Animal rights group PETA has submitted an
application to Capitol Police to set up an actual pig pen on the steps of the
Capitol, complete with fans to blow the odor of urine and manure toward
lawmakers, The Hill is reporting. PETA, long known for
its aggressive tactics to promote vegetarianism and protect animal rights,
hopes the display will drive home the point that the recent worldwide swine flu
outbreak is linked with hog farms."Meat has long been linked to heart
disease, diabetes, and certain types of cancer, but disease-breeding factory
farms could be the death of us all," PETA Executive Vice President Tracy
Reiman said in a statement. "The best way to protect
animals and our own health--individually and globally--is to go
vegetarian."The group is also erecting billboards with similar messages.
Here's what PETA is asking to include in their proposed display at the U.S.
Capitol:A total of 3,500 1-gallon buckets of pig manure and
urine to represent the 3,500 tons of polluting animal waste that the average
factory farm produces each year.Large fans to send the odors wafting throughout the plaza
Three "pigs" in narrow metal crates to represent the 3 million mother pigs who are so severely confined that they are unable even to turn around or take a single step in any directionA video showing PETA's undercover footage taken inside factory farms of pigs who scream as workers cut out their testicles and teeth without using any painkillers, cut notches in the animals' ears, and much moreA banner that reads, "Ban Factory Farming--Go Vegetarian. PETA"
A stand for distributing copies of PETA's free "Vegetarian Starter Kit"
That's one way to get their attention
PETA is petitioning to set up an actual pig pen on the steps of the capitol, wafting manure and hog fumes towards lawmakers.