X I read the comics and watched the cartoon for years in the 80's, when I was 10 years old or younger. I had a fake sheriff's badge and cap guns to match. I had a toy M16 that shot out sparks when you pulled the trigger. Is it any wonder why I spent a few years of my life contemplating joining the military?
So you're saying ads promoting kids to grow up and do this:
X
Are better than ads that promote kids to grow up and do this?
X
Nice straw man, but no, if that were the argument I was making, then I'd certainly be wrong.
I'm not saying that it's wrong to be taught that cruelty to animals is a bad thing. I'm saying that it's wrong for a political interest, a group whose sole purpose is to influence policy, to be making attempts at influencing the undeveloped mind of a child. Children shouldn't be exposed to strong ideas in a vacuum, as is often the case with these kinds of advertisements. If the child has not been given in their upbringing a very sturdy mental foundation of critical thinking, self-determination, and worldly empathy (something many children miss out on), an can easily take root in ther mind and turn their entire developmental process on its head.
An adult making rhetorical appeals to a child who won't know how to argue them is a bit objectionable, don't you think?
Also, I hardly think that GI Joe is a good example of non-idea-based entertainment - after all, the Hasbro toys and comic books only started to catch on to the American public when we were right in the middle of the Cold War.
e:
Plus....
How is PETA any more of a political interest than any other political interest that surrounds us all the time anyhow? If you like clean drinking water, than you're an Environmentalist. If you like to hunt, then you're an NRA supporter. If you believe in buying and selling goods for money, then you're a Capitalist. Everything we do is a political interest, how does PETA differ from any of the others?
False equivalence.
"I want my drinking water to be clean" is not the same as environmentalism. I could be popping iodine tablets in my water all day, but it doesn't make me an environmentalist. "I want to conserve and protect the environment" is environmentalism. Similarly, not all hunters are NRA supporters and not all NRA supporters are hunters. I know several people who are habitual outdoorsmen & hunters and who think the NRA are largely wrong on their positions. Having an economic, ideological, or social philosophical belief is not the same as having or being a political interest. PETA espouses a very narrow set of beliefs, which is the
calling card of a political interest group. They exercise significant litigation, grassroots organization, and lobbying to get what they want. A general, ethically agreeable sentiment and the extremely specific goals of an interest group are worlds apart.
To address your other claim:
Whether or not I hold any ill will against PETA as an organization is irrelevant to my feeling revulsion at a political group trying to win the hearts and minds of the nation's youth. If I were a member of the Sierra Club and they were making the kinds of emotional appeals that PETA makes, I would be gone in a heartbeat. I understand you're trying to attack my authority on the matter by claiming I have a prejudicial bias, but my view of PETA has been shaped over years of seeing the evolution of their platform, noting the hypocrisy of their practices, and being exposed to campaigns which disagree with my own sensibilities. It is neither irrational, nor based on a lack of knowledge, I assure you.