Slog - Comments on Alert PETA! http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/alert_peta Speaking of pigeons dying painful deaths and Grand Theft Auto IV, a gamer on staff writes... There are hidden packages in Grand Theft Auto IV, just like there were in the previous 3 versions. In GTA IV you have to shoot 100 Pigeons to achieve 100% completion. Not sure if you can select blowgun for one of your weapons though. More here and here.... Copyright 2008 Tue, 29 Apr 2008 09:56:26 -0800 Wed, 30 Apr 2008 10:38:26 -0800 http://www.movabletype.org/?v=3.34 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss Comment by Reality Check Too fucking ironic!

Hey! Maybe in an attempt at free publicity, the Game Companies are the ones behind the pigeon darting!

Or better yet... maybe some hard core gamer is just trying to get in a little practice before the game released?

hmmmm

]]> Reality Check http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/alert_peta#c1008673 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/alert_peta#c1008673 Tech Tue, 29 Apr 2008 10:07:20 -0800 Comment by elenchos I don't get why mocking protecting animals is such a deeply held editorial value of The Stranger.

]]> elenchos http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/alert_peta#c1008675 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/alert_peta#c1008675 Tech Tue, 29 Apr 2008 10:08:12 -0800 Comment by Dr. Savage Mudede The same was also possible with seagulls and the sniper rifle in Grand Theft Auto: Vice City, which was released in 2002. Move along, nothing to see here.

]]> Dr. Savage Mudede http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/alert_peta#c1008687 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/alert_peta#c1008687 Tech Tue, 29 Apr 2008 10:10:40 -0800 Comment by Mr. Poe I don't get why protecting birds is such a big deal. Birds are the only thing you can kill for fun and laugh at. Who cares about fucking birds?

]]> Mr. Poe http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/alert_peta#c1008694 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/alert_peta#c1008694 Tech Tue, 29 Apr 2008 10:17:59 -0800 Comment by poppy I agree with elenchos as usual. You guys are so smart about issues like the environment and public health until it gets in the way of frito pie and animal abuse.

]]> poppy http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/alert_peta#c1008704 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/alert_peta#c1008704 Tech Tue, 29 Apr 2008 10:27:05 -0800 Comment by -B- I do not condone using darts to kill Pigeons but Pigeons are not ingenious to this continent anyway and carry some nasty diseases. More chickens are raised and slaughtered than pigeons are killed each day and not in a nice way. So culling pigeons seems like a good idea. Then you can go after Starlings and then Seagulls that survive in the thousands on garbage landfills we create, then shit on everything. There was not that many around before we came along just enough to survive in nature. We create situations where some animals breed out of control and we never do anything to correct the situation. We just look at them like they are cute Disney characters.
Someone using darts has a real hate on for these birds and a mental problem and should be dealt with. But to look at the out of control situation of some birds should be considered. We do it to rats and roaches and no one seems to care.

]]> -B- http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/alert_peta#c1008716 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/alert_peta#c1008716 Tech Tue, 29 Apr 2008 10:34:47 -0800 Comment by cmaceachen @5, The Stranger staff is smart about the environment and public health? I've never seen any evidence that their understanding of those issues goes beyond that of any asshole on the street.

@6, Shooting a few pigeons with evidently non-lethal but likely very painful blow darts isn't exactly controlling the pigeon population. No one is saying the pigeon population is fine as is, so you are just throwing up a red herring issue for the hell of it. Besides, I'm still calling BS on this over-population, horrible disease, talk. Sure, we created the environment in which they thrive, but we did that a very long time ago and everything is still OK. They haven't brought death and destruction upon the human race yet.

]]> cmaceachen http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/alert_peta#c1008738 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/alert_peta#c1008738 Tech Tue, 29 Apr 2008 10:57:02 -0800 Comment by bobcat if it flies, it dies.

kill them before they kill you

- The more you know.

PSA from People Against Avian Bird Flu

]]> bobcat http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/alert_peta#c1008775 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/alert_peta#c1008775 Tech Tue, 29 Apr 2008 11:22:28 -0800 Comment by w7ngman Shooting a few pigeons with evidently non-lethal but likely very painful blow darts isn't exactly controlling the pigeon population.

I admit this probably isn't controlling the population in any noticeable way.

That said, why does everyone seem to assume these pigeons still walking around are the only ones that got a dart? I'm betting that for every darted pigeon that's still alive there were at least a few successful kills.

With brains that small, though, who knows. I do believe this was done to kill the animal. If you just want to torture pigeons, why shoot them in the place most likely to kill them?

If I had my way I'd just blow dart the idiots that feed the pigeons.

]]> w7ngman http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/alert_peta#c1008806 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/alert_peta#c1008806 Tech Tue, 29 Apr 2008 11:48:05 -0800 Comment by elenchos I'll start caring about a few people feeding pigeons if anybody can show me that the amount of birdseed scattered around town is more than a small fraction of the tons of garbage that people leave lying around.

There are intelligent ways to control pigeon populations, by the way. It doesn't require all this redneck engineering.

]]> elenchos http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/alert_peta#c1008817 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/alert_peta#c1008817 Tech Tue, 29 Apr 2008 12:00:08 -0800 Comment by Will in Seattle I prefer shotguns to blowguns.

But if you intend to eat them, a blowgun would work better ...

]]> Will in Seattle http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/alert_peta#c1008838 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/alert_peta#c1008838 Tech Tue, 29 Apr 2008 12:16:05 -0800 Comment by Jay Yeah, that blow dart guy is doing a hell of a job hunting pigeons. What's his success rate? One out of five? If that.

]]> Jay http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/alert_peta#c1008879 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/alert_peta#c1008879 Tech Tue, 29 Apr 2008 12:40:42 -0800 Comment by Jay At least in GTA4 the goal is to actually kill the pigeons.

]]> Jay http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/alert_peta#c1008882 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/alert_peta#c1008882 Tech Tue, 29 Apr 2008 12:41:48 -0800 Comment by Will in Seattle Maybe it's harder than it looks.

]]> Will in Seattle http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/alert_peta#c1008936 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/alert_peta#c1008936 Tech Tue, 29 Apr 2008 13:17:34 -0800 Comment by Lloyd Clydesdale Agreed with elenchos as well as cmaceachen's second point. I don't see the logic to blaming gulls, pigeons and starlings for the success they have as a result of human activity. Starlings are debatable, since they're an invasive species.

I'm just amazed at people who've enabled a species's success only to hate them for it. Yet the tears flow for the polar bear. The irony, it is thick.

]]> Lloyd Clydesdale http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/alert_peta#c1009005 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/alert_peta#c1009005 Tech Tue, 29 Apr 2008 13:46:46 -0800 Comment by bobcat The goal is 200 'winged rats' in GTA4

]]> bobcat http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/alert_peta#c1009787 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/alert_peta#c1009787 Tech Wed, 30 Apr 2008 10:38:26 -0800