Updated throughout the day with quick takes from staff.
by Chris Littmann • Nov 3, 2009 12:33 PM EST
Here's our take on it: To bludgeon a 4-ounce animal to death, it takes either a small man or a totally unthinking one—with no respect or consideration for lives humbler than his own. This is a time when athletes in particular need to be on their best behavior around any animal and show that they have brains and a heart, not just reactionary brawn.I hope you take the time to click that first link in the quote. Know where it goes? To a PETA blog archive referencing Michael Vick. So -- and I just want to make sure I have this right -- Manu Ginobili swatting a loose bat out of the air in a basketball arena is the same as a man who participated in and funded a dogfighting ring.Bats always try to avoid contact with humans, and there are plenty of easy ways to keep bats out of a basketball arena (or your home). We hope that the next time someone's life is on the line, Manu Ginobili will take just a few seconds to think before he acts.
Would it have been nice if they got the bat out unscathed and he returned to live with Bill Compton and Sookie in Bon Temps? Sure. But it wasn't like they didn't try. Just look at the mascot. He was clearly doing his best. (He had a net!)
(H/T to SPORTSbyBROOKS)
This post originally appeared on the Sporting Blog. For more, see The Sporting Blog Archives.
27 comments
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Comments
PETA people are out of control. They are just blinded by their own
idiocracy. I love animals, and wish no harm on some as simple as flies
and bugs, but a bat could be rabid and cause desease, and I am not sure
Gino killed it. It looked like it was stunned. Either way, the
sensationalist way PETA goes about their business does more harm than
good for the organization.
by AW78 on Nov 3, 2009 1:01 PM EST reply actions
I agree with AW78. Also he didn’t kill the bat it was still alive. they checked it for rabies and let it go and it flew away. Then they have the stupidity to compare it to Michael Vick? I my self am a huge eagles fan and I am ok wih Vick being on the Eagles but i still do not condone what he did with the dogs for that i still dont like him for that. What Vick did he did on purpose and he knew it was illeagal and he did it more then once and dogs were injured and killed . What Ginobili did wasnt wrong but it wasn’t right though either. He didnt kill it and it wasn’t illeagal and the bat still lived. PETA must not have alot of things to do if there going after this. Just leave him alone.
by realerays03 on Nov 3, 2009 1:13 PM EST reply actions
The more PETA does things like this, the less credibility they get…
by DContheRise on Nov 3, 2009 1:14 PM EST reply actions
What would PETA’S response be if the bat did in fact have rabies and bit someone in the arena? On a further note, the bat lived. PETA is useless.
by jc79 on Nov 3, 2009 2:03 PM EST reply actions
jc, PETA would applaud the bat for fending off the evil humans.If either a dog or a person was going to be killed in a car accident, PETA would choose the person every time.
by Dubsy on Nov 3, 2009 2:25 PM EST reply actions
agreed this is not comparable to vick.but i can’t help noticing that the PETA statement doesn’t make the comparison. it only contains a link to the Peta Files website, which has lots of Vick content. So, yes it is silly to compare the two – and you are the one doing it.
by j.nice on Nov 3, 2009 2:25 PM EST reply actions
he really didnt need to do that. if everyone was so worried about getting bit, they should have cleared the arena. swatting at the thing was just mean and IMO unnecessary. the poor guy just wanted out.
bat fact 1. they arent major carriers of rabies.
bat fact 2. they dont go after humans unless provoked or if a human is close to their nest.
with that said, there is no way what he did is anything half as bad as what Vick did. It was a stupid move, and he more than likely wasnt even thinking. nothing i will hold against him, no matter how much i dont like the action.
The bat is fine, we can all carry on now. Peta…lame.
by sarah242k on Nov 3, 2009 3:37 PM EST reply actions
I dont know how to say this any plainer. If you or anyone you know is a memeber of PETA. You are a retard, and more than likely a 400lb homely shut in woman with 6 cats. I do support PETA though,
People
Eating
Tasty
Animals!!!!!!!!!
by kpart70 on Nov 3, 2009 3:38 PM EST reply actions
PETA is just too silly to be taken seriously. These are the same nutjobs who gave you "fish empathy" and other such nonsense.
Does not eating meat do this to your brain?
by BradKT on Nov 3, 2009 3:47 PM EST reply actions
"he really didnt need to do that. if everyone was so worried about
getting bit, they should have cleared the arena. swatting at the thing
was just mean and IMO unnecessary. the poor guy just wanted out.
bat fact 1. they arent major carriers of rabies.
bat fact 2. they dont go after humans unless provoked or if a human is close to their nest.
with that said, there is no way what he did is anything half as bad as
what Vick did. It was a stupid move, and he more than likely wasnt even
thinking. nothing i will hold against him, no matter how much i dont
like the action.
The bat is fine, we can all carry on now. Peta…lame."
Are you serious. Evacuated the arena? For one pest? I am an animal lover, and that is insane. We are talking thousands of dollars, for an animal that was handled perfectly, stunned and removed.
If I see one more post where it explains bat facts!!!!
It was near humans – IT WAS IN AN ARENA!!!!!
Your final statements indicate you did not think it was a big deal, but the meat of your post, in my opinion, is absurd.
by AW78 on Nov 3, 2009 3:50 PM EST reply actions
if PETA thinks this incident is the same as what Vick did, then the idiots at PETA should just shut the F up as they don’t have a clue.
by BronxJagerbomber on Nov 3, 2009 3:58 PM EST reply actions
why didn’t they call him out on eating meat earlier that day?
by Bloated111 on Nov 3, 2009 5:34 PM EST reply actions
Hey, what did I miss? What happened with Ginobili and a bat? I was out of town deer hunting. I bagged a 6 point buck, and just for the fun of it, I knocked down the biggest elk I’ve ever seen. I filled my tags, but I think I’m heading out of state for more. I just love hunting. I just wish they would let me shoot at cows, cause I love steak & hamburgers.
by TD1822 on Nov 3, 2009 5:38 PM EST reply actions
I sometimes wish the PETA people would all get together and jump off a cliff! Are you freakin’ serious PETA? GO AWAY!
by SouthArkansasRazorback on Nov 3, 2009 5:59 PM EST reply actions
This makes me laugh. Peta better leave Manu alone. he didnt kill the animal or really hurt it. Im glad with all the **** they are doing to Vick cuz Vick is a f***** scumbag and a poor excuse of a human being. Vick deserves all the backlash and all the hatred he gets. And he deserves it till the day he dies. Vick scumbag glad people hate that a***** but manu isnt a bad person. Sry peta im against u when it comes to manu
by will5430 on Nov 3, 2009 8:42 PM EST reply actions
Manu 1- Bat 0
Peta has become a complete note, the next thing you’ll see is a highlight of LeBron James, swatting a mosquito, Peta will be calling for the King’s head!
by senatorsguru on Nov 3, 2009 9:19 PM EST reply actions
will5430…….
Are you an idiot?
Dumb question, my fault.
You’re CLEARLY an idiot.
Why is Mike Vick a "scumbag"?
Because he was found "guilty" of running a dog fighting ring? For dead dogs being found on his property? For thinking like 90% of humans who KNOW about the Evolutionary Food Scale?
How do you know Manu doesn’t have a Bat Torture Centre in his basement? Maybe he really does hate bats & that one just pushed all the wrong buttons.
Seriously, tho…..if you watch UFC, or boxing then you should not be allowed to have an opinion on this topic ( still talking to will5430).
Don King has made BILLIONS of dollars for running a human "dog fighting ring" which he has been raking in dollars for, for over 25 years!
So, let me get this straight: it’s OK to maniputlate young HUMAN minds into thinking fighting is the only way to survive, but not for a human mind to manipulate dogs ( a inferior species ) into fighting….??
Am I understanding you idiots correctly??
The ratio on Earth for Humans to Animals has GOT to be somewhere along the lines of 15,000:1….right? By my math, WE are the endangered species & therefore should actually give a rats @$$ about cruelty to animals. I’m not an advocate of harming animals for sport, but animals will sure as S#!t hunt YOUR @$$ for sport, so where I come from, an eye for an eye is the way to do things.
Was it cool for Mike Vick to do all those things he "allegedly" did?
No.
Does it make him a wastebag of a human?
No.
Will…..I don’t know you, but I’m sure you do some crap in Life that some people may not agree with. Is that fair to say?
Do you want idiots on the Internet calling you a "scumbag" because of those actions? Probably not. So do the World a favor & just shut the Hell up when it comes to topics of concern.
Thanks.
by WiNtAHMAN on Nov 3, 2009 9:30 PM EST reply actions
wintahman that was the ****ing dumbest thing i ever heard. You are a f***** loser typical Mike Vick fan. People that dog fight are loser and wimps. Trying to compare what don king did. Hey f****** face boxers still have a choice to fight so your already lost your point right there. A real man fights other people. That proves how big a man u are fighting against other people that have a chance to defend themselves. Ufc boxing i all enjoy. But at the same time they hae the choice to fight. Saying Don King made these people fight. sry i dont get brain washed that easy im sry if u do and that u are a p****. Vick is a scumbag anyone that dog fights is. Go do us a favor leave your stupid a** opinion to yourself. U have no knowledge of anything go crawl under a rock and die f** a b**** wont be missed. Tyring to compare fighting cuz u want to fight to fighting cuz u get forced to. Sry boxers or ufc people fight cuz they choose if bad things happean to those people guess what its there fault. And no one to blame but themselves.
by will5430 on Nov 3, 2009 11:13 PM EST reply actions
Don King did kill a man.
by ShaunPhillips on Nov 3, 2009 11:33 PM EST reply actions
To read the comments of PETA is to understand why sensible people riducule them. Sounds like the sort of rhetoric you’d get from a terrorist organisation: self serving BS!
by ejw2577 on Nov 3, 2009 11:40 PM EST reply actions
"PETA Likens Manu Ginobli to Michael Vick"
PETA is as responsible as Octomom
by kentwow on Nov 4, 2009 1:00 AM EST reply actions
Wintahman is clearly the most retarded person to comment on a sports blog in a while, and that’s saying something. Evolution has nothing to do with using millions of dollars to fund an underground dog fighting circuit. Sorry, dude, but yes, it makes Michael Vick a waste of a human being and a scumbag for what he did. Did he molest children like R. Kelly? We don’t know, but we do know that he was an overrated QB who pissed on his fans and a franchise who treated him like a God. We also know that he gave a girl herpes under the alias Ron Mexico. What Ginobli did was lame, but it’s a bat. He looks like someone from Transylvania so maybe he knows something we don’t. If a vampire is the form of a bat(it was Halloween) it’s easier to kill.
by Texaspsycho26 on Nov 4, 2009 2:50 AM EST reply actions
Since PETA is comprised largely of Moonbats, they were simply defending one of their own.
by Radatz on Nov 4, 2009 11:03 AM EST reply actions
also wintahman u said u are the type of person eye for an eye tooth for a tooth. well those dogs did nothing to Vick. So from your view nothing bad happened to Vick yet. From the point of view eye for an eye tooth for a tooth we have to kill Vick and his people that did the dog fighting. But they still alive so it isnt eye for an eye tooth for a tooth. So u want eye for eye tooth for tooth we have to let dogs maul and kill Vick or the people that hepled him fight. Or we have to slam Vick till he is dead hang him or kill him in a pool. Then that would be eye for eye tooth for a tooth. So shut up till u know what u are actually talking about. Vick is a scumbag and waste of a human. Did he serve his time? yes but that dont change he is a scumbag
by will5430 on Nov 4, 2009 4:29 PM EST reply actions
So shut up i feel bad for people like u. That try and say they think a certain way of living is right. And then turn around and dont even know the correct way that living works. People like u are sad because u run your mouth without knowing the s*** u are talking and then u turn around and make yourself look like a f****** d******. so shut up dont come back here running your mouth till u open a book and learn what the hell u are talking about
by will5430 on Nov 4, 2009 4:36 PM EST reply actions
PETA is out for their own agenda. Afterall, they were the ones killing the baby seals in their own commercials in the 80’s and saying it was "man" who was killing them for it’s own commercial purposes.
They have no credibility.
What if the basketball hit the bat? They would having blaming another player for that just like they blamed Randy Johnson when he picked off that seagull in spring training.
by Bassntx on Nov 4, 2009 7:39 PM EST reply actions
i thought this was a joke at first, i always new Peta is a joke but for them to get upset over this? , i say we protest them!!!
by SakitSaPuwit on Nov 4, 2009 9:57 PM EST reply actions
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