is a fair amount of time to wait for someone to adopt the animal before putting it down? _one_ _day_.

  151. PETA kills animals! by xanadu113 · · Score: 1

    They can talk to me about animal cruelty when they no longer hold the record for most animals killed in a shelter.

    --
    -Myke
  152. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by quantaman · · Score: 1

    Come on, putting down an animal just hours after you get it? Not using their network of supporters to say "here, we have these animals that need homes?"

    Sure, if you know from experience that the particular animal will be almost impossible to place.

    Given the fact that $35 million is completely insufficient to humanely care for that many animals what would you suggest they do instead?

    They took in just under 30,000 animals. $35 million pays for a LOT of pet food (and pet food manufacturers are big donors to shelters, so even that expense can be mitigated). And shelters use volunteer staff, which, last time I volunteered, didn't cost them a penny.

    Fostering animals out to temporary homes usually costs just the food, while the animal waits for a placement - and a lot of times those foster homes end up keeping the animal rather than let it go back to the pound.

    $35 million a year, to place less than two thousand animals annually? Really? That's a pure for-profit business. Disgusting.

    First PETA doesn't take in $35 million a year to place less than two thousand animals. They take in $35 million to do everything that PETA currently does which includes paying 300 employees.

    And yes, they'd get some food donations and volunteers, but do you realize how much food donations and volunteers would be required to care for 30,000 animals? And that's just for one year, animals typically live longer than that and with a no-kill policy they'd soon end up housing over a hundred thousand animals. Unless you expect them to have a small city dedicated to caring for those animals euthanasia is your only option.

    --
    I stole this Sig
  153. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by BarbaraHudson · · Score: 2
    Did you even READ the links on the Times story? How perfectly healthy animals are euthanized? How a government inspection found that 90% of all animals are euthanized within less than 24 hours? That's not even time enough to do an evaluation.

    To PETA, "somehow unadoptable" translates into "Oh, we can't sell this mutt or this mixed-breed cat to a pet store for big bucks like we could with a pure-bred, so put it down."

    --
    "Transparent" is a shit show that trades on every stereotype going. A man in drag is NOT a transsexual.
  154. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by BarbaraHudson · · Score: 1

    No. Taking the worst of the worst shelter practices is a bogus argument. Passing laws against animal cruelty (both in shelters, breeders, and owners), along with enforcement, is the proper way to fix the problem. Not "OMG look at how bad THEY are" when PETA is just as bad in it's own way.

    --
    "Transparent" is a shit show that trades on every stereotype going. A man in drag is NOT a transsexual.
  155. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by quantaman · · Score: 2

    If the 90% euthanization rate within ONE DAY is true, then do you really think that is a fair amount of time to wait for someone to adopt the animal before putting it down? _one_ _day_.

    If they have enough experience to know the animal won't get adopted then yes.

    Think of it this way. PETA is the most extreme of the major animal rights organizations, they're staffed by people who are so passionate that they're willing to endure ridicule and crappy pay to work for them.

    Now either these animal rights nutbags who won't even drink milk because it enslaves cows are at the same time committing a completely unnecessary massacre of pets every day. Or, you've completely underestimated the necessity of euthanization.

    --
    I stole this Sig
  156. Just on general principles... by frank_adrian314159 · · Score: 1

    I make it a point to not use camels* at all. For they are, in actuality, exceedingly nasty creatures. If Google (for some unfathomable reason) did choose camels over Jeeps, it must have been done because all of the Jeeps in the country had been rented for the weekend. Why the hell would they otherwise want to deal with such an obstinate, unruly, hateful creature as that**?

    *Or, in fact, any camelids.
    ** Well, other than Eric Schmidt, and to be fair, he is CEO after all.

    --
    That is all.
  157. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by BarbaraHudson · · Score: 1

    They do NOT need to take care of 30,000 animals year-round. Most adoption centers place their animals as quickly as possible. They use their networks of contacts, TV and radio, the internet, the newspapers, to place animals.

    The local SPCA takes in 14,000 animals a year, and places 90% of them. They're not the only shelter in the area either. Now when you consider that PETA takes in just over that nation-wide, there's a problem.

    So, the facts say otherwise. PETA is there for the benefit of PETA, first, last, whatever.

    --
    "Transparent" is a shit show that trades on every stereotype going. A man in drag is NOT a transsexual.
  158. Hey PETA... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Don't you have some more rescued pets and abused animals to euthanize? How about choking down a few more servings of hypocrisy towards animals used for medical research, you diabetic oxygen thieves?

  159. Re:PETA Won't be Happy by Immerman · · Score: 1

    Umm, no, cat's are categorically NOT apex predators. They're just above rodents on the food chain, and prime prey for a whole range of medium-sized predators: coyotes, large owls, eagles, etc. And they know it - ever heard the phrases "scaredy cat" or "skittish as a cat"? You're not that skittish as a species unless you're in real danger. Look at elk as a counterexample - aside from hunting season when they've rediscovered that humans are dangerous they're pretty much fearless - we've long since eradicated all the large predators that could seriously threaten them - even a mere handful of elk have little to fear from a large wolf pack.

    Dump a domesticated cat in the woods and you're not giving them a new life, you're sentencing them to a short, exciting adventure that rapidly ends with them as an entree. Now dump them in a back aley someplace and things may be different - they have to survive against stray dogs and the occasional urban coyote, but by and large the potential predators are all well fed, the rodent population is booming, and the environment is something they're basically familiar with. Unless they were raised as strictly indoor cats, in which case it's a question of how fast they can learn to fend for themselves.

    --
    --- Most topics have many sides worth arguing, allow me to take one opposite you.
  160. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by Immerman · · Score: 1

    Not really. How prevalent are dogs, horses, cows, domesticated pigs, chickens, etc,etc,etc, in the wild? Not very - they were bred to be useful to humans and tend to not survive long except in places thoroughly dominated by humans - where predators are few and the scavenging is good.

    --
    --- Most topics have many sides worth arguing, allow me to take one opposite you.
  161. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by quantaman · · Score: 1

    They do NOT need to take care of 30,000 animals year-round. Most adoption centers place their animals as quickly as possible. They use their networks of contacts, TV and radio, the internet, the newspapers, to place animals.

    The local SPCA takes in 14,000 animals a year, and places 90% of them. They're not the only shelter in the area either. Now when you consider that PETA takes in just over that nation-wide, there's a problem.

    So, the facts say otherwise. PETA is there for the benefit of PETA, first, last, whatever.

    Well according to the source:

    The majority of adoptable dogs are never brought through our doors (we refer them to local adoption groups and walk-in animal shelters). Most of the animals we house, rescue, find homes for, or put out of their misery come from miserable conditions, which often lead to successful prosecution and the banning of animal abusers from ever owning or abusing animals again.

    So according to PETA the reason for their outsized euthanasia rate is their population of incoming animals is highly atypical.

    Now you can assume they're lying and misleading, and the most extreme of the pro animal rights groups is also killing animals for fun, or you can consider the fact they're euthanizing those animals for a very good reason.

    I don't understand why you're so convinced that these people who are so zealous they'll work for next to nothing are also killing animals for no cause.

    --
    I stole this Sig
  162. Subject is overly verbose. by Mal-2 · · Score: 1

    It's not often that there is too much information packed into a /. headline, but this is one.

    Thing is, "PeTA Is Not Happy" would not be news. They're never happy.

    --
    How is the Riemann zeta function like Trump rallies? Both have an endless number of trivial zeros.
  163. You laugh, but 60 years ago, blacks were just by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    camels. The idea that they should be allowed to do anything except drive people around (and by people I of coarse mean crackers) was seen as ridiculous. I mean if we can give equal rights to blacks why can't we give equal rights to camels. If we guys can marry homosexuals, why can't guys marry cars, or printers or goats or camels. Nothing like a little man on camel love. Also if we can freely kill dogs and cut off their balls because they are overpopulating because there are not enough responsible dog owners, why can't we do the same thing with blacks. You say oh oh, but dogs are not as smart as black people, well retards are not that smart, does that mean we can keep them on the farm and use them for free labor. I wan't to know. The conclusions that society draws about values seem completely arbitrary and change 180 degrees every 20 years or so. When I was growing up, conservatives USians supported muslims in their fight against the godless communist menace. Today conservatives want to attack muslims because they believe in guns and god. Also they love president putin. Fuck. Nothing makes any sense. I know one thing for certain. That is I must kill a camel, because if I don't they will start invading my country and stealing my women. I can't have that. Must kill camels and baby seals

  164. PETA, meet STFU by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Go away, you're useless and a nuisance to society.

  165. Fuck PETA and the camel they rode in on... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    ...wait, they use a climate-damaging Jeep. Can't make anyone happy. Stupid twats.

  166. Heroic PETA Commandos Kill 49, Save Rabbit by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I'm sure this is a real story

    NORFOLK, VA—In what has been dubbed the most "devastating and brutal siege in the history of animal-rights activism," an elite, paramilitary squad of commandos from People For The Ethical Treatment Of Animals (PETA) attacked and killed 49 employees at Couture Cosmetics' Norfolk, VA, research facility while saving a rabbit during a daring midnight raid Monday.

    Captcha: Soldier (not kidding)

  167. Feral=/=Stray by Cinnamon+Beige · · Score: 1

    Feral cats are cats that grew up in the wild, know how to hunt, and can survive. They never lived with humans, on the whole cannot become house pets, and are quite capable of surviving.

    Stray cats are cats that used to be pets that, for various reasons, are not. Most cannot hunt on their own, as this is a learned behavior that is unlikely to happen with a cat that has always been a house pet, and should never be released out into the wild.

    This is not a strict rule, but a very good rule of thumb; my family did have a cat that was quite able to hunt, but his mother had been a feral who had successfully transitioned into being a house pet who had made sure her kittens learned. (There were many live crickets released into the house by her for the purpose of hunting instruction of kittens, so it's not necessarily something you want to live through and is something you are likely to notice happening.) If you don't know the cat's origins and the cat is doing quite well as a house pet, assume that the cat doesn't know how to hunt.

    The local group that deals with feral cats is pretty damn clear about the differences: TNR for life-time ferals, strays and kittens adopted out. In some areas, managed semi-feral cat colonies are used for rodent control--most commonly in the form of barn cats, who seem to think of humans as being large animals that generally don't hurt them but do annoyingly tend to scare off food.

  168. Hypocrisy by aristotle-dude · · Score: 1

    Peta actually hate and kill animals they "rescue".
    Peoples Democratic Republic countries are neither run for the people or democratic.
    Democrat parties are not very democratic.
    Libertarians seem to want a lot of laws enshrining "gay" rights for some reason.
    Progressives are not very progressive as they seem to hate free speech, protection of individuals rights of those they disagree with and seem disinterested in the needs of the poor and homeless.
    Small "l" liberals are not willing to standup for values such as democracy, freedom of speech, freedom from being killed for being the wrong gender or religion when the perpetrators are muslim and start accusing those who do speak out as "racist" when Islam is a religion and not a race.

    --
    Jesus was a compassionate social conservative who called individuals to sin no more.
  169. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by macs4all · · Score: 0

    and a couple of dogs from two neighbors (one who thinks he lives here, and one who wants to live here :-)

    The dogs, or the neighbors, want to live there? ;-)

    BTW, thanks for your kind words.

    You know, as much as I loved my late Sister and my late Mom, I hardly EVER "talk to them". But I never, ever pass by the kitchen window (which looks upon where my two dogs are buried) without telling them they're "good boys", and/or "Daddy loves them", etc. And same thing when I pass by their graves (they're buried side-by-side in separate, home-built, quilt-lined "coffins"), I always say at least "Hi, babies!" to them...

    Yes, it is a profound thing to be the instrument of death for something so innocent, loving and loved. A VERY profound thing. Even though I know academically that I was doing the right thing, you can almost NEVER know whether THEY feel it's "Time to Go"... And that is what tears me up, and will likely continue to tear me up for some time to come.

    And even though we have gotten a new Mutt (all my dogs have been mixed-breed), this one a sweetie-pie male Pit Bull mix that was being abandoned by (yet another) next-door neighbor who "Couldn't take him with them...", and have already had dozens of heartwarming and funner-than-fun, laugh-out-loud moments with him, there is still a hole in my heart where my babies C.J. and Little Bit live on...

  170. Idiots by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Fuck PETA retards - not a brain cell in their heads.

  171. When jeeps replace camels... by ebcdic · · Score: 1

    ... there won't be any more camels.

  172. PETA vs Greenpeace, FIGHT! by mattack2 · · Score: 1

    Let them fight it out.

  173. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    We get it, dude! You fucking work for PETA so they can do no wrong. You and the tranny can quit your bitching!

  174. The real news by ttucker · · Score: 1

    The real news will be when PETA likes something.

  175. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by quantaman · · Score: 1

    We get it, dude! You fucking work for PETA so they can do no wrong. You and the tranny can quit your bitching!

    On the contrary I think PETA is completely ridiculous in their view of animal rights.

    What I'm arguing against is bone-headed criticism of them. Of all the things PETA is guilty of being callous towards animals is not one of them.

    --
    I stole this Sig
  176. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by BarbaraHudson · · Score: 2

    I've found that, for me, when I'm finally able to admit it's time to help them on, they really do need my help for that, because as much as they want to stay with me, they're also in a bad way. Cancer is not pretty when it spreads and leaves a once-proud friend a hurting shadow of themselves, just skin and bones and fur.

    I've stayed with every one while the needle went in, and in every case I was losing a best friend, a family member, and (because they were/are all instrumental in helping me deal with ptsd on a daily basis), real life-savers. And writing this makes me cry again, because I know that there is no way that I deserved such good dogs, no matter how much I tell myself that they turned out good because of the way I treated them. They're special, and I'll always remember them.

    --
    "Transparent" is a shit show that trades on every stereotype going. A man in drag is NOT a transsexual.
  177. Re:PETA Won't be Happy by spazzmo · · Score: 1

    Where I'm from (Aotearoa - New Zealand) we have endangered native birds and dumping imported predators like cats in their habitat is very irresponsible behaviour.

    --
    The cheese stands alone...
  178. Release all the farm animals into the wild... by rHBa · · Score: 1

    I wonder how many healthy camels live WILD in the middle east? If they weren't useful animals (to humans) I bet they'd be an endangered species.

    It seems PETA won't be happy until they release all the cows, sheep, pigs, chickens etc into the wild to live a 'natural' life...

    ...where they will be killed by traffic or poachers or people who want to use their land for something else or real wild animals or starvation or natural f***ing selection because they've been bred to live in captivity for 100s of years.

    I can't speak for the rest of the world but if there was no money to be made breeding cattle (for example) in the UK then cows would become extinct within a year.

  179. PETA won't be happy until all animals are extinct by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Actually I think they are more People for the Unethical Treatment of Animals, hmmm whats the acronym for that?

  180. Camels live in the desert by mo0n_sniper · · Score: 1

    "Anyone who has read about or visited that area knows that camels have a hard lot in life." Ingrid Newkirk, you retarded monkey, camels live in the desert.

  181. holy mama by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    omg, this is so dumb. In the last 20 years, half of the world's wild animal population has disappeared. Each hour, in an average slaughting place, 10.000 chickens are killed, and there are so many of them. but using a transport animal for doing what it was born for, is a scandal. simply amazing!

  182. PETA, huh? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    PETA needs to die in a fire. Self righteous fucktards. Next we must give every animal (especially mosquitos) citizenship and the right to vote and drive and their own entrances to our buildings, because rights.

  183. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by Lemmeoutada+Collecti · · Score: 1

    And it's not just dogs. There is ample evidence that dogs, cats, and several other animals have us humans well trained in their care. Some could even argue that it is the dogs who domesticated us as much as we have them.

    Now if you will excuse me, the Master and Mistress of the house have determined that it it time for a lap and attention.

    --

    You can have it fast, accurate, or pretty. Pick any 2.
  184. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Ethics are difficult and nuanced...

    No, they are not. Ethics are dead simple. Keep your hands off others and their property unless you have their permission. The end. Sure, being ethical can be difficult but most adults with a functioning brain know what is and isn't ethical.

  185. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by Reziac · · Score: 1
    --
    ~REZ~ #43301. Who'd fake being me anyway?
  186. People Eating Tasty Animals. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Google should have used Ingrid to map the desert .....

  187. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by Reziac · · Score: 1

    quantaman says: "Of all the things PETA is guilty of being callous towards animals is not one of them."

    Really??

    https://www.petakillsanimals.c...

    This isn't something that was made up by their detractors. It's cold hard facts PETA left in a dumpster for all the world to see.

    --
    ~REZ~ #43301. Who'd fake being me anyway?
  188. Coulda stopped at... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    PETA Is Not Happy.

  189. In the news today by kaatochacha · · Score: 1

    PETA is angry about [very sensible and barely arguable thing] because it [involves animals in some way].
    As a result, [insert lame pun/play on words here]

  190. Why aren't we just using PETA members? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    It would solve everything.

    Work 'em, skin 'em, eat 'em. When we run out, there will be none left to complain when we go back to animals.

    Rinse and repeat whenever a generation starts to get all uppity about that stupid shit.

  191. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by quantaman · · Score: 1

    quantaman says: "Of all the things PETA is guilty of being callous towards animals is not one of them."

    Really??

    https://www.petakillsanimals.c...

    This isn't something that was made up by their detractors. It's cold hard facts PETA left in a dumpster for all the world to see.

    And I've already discussed it previous comments in the thread. The only thing you seem to have added is criticism over how they dispose of the bodies, which raises the question of how you propose they dispose of the bodies, and why the body disposal method really matters in the first place.

    --
    I stole this Sig
  192. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by Reziac · · Score: 1

    It has nothing to do with the bodies, or the fact that they disposed of them illegally. It has to do with the deaths that provided so many bodies to dispose of.

    An average dog pound euthanizes around 10% of their intake. Explain why PETA euthanizes over 90% of theirs.

    --
    ~REZ~ #43301. Who'd fake being me anyway?
  193. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by quantaman · · Score: 1

    It has nothing to do with the bodies, or the fact that they disposed of them illegally. It has to do with the deaths that provided so many bodies to dispose of.

    An average dog pound euthanizes around 10% of their intake. Explain why PETA euthanizes over 90% of theirs.

    As I said previously PETA claims that they focus their intake efforts on animals that are generally unsuitable for adoption.

    Could PETA be lying about this? Of course. I wouldn't trust PETA about a load of other stuff.

    But let me turn the question around, why do you think PETA euthanizes over 90% of their intakes?

    PETA members are about as hardcore as you can get when it comes to animal rights, I don't understand what you think is driving them to needlessly kill animals.

    --
    I stole this Sig
  194. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by Reziac · · Score: 1

    There's all sorts of documentation on the fact that PETA collects every pet they can lay hands on, not just the "unadoptables". This whole story came to light because they scammed someone into placing a nice pet, and that person then followed up...and discovered a whole bunch of nice pets being solicited for adoption then killed, rather than being placed. PETA actually went to pet owners and veterinarians and talked them into handing over their pets -- these weren't just strays and turn-ins.

    What's driving them to kill these nice pets instead of rehome them? As someone above pointed out, PETA believes animals are better off dead than associating with man. They don't love animals, they hate people.

    They're like the serial murderer who believes he's sending his victims "to a better place".

    "Animal rights" isn't about rights for animals. It's about making sure humans have no rights over animals. If you define an animal as equal in rights to a person, then owning an animal is slavery, and the animal has the right to sue you in court (albeit represented by a human...selected by an AR interest). That makes owning an animal too dangerous from a legal standpoint, and THAT is the goal of all these attempts to achieve legal "personhood" for animals.

    But for the benefit of animals? Not hardly.

    Incidentally HSUS is just PETA in a nice suit. Same beliefs in a more socially-acceptable wrapper and armed with better lobbyists.

    --
    ~REZ~ #43301. Who'd fake being me anyway?
  195. Look, in the desert- that's not a camel, that's .. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Google Dronedary.

  196. Re:PETA won't be happy until all animals are extin by macs4all · · Score: 1

    And writing this makes me cry again, because I know that there is no way that I deserved such good dogs, no matter how much I tell myself that they turned out good because of the way I treated them. They're special, and I'll always remember them.

    My feelings exactly. And I cried too when I posted my previous Reply. So I know...