With thanks to a long-lost online friend from my AOL days, I've been led to an episode of Pen and Teller's cable show "Bullshit," which continues the Carl Sagan/James Randi tradition of fighting emotionalism and irrationality with critical thinking. Of course, unlike Sagan and Randi, Pen Gillette is more of a ranter, but his shtick is entertaining as hell. Watch P&T take PETA down.
(Thanks, Mark.)
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I absolutely love this, and it bolsters my skepticism of that whole movement. Just as my husband doesn't understand how in our culture the media tends to exaggerate emotion when heinous crimes are committed against children (subtext: elevating children as more important than adults, when all humans are just as precious), I, too, am perplexed at the rationale employed by the PETA folks who elevate animal rights above human rights.
ReplyDeleteAs a sidenote, that walk in freezer is larger than my master bedroom.
You're not keeping cadavers in your bedroom, are you?
ReplyDeleteI agree-- there's much to be skeptical about. I don't think the notion of "animal rights," per se, is bogus, but it does require a bit of thoughtfulness. I guess P&T's point is that thoughtfulness is what's lacking with these people-- not to mention integrity, if they're killing animals they rescue.
I wonder if PETA is going to pull a George Lucas and sue P&T for defamation. That would be too damn cool, because all sorts of discomfiting documents would then see the light of day.
Kevin
Thoughtfulness.
ReplyDeleteIntegrity.
How about irony and hipocrisy?