The US, with its liberal laws, is fertile ground for every cause—seeking extremist with a destructive rage burning in his skull. Case in point is Dr. Jerry Vlasak, a practicing trauma surgeon in Los Angeles, who also acts as a spokesperson for several extreme animal rights groups. Vlasak, appearing recently on 60 Minutes, said it's time to consider assassinating people who do research on animals. In the segment, he told reporter, Ed Bradley that millions of nonhuman lives could be saved if some human lives were sacrificed in assassinations.

Acording the this doctor, humans need to be taught a lesson about the practice of killing and processing animals for food, and the best way to do it is to murder some of the people involved in the industry.

'I think people who torture innocent beings should be stopped. And if they won't stop when you ask them nicely, they won't stop when you demonstrate to them what they're doing is wrong, then they should be stopped using whatever means necessary,' Vlasak said. 'My role in the movement is not to go out and do that, but to explain to the mainstream media and to the public in general why these people are doing what they're doing,' he added.

This disease—brained cretin, masquerading as a saver of lives, is actually attempting to provide a credible explanation for the violence and mayhem caused by these radical thugs. People like this are no better than any mugger, rapist, child molester or other violence—prone, social misfit. Calling yourself an activist is just an attempt to provide cover for your criminal behavior.

When Vlasak was asked if he's promoting homicidal behavior, he refused to answer in the negative, saying instead,

'I want people who care about animals to do what's necessary to stop their exploitation, to stop their suffering.'

He also said someone who believes that the life of an animal is not akin to the life of a human being is a 'species—ist.' (I knew the nut cases would have to come up with a name for anyone who disagrees with their twisted philosophy). Species—ists, he says, are akin to racists or sexists. Animals, he says, should be accorded the same rights as human beings, despite their place on the food chain.

Now that he had introduced an 'ist' into the subject, the next reference was obvious. 'Just like at one time black humans were considered property,' Vlasak said, trying to make some distorted comparison between carnivores and slave peddlers.  'Dogs, cats and all other animals in our society are still considered property,' he added.

Mr. Bradley, who is black, should have asked him if he was equating African—Americans with dogs, cats and other animals. He also should have asked him to stop using a truly despicable time in our history as being equally repugnant to having people enjoy meat as part of their diet. When asked if anyone is exempted from his assassination advice, he included anybody who kills animals for a profit and 'won't stop when they're asked to.'

Mr. Bradley asked if that included researchers who are using animals for testing that might help develop vaccines to stop human suffering.

'Animal researchers, slaughterhouse workers, the head of the corporation that slaughters hundreds of millions of chickens every single year for the taste of their flesh, they are all included,' said Vlasak.

The man who promotes this homicidal theory says it's all very justified in his mind. When serial—killer, Ted Bundy was murdering women all over the country, he also felt perfectly justified in carrying on his reign of terror. Psychopaths see the world very differently from the rest of us. Calling themselves animal rights activists or environmentalists doesn't make their insanity any less evident. Especially when they believe chickens and trees are more valuable than human life.

Bob Weir  6 26 06