In the notmilk-newsletter I receive Robert Cohen wrote the following on 01/15/06: "If I Had $40 Million Last week (December 28, 2005), Ingrid Newkirk, the founder and director of the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) was in Bethlehem (Palestine) on her well-financed personal world tour. Dollar for dollar, how many camels or donkeys did she save? How much more peace is there in the world these days after your donations enabled Ingrid to travel from her Virginia home base to the holy land to make asses of her contributors? In 2003, PETA enjoyed a budget of $16,414,174. In 2003, PETA's sister organization, Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM) received $2,667,912 in donations. What have they done with the money? Can you see the results? Last year, PETA and PCRM found that their budgets jumped from just under $20 million in 2003 to over $40 million. God bless their ability to generate funding. So what if more animals per capita are being eaten by Americans? While PETA euthanizes healthy shelter dogs and cats in the back of their killing van, people continue to eat more meat and PETA continues to raise more money by lulling consumers into a false sense of believing that animals are treated better. That they are not is inconsequential to the bottom line. Animal rights business is better than ever! The system is running away from the once good people whose first priority is to now keep their well-oiled money making machinery in prime working order. Here is the formula for animal rights success. Raise one million dollars. Invest half of that to hire more people to raise more money to promise to help more animals. The second round, raise two million. Invest one-million to hire more employees and churn mailing lists to raise more money. Buy Farm Sanctuary's mailing list. Yes, it's for sale. Actually, it's for rent. You can use the list just once before you must pay the fee again. This time, raise four million dollars. Hire more activists to work within your organization. Assign them the task of gathering names and addresses so that your organization can derive income by renting lists. Next round, raise eight million dollars. Throw charity functions on each coast of the United States. Bring celebrities along and award them imaginary plaques for their imaginary work in the animal rights movement. Give them a standing ovation and ask them to pose naked and say a few nasty words about fur. Include details of celebrity events in your next mailing. Be sure to include details of how veal calves were once abused in crates 20 years ago, and represent that this is the state of affairs today. The next young person who approaches me and says "...and calves are kept in crates so small, they cannot turn around..." will get a stern lecture on Farm Sancturary's mailings as they apply to lies and deception. Of course, you'll be guaranteed to raise even more funds by use of lies and clever marketing tactics. And for what? What have we in the AR movement become? Phonies? Liars? Only in it for the money folk who have lost their direction, and now call money raising their number one activity and priority? What has PETA or other organizations done lately for the animals? If I had one-tenth of their budget, there would be 100 million more vegetarians in America. Of course, that would mean that PETA is no longer needed, right? That ain't ever gonna happen. They cannot afford to that that mistake. Ask yourself two questions. First, other than their continuing solicitations to your mailbox for more funds, have you heard anything from or about PETA lately? Second question. Has PETA changed that which is evil or offensive in this world, or have they become a part of it? Is it just PETA? Absolutely not. Money seems to universally corrupt. A few years ago, there was a settlement to the famous McDonalds burger chain lawsuit. It seems that french-fried potatoes were cooked in animal fat. Millions of dollars were distributed to do- nothing vegetarian organizations. One such group's main contribution to the so-called movement is a once per-year summer festival in Pennsylvania to which the same 300 or so people show up every year to eat raw red potatoes and unripened fruit. Another recipient hosts a yearly vegetarian Thanksgiving meal at a New Jersey restaurant. Millions of dollars in hush money, paid to those who hope for a yearly stipend. While one group fought another two years ago amid much publicity (and depositions), have you heard even a hint about how any of these dollars were spent? Neither have I, and I've been searching real hard. Perhaps if I had a million, I could do my investigative work from a lounge chair on a beach in Aruba. Robert Cohen" Although Cohen had some disputes with peta before I think some of his critic is justified. I really recommened the newsletter to everyone! It is not only full of interesting information but also full of humor and inspiration. this article is really amazing! I don't know what I should think about Peta, but I definately believe that you don't have to euthanize animals if you have such a big budget.
