Written by PETA
Say "Satan" and we immediately think of lunch, not lions. Oh, wait, that's "seitan." But Pastor Troy Gramling of the Flamingo Road Church recently used a big cat crammed in a tiny cage as a prop—and a weird metaphor for the devil—during a recent sermon.
During the past month, Gramling has also used a capuchin monkey to symbolize the financial "monkey on your back" and a 13-foot python as a metaphor for sinners. Wild animals don't belong on stages—or Gramling's shoulders (Hello?) One shudders to imagine what their lives are like off stage. They likely endure constant confinement and live in confusion and fear as a result of the sights, sounds, and smells of their unfamiliar and unnatural surroundings.
Gramling's use of wild animals to (somehow) symbolize human frailty is cruel and dangerous—and it undermines the steadfast belief held by caring Christians that all living beings deserve to be treated with compassion and respect. Urge Flamingo Road Church to can its "Wild" sermon series and enact a policy prohibiting any and all future uses of exotic animals.
Written by Karin Bennett
Here's another reason not to visit zoos and circuses: The lions you gawk at today could end up on a restaurant menu tomorrow.
A restaurant in Mesa, Arizona, made headlines this week for serving lion-meat burgers as part of a promotion related to the World Cup in South Africa. CNN reports that the meat was supplied by an Illinois butcher who was sentenced to six months in prison in 2003 for selling meat from federally protected tigers and leopards.
And where, exactly, did he get the lion meat? PETA President Ingrid E. Newkirk gives her view—and reminds meat-eaters that lion burgers aren't really any worse than what's already on their plate (hint: factory farms are no walk in the park):
Lion meat served in restaurants could come from old lions who lived in roadside zoos or were forced to perform in circuses. They could be unwanted grown-up cubs from ever-prolific lions—ones the zoos love to breed, as any baby animal draws a crowd and boosts ticket sales. Or they could have been "hunted" in a fenced-in compound by cowards who want a trophy to hang on the wall—so that's what anyone who buys a lion burger is likely to be supporting. But the most manly meal is one that won't make you impotent by the time you reach 40—and that's one with no meat at all. So PETA's advice is to give a thought for the majestic old lions—not to mention the cows and chickens whose flesh is being served in the restaurant down the block: They went kicking and screaming to their deaths too.
Tell us what you think about this sordid story.
Written by Paula Moore
In a bid to stop Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey's reign of terror over animals once and for all by getting the circus's exhibitor's license revoked, PETA has submitted more than 700 pages of evidence to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) documenting not only Ringling's long history of violating the federal Animal Welfare Act but also the circus's attempts to cover up the circumstances surrounding animals' deaths.
Just one of many examples is Riccardo, a baby elephant whose fatal fall off a pedestal during a training session (he was euthanized after breaking both hind legs) Ringling originally tried to characterize as "routine play." Another example is Clyde, a lion who died of heat stroke after being confined to a sweltering boxcar in Ringling's animal train while it crossed the Mojave Desert in 109-degree heat. A former trainer told PETA that Ringling tampered with the evidence by installing a non-working water misting system in the boxcar after Clyde died and warned him to not talk about the the circumstances of Clyde's death.
And then there are the hours of video that PETA amassed last year—which show Ringling handlers as they beat elephants in city after city across the country—as well as the damning photos taken by a former elephant trainer that show baby elephants as they are "broken" with ropes, bullhooks, and electric prods.
We think that all this adds up to several hundred pretty good reasons for the USDA to yank Ringling's license. If you agree, please take a minute to drop the agency a line.
Written by Alisa Mullins
The saturated fat and cholesterol in KFC's Double Down begins clogging arteries and potentially decreasing life expectancies nationwide in just a few days. The sandwich "vilest food product created by man," consists of bacon and cheese sandwiched between two fried chicken breasts, and according to KFC, is only 540 calories—and 32 g of fat, and 1,380 mg of sodium.
With two chicken breasts, cheese, and bacon, the Double Down means quadruple the Kentucky Fried Cruelty for animals, and it could mean quadruple bypasses for consumers since the consumption of animal fats has been linked to heart disease. So as KFC debuts its artery plug on a sans bun, PETA will begin touring the country with our anti-KFC hearse, which will make its first stop in KFC's hometown, Louisville, Kentucky.
Keep your eyes peeled, the hearse could be coming to a Kentucky Fried Cruelty near you!
Written by Logan Scherer
What an awful story all around. This shocking video shows a lion in a circus somewhere attacking and mauling a trainer. The lion wound up being shot and killed, and the trainer is totally messed up as well. I’m afraid it’s just another sad example of why wild animals don’t belong behind bars . . .
Yes, this video is extremely graphic, but it is reality. I felt like it was important to show the uncensored reality of what can happen when animals are driven insane in captivity, because far too often all that is reported are bubblegum fluff pieces that couldn’t be further from the truth.
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If you have a general question for PETA and would like a response, please e-mail Info@peta.org. If you need to report cruelty to an animal, please click here. If you are reporting an animal in imminent danger and know where to find the animal and if the abuse is taking place right now, please call your local police department. If the police are unresponsive, please call PETA immediately at 757-622-7382 and press 2.