On the other hand, without animal testing, we wouldn’t be able to cure very many diseases at all.

I always appreciate it when you post, Persimmon–I hope to see more from you soon.

I believe bovine insulin is no longer available in the US, and I can find only two porcine insulins still marketed. I’ve never seen them in practice, and I suspect the only people still using them are elderly patients who managed to stabilise on them in middle age and never wanted to break their routines.

None of this is to say that animal-derived insulins are ineffective or have no place in practice; their price makes them appealing for use when diabetes is becoming a widespread issue but recombinant insulins are utterly unaffordable, as is happening currently in some less-developed nations; notably China and India. PETA members are generally young, and hence unlikely to remember the days of slaughterhouse insulin in North America.

Just, uh, in case you were really wondering.

The reasons I dislike PETA as an organization are quite succinct: I do not agree with their goal of “total animal liberation.” I think that complete abolition of animal testing in the health and pharmaceutical fields is a grave mistake and would have dire consequences for the health of both humans and animals, and I think that banning it completely is unethical. I think that the action of completely dissing the no-kill shelter movement is wrong-headed and unethical, and I think that the debacle that occurred in North Carolina where PETA employees from Virginia took adoptable companion animals that they promised to find homes for, then immediately killed them with illegal drugs they were not licensed to use in NC, then dumped the bodies in a grocery store dumpster over a period of weeks is not only unethical, but reprehensible.

I also find the leader of PETA, Ingrid Newkirk’s personal views to be odious, and I find her personal and monetary support of ALF and ELF, both of which are nothing more than domestic terrorist organizations to ethically questionable at best, illegal at worst.

As for the euthanasia issue–I understand that some animals are so sick or abused that the best option is a clean, painless death. I have had enough animal companions over the years that I have had to hold one or another of them while a veterinarian releases them from their pain to not know that it is sometimes a necessity. However, I -do- have an issue with the idea that the best thing one can give an unwanted, unloved animal is a painless death. That is incorrect. The best thing one can give to a homeless, unloved companion animal is a loving home, not a needle full of poison.

I do agree with many of PETA’s stated goals. To get people away from wearing fur is laudable, and I have to admit to liking some of their “I’d rather go naked than wear fur” ads. They are eye-catching and cute. I also agree that factory farming is an abomination, however, I do not support all of the goals and methods of PETA, not now, nor ever.

Oh, and by the way–factory farming and protest against it, is very much in the news these days, and not only because of PETA. Michael Pollan’s “The Omnivore’s Dilemma,” the Eat Local movement and the efforts of Whole Foods, among others, have contributed to widening the media coverage of the issue of factory farming, often in ways less ludicrous and obnoxious than PETA.

I have been researching PETA for quite some time now and am working on a post about why I do not support them, even if I am against factory farms. So, for more information, look for that essay in the near future.

As for the rest of y’all–I am glad that this small essay started some discussion.

Roxanne–get on, girl, get on. What you said. I agree wholeheartedly.

Trig–when I said “The Other White Meat,” that was referring to pork. That is a trademark of the National Pork Council. But, for the record, I don’t eat veal, either. I both don’t like how it is produced, nor what it tastes like.

And good for you for using your position as a chef in the future to educate and elucidate.

Natasha–thank you. It is also one of my favorite topics.

Kymster–yeah, those brochures are available online. Pretty creepy stuff. And yeah–I always wonder about PETA members who are diabetic. Where do they think insulin comes from?

Hey, Richard. I guess no one cares, except for those of us who do. Which leads me to believe that you don’t live near a Smithfield hog farm, and you don’t care about anyone who does.

Speaking of ethics…..well, your statement spoke for itself.

Jeff–thanks for the book recommendation! I will try and get to it soon!

D–thanks!

Some of the PETA antics are juvenile and meant to stir up publicity which brings the mostly ignored issue up for public debate. I’m sorry that’s not obvious to you. I don’t mean to be a twit, acknowleging I am, but ignoring is a form of contempt.