PETA Condemns Pokemon For Promoting Animal Abuse 418
SchrodingerZ writes "PETA, the same group that last November protested Mario for 'wearing fur,' has condemned the Pokémon media franchise and video game series. In light of the recent release of Pokemon Black and White Versions 2, the activist group is protesting that the Pokemon game series 'paints a rosy picture of what amounts to thinly veiled animal abuse.' As many of us know Pokemon is about young children who capture wild animals for the sole purpose of having them battle in non-fatal sparing matches. 'Much like animals in the real world, Pokémon are treated as unfeeling objects and used for such things as human entertainment and as subjects in experiments. The way that Pokémon are stuffed into pokéballs is similar to how circuses chain elephants inside railroad cars and let them out only to perform confusing and often painful tricks that were taught using sharp steel-tipped bullhooks and electric shock prods,' says a statement from the group. Ironically within Pokemon B/W 2 there an organization known as Team Plasma , which deals with taking Pokemon and retuning them to the wild. PETA is so up in arms that they have even created an anti-pokemon parody game in which you play as an escaped Pokemon battling your trainer. I recommend trying it, just for the laughs."
Re:I think PETA exists solely . . . (Score:5, Interesting)
But being a target for hate is a valid role, albeit a rather painful one. People expend their vitriol on PETA and other animals rights groups wind up looking better by comparison. "Hey," they say, "we're not PETA. You can talk to us and consider our suggestions rather than just dismissing them out of hand." Ultimately, partly thanks to PETA acting as lightning rod, the goal is furthered.
Re:Funny (Score:5, Interesting)
Re:Funny (Score:4, Interesting)
No one tell them about CLOP [foddy.net].
Re:There is no ALF (Score:5, Interesting)
When a group is attempting to do things that are illegal, it cannot have what would be a normal group structure, but one that is loosely structured with isolated pockets. As far as the violent/nonviolent thing it is just semantics. Legally Arson is considered nonviolent but legal definitions and what common use of those words sometimes do not like up. ALF and ELF use arson when other, safer means are at their disposal. Technically it is not a threat, but torching a green house is a bit more reckless than just spraying the area down with a persistent herbicide. Arson doesn't discriminate and is nonspecific. One of the U of MN research labs in this area was also destroyed along with years worth of data for some kind of disease. It was not a lab that used animals anymore than the physics lab, but was hit by someone claiming the ALF banner.
By the letter of the law no one was harmed and it was non violent, but it certainly it does not have the spirit of nonviolence in how it destroys and the harm it does.
Re:No, not funny, boring. (Score:4, Interesting)
I see. So the plan is to make 99% of people exposed to their campaign think they're absolutely nuts
If you only go by what Forbes says, yes. If you actually read what they say, no.
No one writes articles saying, say, that McDonalds encourages children to steal with the Hamburglar mascot. Yet they want to say a cartoon campaign by Peta is absolutely serious and literal. Anyway, Peta can handle it either way.
I personally don't agree with their ultimate aims (don't use any animals for anything), but they're right in pointing out a lot of unnecessary cruelty in agriculture.