When the media does stories on people who are animal activists, environmentalists and consumer advocates, they portray them as credible and reasonable people. But you do not have to dig deep to find that under that seemingly reasonable and credible surface are a bunch of people who are just plain nuts.

They are not nuts because of what they believe but rather for the complete and total lack of perspective they have. I have no problem with people who hold a different opinion, but when they refuse to accept proven facts, distort reality to fit their preconceived agenda, and adamantly refuse to even consider the possibility that another alternative than theirs even exists, that is when I write them off as nut cases.

Let me introduce you to a few that have come my way lately.
Toni Vernelli is a perfectly healthy woman who at the age of 27 had herself sterilized so she could not bear children. Why? Because she believes children are not eco-friendly. “Every person who is born uses more food, more water, more land, more fossil fuel, creates more rubbish, more greenhouse gases, and adds to the population problem,” she stated.

Guess what this woman does for a living - she works for an environmental charity. While most people see children as the hope of the future, she sees them as a sinister threat to the future.
Sarah Irving is another young woman who has chosen to have no children to save the planet; “I realized then that a baby would pollute the planet - and that never having a child was the most environmentally friendly thing I could do.”

One does have to ask: if they are not having children to save the planet, for whom are they saving it?

A possible answer may be the animals, which may soon have the same legal standing as you and I. Judge Linda Cheezem said a legal precedent is being set that gives “personhood” to animals. She said traditionally animals have been considered, under the law, as property. But with more and more animal cases ending up in court and receiving favorable rulings, the law is being changed to give animals the same legal status as people. She cited a case where a human died and left a substantial estate to their dog.
The court then appointed an animal rights group as guardian of that animal and gave them control of the large fortune left in the estate. The Pet Guardian Movement, which has its roots here in the Midwest, is targeting veterinarians and pet owners. They want to change laws to allow for guardians to be appointed to look after the interests of animals. They would take control away from the owners of those animals.

Finally, let me introduce you to Ruth Feldberg. Ruth is a supporter of HSUS, an organization that cloaks itself in respectability. She describes herself as “A normal person, a nurse and social worker. I have three normal children, and I care about all animals. If you have ever loved a dog, think about how you would feel if your dog was mistreated. That’s how we feel about cows, pigs.”

I am at a bit of a loss why a woman from Amherst, Mass. has such passion for farm animals, but be that as it may. In an e-mail she urged me to, “Visit a slaughter house perhaps you too would not want to eat meat.” I have actually been to several packing plants and found the slaughter to be humane and the processing safe, sanitary and federally inspected.

I am not sure how many farms Ruth has visited, but she seems to be an expert on farm animal care, “It’s time that we begin to consider the lives of farm animals. They feel pain just like a human being does.” I agree that animals can and do feel pain, but the animals I have seen on the dozens and dozens of livestock farms I have visited were not in pain.

In fact, they lived in climate-controlled conditions and had plenty of high quality food to eat, regular medical care, and room to move around.

As you can see, many of the people who are at the core of organizations attacking modern agriculture are not people with whom you can reason. They are not interested in a dialogue or a debate except as a stage to promote their own point of view.
Fortunately, they are still in the minority despite their claims.

Yet, left unchecked, they have the ability to win “real people” to their worldview. While most animals are smart enough not to bite the hand that feeds them, unfortunately humans often are not.

The views and opinions expressed in this column are those of the author and not necessarily those of Farm World. Readers with questions or comments for Gary Truitt may write to him in care of this publication.