Many students may not have noticed, but a major annual Madison event occured last weekend, remarkably without incident. The event was the World Dairy Expo, and the lack of headlines was remarkable because of the constant threats of disruption from People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals.
The Expo’s success happened despite the best efforts by PETA to disrupt the tradeshow and exhibition. PETA feels that milk production is inhumane to the cows in the dairy herd, and in an attempt to draw attention to its cause, PETA launched its latest parody of milk marketers’ “Got Milk” campaign.
PETA’s latest effort, “Got pus” attempts to scare consumers with misleading information about “pus” and blood making their way into the nation’s milk supply.
I’m no scientist, so I am not going to bore you with studies and statistics to prove these lunatics wrong. I eat a lot of cheese and drink a lot of milk, and I feel fine, thank you. That is good enough for me, and it should be good enough for you.
PETA’s problem is not its voodoo science, it’s its lack of creativity. “Got pus” is just another in a long line of tired disinformation campaigns lacking any new arguments, lacking any new credible evidence and lacking any measurable success.
It has also resurrected its similarly dull “Got beer” campaign after a recent Harvard study indicated moderate beer consumption may have health benefits. I have to admit I am a fan of that one.
The creativity is still missing, but with the PACE posse’s constant crusade against drink specials and alcohol consumption, this campus should welcome any sort of organized campaign to counteract the alcohol rhetoric coming from Bascom and PACE.
Unfortunately, I haven’t seen any PETA pals at the City Council meetings actually advocating for liberalized city policies towards alcohol. Perhaps they were all too busy dressing up as Elsie the Cow and handing out “Milk Suckers” trading cards to local eight-year-olds.
PETA’s juvenile tactics may be humorous if not effective.
But I lost my sense of humor when I learned of its monetary contributions to the Earth Liberation Front. ELF boasts of 137 eco-terror attacks in 2001 alone, and the FBI considers the ELF to be one of the country’s most dangerous domestic-terrorist organizations.
I can agree to disagree with those who feel animals should not be used for testing, milking and eating. But the problem PETA faces is the same problem all extremists eventually face: Conventional persuasion tactics don’t work when the vast majority of the country believes you belong in the loony bin.
After extremists haven’t made progress through conventional and socially acceptable means, they inevitably raise the stakes until violence and terror are the only vehicles left to get the attention they so desperately want.
We must not allow animal-rights activists to continue down this dangerous path. The FBI must bring the ELF and other eco terrorists to justice, and PETA should be punished for its monetary, sympathetic support for admitted criminals. PETA should lose its tax-exempt status, and it should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law if it is found to be funneling cash to other terrorist organizations and individuals.
As long as it gets a free pass, it discredits the legitimate activists, who, while possibly misguided, at least have respect for the rule of law and the rights of their fellow human beings.
Wisconsin’s dairy industry is an important part of this state’s rich culture and heritage, not to mention an important part of its economy. Those who choose to be vegans have that right, and I won’t waste my time trying to pour milk down their throats through a beer bong.
But PETA’s constant attacks against Wisconsin’s dairy producers and processors are getting old. It either needs to disassociate itself with the criminal elements of the animal rights movement and come up with some better arguments, or else just leave Wisconsin alone.
If anything will hurt Wisconsin’s dairy industry it will be low milk prices, not PETA trading cards. Perhaps PETA should take some of its money away from the terrorists’ coffers and use the funds to short sell milk futures.
A.J. Hughes ([email protected]) is a software developer and a UW graduate.
