University Group Offers 'Tasty Meat' Cookout

For college students at the university in my hometown, Dakota Wesleyan University, last Wednesday marked a day to celebrate meat eaters. In a cookout meal that coincided with Earth Day, 30 plus students gathered to mark DWU's Second Annual (PETA) People Eating Tasty Animals Cookout. In recent studies, one in three students have tried vegetarianism, but for this crowd, eating meat is the cool thing to do. I think events like these take minimal planning with outstanding results. While there weren't a huge amount of students in attendance, it was a great way to stand up and show support for agriculture, wildlife and the environment.

There was just meat — lots of meat, and nary a vegan in the lot. The PETA acronym, which is commonly associated with People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, stood instead for People Eating Tasty Animals. Event organizer Kelsey Miller, president of the DWU College Republicans, billed the event as “a time for those who eat meat, wear fur and hunt to get together and enjoy ourselves in South Dakota fashion.” A raffle also provided some funds to help the young Republican group, she said.

While the event offered a good-natured nose-thumbing in the direction of the animal rights organization, the Earth Day overlap was simply a coincidence, said Miller, a junior in the college’s public service and leadership program.

“We’ve got finals this week, and this is just a good pre-exam de-stresser,” she said.

Cheers to these student agriculture advocates on a job well done! To read the entire article, link to the Mitchell Daily Republic.

Quick BEEF Daily Fact: In light of the recent news on the Swine Flu, according to the Centers for Disease Control, Swine influenza viruses are not spread by food. You cannot get swine influenza from eating pork or pork products. Eating properly handled and cooked pork products is safe. In addition, the CDC has found NO EVIDENCE to indicate that any of the illnesses resulted from contact with pigs. To read more, link to CME's Swine Flu NOT Linked to Pigs or Pork at BEEF.