Also for the record, and at the risk of being accused of bias, I disagree with
@Pak Asam Manis that Atlantis is a cold heartless drone. Like I said, I understand that there are things that we can disassociate. Some people can and some people can't. But there's also the conditioning where Atlantis goes to the market regularly and is somewhat used to it whereas a tourist visitor will probably be traumatized at first.
I most certainly did not call Atlantis a "drone", and not sure what you mean by the term, because when used in the noun form I just think of a kind of remote-controlled plane, which usually spies on and / or drops bombs on people. I never accused him of such activities. As far as cold and heartless, well two things which can be pretty obvious: 1) I don't know know him personally or in any way other the words he puts on the screen (and vice versa); 2) I can't see his face when he's producing those words, much less see into his thought process or his heart. but: having just consulted with Roxane, the beautiful, well cared for and perfectly safe (at the moment) Australian Shepherd who is at the moment laying at my feet, we agree that stating very matter of factly about how one has seen and "watched" dogs being killed at the market on a regular basis, with no other indication of feeling about this except to describe the manner in which they were killed, is disturbing to us and it gives us a pretty strong impression of a lack of the sort of feeling which we would HOPE to find in a human being. It means that I get the impression he is coldblooded and heartless, on this subject which I find on the other foot, very affecting.
I am sure he has oodles of heart and warm feeling about his own family and he even announced his very protective feelings towards his own family dog. He just doesn't
seem to give a shit about all the dogs he doesn't personally know being killed for their meat. In fact, he pretty much said so himself.
It should be understood that when I said "You disgust me" I was reacting in the moment and I meant, what I am getting from you or understanding (or misunderstanding) from you at this moment is revolting or disgusting to me, not "I find everything I think I know about you to be completely disgusting in its totality". It's what people say sometimes when they feel disgusted by what someone has just said to them. I did feel that way and I said so.
A lot has been said about the topic of dog meat trading and the veracity of some claims already and I don't have much to add to it except that this topic and the other, even if flawed to some extent are still useful to bring some awareness to the mistreatment of animals. It may not happen on the scales suggested but I'm sure it must happen somewhere because humans are horrible beings.
Well, thanks. I'm not sure that you intended that as a tiny gesture of positive acknowledgment towards me but if so it would be, to my perception, the first positive "bone" that's been tossed my way in this thread.
The videos are real. They speak for themselves. Sure they are made by people who have an agenda, and that agenda is to stop the very real cruelties being inflicted to innocent animals. All of the criticisms about sources being incredible and making fun of The Daily Mail, to me are someone's way of distracting attention and turning away from that reality. Making stupid jokes is a more vulgar way of doing the same thing. But the dogs that these things happen to don't get to change the channel or talk about something else. Their reality becomes the plastic sack, being thrown in the truck, being terrified for the remaining hours of their lives and ending with a club to the head. They can't avoid it or fight back against it. If people don't try to help them, nobody will.
I just wished we could talk about these topics without the bickering, name calling and snark remarks.
I get caught up in the moment and sometimes I feel pretty strongly about my point of view (unlike some people, I guess). If that is true for other topics, it is exponentially more so for this. If one considers it in some sense "urgent" to try to help protect these animals, then it becomes a high stakes game. To those who don't, it seems "extreme" and some of the tactics used, admittedly, may sometimes go too far. But any bickering and "name calling" I've indulged in here is a byproduct of my frustration and my strong feelings. If people can't handle a few strong words being thrown at them, they should think about this: nobody is clubbing them in the head or throwing them in the back of a truck. So if a few harsh words make me cruel, I'll be cruel for what I consider a worthy cause. The real cruelty is in the videos, so go ahead, turn your heads and crack a few more jokes. (Not meaning you, E-G)