PETA

I love animals as much as the next guy, but even I have to admit that PETA arguably hurts the cause more than helps it. They just seem to shoot themselves in the foot by consistently embroiling themselves in controversy and that does more harm than good. While I agree with their message, that animals should be treated humanely and with dignity, I think that what they do is the wrong way to go about advancing the cause. Their most recent debacle, defaming Steve Irwin, drew animosity from all sides of the political spectrum and from people with all sorts of different views. Not to mention the fact that some of the displays they put on just make them look downright foolish. For instance, I once saw that they staged a protest of the meat industry by getting naked and wrapping themselves in plastic wrap to show the inhumanity of packaged meat. That just looked plain silly and did a lot to hurt their credibility. Again, I'm all for the messages they espouse. Animals are treated horribly throughout the world and it's good that they do what they do to raise awareness of that fact, but it could definitely be done in a more tasteful manner. Due to their many debacles, a lot of people dislike the organization and see it as a bunch of fanatics that like making a scene and this is very unfortunate. PETA needs to wake up and realize that the means by which they spread awareness, the spectacles they put on, and the radical means they use are harming the very cause that they stand for. Unfortunate as it is, it should be mentioned that there are certain inhumane practices that companies and groups practice when it comes to animals, and it's a great thing that organizations like PETA are fighting that. I firmly believe that members of PETA have their hearts in the right place. They do everything in their power to change said inhumane practices and that's a very good thing, but attacking dead celebrities and putting on ridiculous displays are harming that cause more than helping it. Would I consider becoming a member of PETA? Honestly, probably not, because I don't want to be associated with such radical means of bringing attention to the cause. Noble as the cause may be, there are other ways to go about raising awareness and PETA needs to start exploring those means instead of perpetuating their same old antics.