Giant Douche vs. Turd Sandwich July 9, 2008

Posted by Ryan at July 9, 2008 1:47 PM | Permalink | Comments ( 25 ) | TrackBack

Hopefully some of my fellow South Park fans catch the reference from the title. :)

Sure, there are lots of cruel people in the world, many of whom are doing tests on animals. Today though, we're bringing you an epic match-up, between two of the biggest jerks around. The game will be to vote for which you think is a bigger jerk!

Ready? Here we go:

Nickname: "Giant Douche"
Real Name: Michael Weed
School: Johns Hopkins University
Interests: Alcohol, cocaine, and ecstasy - and forcing monkeys to use all of the above. In one test, Weed infected monkeys with the monkey equivalent of HIV, and then forced them to perform basic motor tasks... while on cocaine (you know, just to see what happens).

Visual approximation, compliments of looptvandfilm / CC

Nickname: "Turd Sandwich"
Real Name: Gordon Ewy (pronounced by me - "Eeeeewwwww-y")
School: University of Arizona
Interests: Saving pigs - after nearly killing them (and sometimes succeeding). He starts by letting the pigs' hearts sit at a standstill for 8 minutes or more, before trying to resuscitate them. The success of the test is measured by how many pigs survive, and among those how many retain full brain function.

Sounds to me like it's not the pigs that need their brains checked.



Visual approximation, compliments of looptvandfilm / CC

We aren't making this stuff up, folks. So without further ado, who do you think is the bigger jerk? Cast your votes by commenting below!

- Ryan!

10% Wool June 5, 2008

Posted by Marta at June 5, 2008 1:11 PM | Permalink | Comments ( 3 ) | TrackBack

Check out this week's 10% Wool!

Click for a larger version
To check out past installments of the strips, click here.

♥ Marta

Free Stuff Friday: Yummy Vegan Lip Balm! May 30, 2008

Posted by Lara Sanders at May 30, 2008 9:17 AM | Permalink | Comments ( 282 ) | TrackBack

My name is Lara and I am addicted to lip balm (and lip gloss, lip stick, etc...). I admit it—I might have a problem. I use it about 10 times a day. I feel like my lips are about to dry up and fall off if I am caught somewhere without it.

That's why I'm so excited that PETA now has its own brand of lip balms! My Lip Stuff created 5 amazing flavors for PETA—each with super cute names including: "'Go Faux'-Fabulous" Fruit Smoothie, "Animals Out of the Act" Tangerine, "Viva Las Vegans" Vanilla Bean, "Cut Out Animal Experi-mints" Peppermint, and "PETA Compassion" Fruit. The best part about them is that each lip balm contains no animal-products and is not tested on animals!

I'm partial to "Viva Las Vegans" Vanilla Bean, because I'm partial to anything vanilla. I've been using it for about a month now, and my lips have never felt better.

Here's your chance to win the whole set of 5 PETA lip balms! All you have to do for a chance to win is comment below on why you're against animal testing for cosmetics.

The contest ends June 13, and the winner will be notified by June 20.

Just so you know...by commenting here, we're taking that as acknowledgment that you've read and agreed to our privacy policy.

Also by commenting, you are agreeing to the following terms and conditions.

xoxo- Lara

P.S. Boys, don't think this contest is just for the ladies. Everyone appreciates soft lips!

Keep the Art Coming! May 13, 2008

Posted by Marta at May 13, 2008 10:55 AM | Permalink | Comments ( 4 ) | TrackBack

Remember how I've been asking you to send your animal rights artwork our way? Well, we've definitely been sent some awesome pieces lately, and I wanted to share some with you. Both of these are from Lia Shaw, an amazing Street Teamer from Canada.

Lia created this first piece 'If Not Us, Why Them?' for her Grade 12 art class. The project was supposed to be an abstract self portrait. Lia says, "I chose to do one of my main morals and this is where it took me. I created two chickens and one person out of wire and then built a metal cage that was just big enough for all three to fit in as tightly as possible to show the cramped living conditions that there birds have to withstand. This piece was up in an art show at my local library."

Her second piece, 'Shop Cruelty Free' was for a pop art project for the same class and she chose to do her project on animal testing. She says, "I painted the background red and then filled in the silhouettes of the animals with magazine clippings of products from companies that test on animals. The rabbit has a growth on his side to show the growths that these animals get quite often from different procedures."


Got some thought-provoking art you'd like to show us, too? Send it our way! We just might feature it in the blog.

Which one of Lia's pieces do you like better? I really can't decide!

♥ Marta

World Week for Animals in Labs April 23, 2008

Posted by Marta at April 23, 2008 2:47 PM | Permalink | Comments ( 2 ) | TrackBack

This week, April 20 - 26, is World Week for Animals in Laboratories. What exactly does that mean? This week is all about exposing the plight that animals go through for testing. What better way to do that than with demonstrations? Check out a few that PETA had this week:

First up is the protest that took place outside drugmaker Eli Lilly's annual shareholder meeting on Monday. These six protestors let the company's shareholders know about its decision to outsource animal experiments to China and other countries where animal protection laws are virtually non-existent.

Remember when Lara mentioned the giant dinosaur in the PETA parking lot last week? Well, that was a dry run for the demonstration that took place outside the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services on Monday to remind U.S. government officials that we've been out of the Stone Age for a long time, and testing on animals should be a thing of the past, too.


Want to help animals used for testing? Here are a few easy ways you can help:

- Stream "Testing...One, Two, Three" on your MySpace or other page.
- Have your friends take our "How Cruelty-Free is Your Morning Routine?" quiz.
- Write letters to companies, asking them to stop supporting cruel animal tests.
- Cut Out Dissection.

Take care!

♥ Marta

PS - Which demonstration do you like better? I can't make up my mind!

March Madness: We Have a Winner! April 17, 2008

Posted by Ryan at April 17, 2008 3:47 PM | Permalink | Comments ( 7 ) | TrackBack

Well, April is the cruelest month, so this is a perfect time to officially recognize 2008's cruelest university vivisector. Through four grueling rounds against some of the most disgusting men and women in the world, Arthur Weber of Michigan State University has come home with the big prize. Despite a late challenge from the vivisectors of Duke University (led by longtime monkey abuser David Platt), Arthur's team won the final contest with a commanding score of 20 votes to 11.

When asked for comment by the MSU campus newspaper, Weber—who was voted champion largely due to a series of experiments in which he removes cats' eyes while they're still alive—made the following statement through a representative:

"The animals are completely anesthetized, receive painkillers, and once the animals come out of the anesthesia, 10 minutes later you can't tell the difference."

Awwww, so modest! But of course you can tell the difference, Arthur! THE CATS ARE MISSING THEIR EYES. And don't forget the part where you keep them alive for a week after the operation and then kill them—I bet they notice that too!

Anyway, without further delay, please join me in recognizing Arthur Weber of MSU as the people's choice for the cruelest vivisector in the world! You've earned this, Weber. Let's all raise a finger for Arthur, shall we? :)


MSU.edu/Creative Commons

T-Rex Invades PETA! April 17, 2008

Posted by Lara Sanders at April 17, 2008 12:20 PM | Permalink | Comments ( 4 ) | TrackBack

A few days ago, I decided to eat my lunch in the PETA dog park because it was just so darn nice out. Imagine my surprise when I came outside and found a HUGE dinosaur in the parking lot...a T-Rex to be exact.

Here is a photo of me and Mr. Rex. Don't worry, he was very friendly. In fact, he was even against testing on animals (as the sign on the side of him stated).

I was a bit surprised to see a dinosaur in the parking lot, but then again, I do work at PETA, where the unexpected seems to be a common occurrence.

I wasn't the only one to make Mr. Rex's acquaintance that day. Check out Marta and Rachel hanging out with him.


So short story short—End Stone Age Animal Tests! A dinosaur told me...

xoxo-Lara

P.S. What's the weirdest thing that has every happened to you at work? Comment with your story below!

March Madness: The Finals! April 8, 2008

Posted by Ryan at April 8, 2008 3:25 PM | Permalink | Comments ( 5 ) | TrackBack

Here's the moment you've all been waiting for! Thanks to your votes (as well as those on the PETA blog), we have narrowed down our tournament to the final two worst university vivisectors in the nation! They've been through a lot to get here, overcoming an unbelievably tough field of cat killers, monkey maimers, and bunny butchers to reach the finals of this notorious event, so hold your noses and steel yourself for one last dance with the March Mad Scientists ... ladies and gentlemen, you voted to see them here; now let's crown our champion:

MSU vs. Duke

MSU.edu/Creative Commons Arthur Weber, Michigan State Arthur Weber and the MSU team have been trouncing the competition so far, and last week's blowout of Alan Schatzberg and the underperforming Stanford brain butchers (with a score of 12 votes to 0!) has effectively silenced the doubters. Weber's spent 25 years torturing cats by removing their eyes while they're still alive, and given MSU's manhandling of the Stanford team last week, anyone going up against Weber and the Michigan state vivisectors should know that, like the cats who go under Weber's knife, they're in for a world of pain. Leave a comment below to vote for Arthur Weber and MSU to win it all.

Physorg/Creative Commons Michael Platt, Duke Like MSU, Michael Platt's Duke team held their opponents scoreless in last week's semifinal, and their 4-0 victory was more than enough to earn them a place here on the big stage. Platt brings a one-two punch to the fray that's going to be tough to defend against—his two-pronged approach to vivisecting involves drilling metal screws into monkeys' skulls and implanting wire coils under their eyelids. Will Platt's technical expertise with the brain screws be enough to get him past this final hurdle? Only you can decide. Leave a comment below to vote for Michael Platt and the Duke Devils to bring home the title.

Happy voting, and be sure to tune in next week when we crown the winner and take a nostalgic walk back through some of the tournament's highlights and disappointments.

Vote for the "March Mad Scientists"! March 18, 2008

Posted by Ryan at March 18, 2008 12:27 PM | Permalink | Comments ( 3 ) | TrackBack

As you probably already know, it's March Madness time college basketball teams out there! I'm sure you've all filled out your NCAA brackets and made your predictions. Well, now it's time to play another fun game: Vote for the Worst University Vivisector!

These people get paid lots of money, and abuse animals in horrific ways. As far as I'm concerned, they're all losers. It's going to be up to you to determine the final winner though, so choose wisely!

Without further adieu, here are the "Sick 16" to start us off!

University of Pittsburgh vs. Michigan State University:

Pitt.edu/Creative Commons Patrick Kochanek, Pittsburgh. Down in Pittsburgh's secretive laboratories, a team of experimenters lead by Dr. Patrick "Frankenstein" Kochanek are working deep into the night to reanimate the corpses of dogs, pigs, and mice. Seriously, I couldn't make this crap up if I wanted to: Under Kochanek's cold-hearted guidance, a group of "scientists" drain the blood from animals for up to three hours, pump an ice-cold salt solution into their veins until they're scientifically dead, then shock them back alive. The animals usually suffer massive physical and psychological trauma in the process, but that's a small price to pay for a zombie army, right? Right??

MSU.edu/Creative Commons Arthur Weber, Michigan State. Michigan State University's Arthur Weber ain't afraid of no zombies. This guy has a signature move that would frighten even the undead. This cat torturer's got his technique down pat: First he injures their optic nerve, then he dissects the overlying tissues, inserts a surgical hook, and places a clamp on the nerve. Next on the agenda: Wait for seven days until it's time to remove the cats' eyes while they're still alive! Then it's killing time, and you just know he likes that part the best—Weber's been at this game for more than 25 years. That's a whole lot of cats!

Only one of these contenders can advance to the next round, so choose carefully! Cast your vote for the vilest vivisector using the form below, and feel free to leave a comment explaining your selection.

The cheat sheet will help you decide which other universities deserve to advance, and we'll be back next week with the Evil Eight! Stay tuned!!!

Use the dropdown menus to pick a winner!

Pittsburgh vs. Michigan State Please Select Pittsburgh Michigan State	Stanford vs. Kansas State Please Select Stanford Kansas State	Washington State vs. Texas A&M Please Select Washington State Texas A&M
UT Austin vs. Ohio State Please Select UT Austin Ohio State	Duke vs. Purdue Please Select Duke Purdue	Hopkins vs. Harvard Please Select Johns Hopkins Harvard
UConn vs. Vanderbilt Please Select UConn Vanderbilt	Washington vs. UW Madison Please Select Washington UW Madison

Free Stuff Friday: V-Day Candy Giveaway! February 8, 2008

Posted by Ashleigh at February 8, 2008 10:46 AM | Permalink | Comments ( 52 ) | TrackBack

TGIF my friends! I have a super sweet giveaway today . . .

Hopefully by now you have all told Mars Inc. to drop deadly animal tests. If not, then get to it! Everyone deserves a sweet Valentine's Day, especially the poor animals that are forced to undergo Mars' cruel tests.

Check out the new web banner we made for Mars and Valentine's Day and put it on your page:

<a href="http://www.marscandykills.com" target=_blank><img src="http://blog.peta2.com/mars_main_valentines_2008.gif"></a>

Now, what to do about Valentine's Day treats? Snickers, Twix, Mars Bars, M&Ms, Skittles, and Starburst are all OUT (because they are made by Mars), so what should you get your human honey? Well, a lot of companies have pledged not to fund or conduct experiments on animals (like Hershey's). Look here for a list of vegan candy. Yum!



Looking for something a little more . . .free? I have you covered. We've teamed up with Pangea to give you an AMAZING gift-basket filled with cruelty-free vegan treats!

Looks delicious! I want my Valentine to give me one of these (hint hint).

What do you have to do to win, you ask? Comment below with how you are going to celebrate your V-day cruelty-free! And get going, this contest ends in exactly one week (February 15, 2008) and winners will be chosen and notified by February 22, 2008.

Just so you know...by commenting here, we're taking that as acknowledgment that you've read and agreed to our privacy policy.

Also by commenting, you are agreeing to the following terms and conditions.

Good Luck!

-Ashleigh