Those of us who advocate science based and socially responsible wildlife management often wonder just where our opponents are going with their various anti-use campaigns. Here are some concepts that may be applied to various animal rights, environmentalist, or combination-goal organizations as we decide just how effective they may be in stifling our activities.

Some organizations market to their donor base by claiming that they will be effective in putting an end to practices they define as cruel. Their method of "putting an end to things" is a lobby approach that lets legislators know how effective they can be in influencing the electorate about animal issues. Lawmakers worry that they may well be vilified if they refuse to support proposed legislation that would ban certain animal use activities. It used to be that animal activists relied on mainstream media to voice their complaints and concerns. That wasn't entirely satisfactory, since newspapers and magazines have their own constituent concerns, and those did not often coincide with a radical approach to animal issues. That was back in the time "BC" or "before computers".

Today, every animal rights and environmentalist organization has its own website, where it controls the message, the delivery of that message, and can include quality photographs and videotape of animal use situations. There is no overall editorial function that tempers the message if it is exaggerated or downright untruthful. The organization's position on a wide array of animal issues can be presented in any way its leaders wish, with no dissenting information displayed at all. Naïve individuals, including children and young adults, are targeted, as are mature adults who have abundant money to donate to many causes. Sites often have "hit counters" that purport to be a record of the number of people who review the material. Number of hits may not be a real reflection of number of people interested in site information, but the figures, combined with "contact us" feedback information, are often used to convince public officials that their constituency is heavily laden with those who are influenced by animal activism. In addition, activist websites often encourage viewers to write to their own legislators, either on paper or online, to voice opinions about animal use practices. Of course, links to each legislator's own e-mail or website are given to facilitate electorate activism.

It is not only possible but common for legislators to be targeted if they do not comply with animal rights demands for new laws and new penalties for those who commit animal abuses, as defined by activist groups. An example of extremely sophisticated use of this system of persuasion for legislators is the behavior of the HSUS. Wayne Pacelle, new head of this 8 million member organization, is well versed in the tactics of legislator intimidation. His record over the past ten years includes legislative victories in many states on issues ranging from hunting and trapping, to confinement standards for domestic stock.. Dan Oldenburg, writer for the Washington Post, featured Pacelle in his August 9 column, calling him "The Vegan in the Henhouse".

IWMC urges all advocates of continued, ethical animal use and wildlife management to become familiar with the tactics and the websites of the enemy. With that knowledge, those in our culture who recognize the urgent need to take action to protect our activities and to maintain rational ecosystem management, must become proactive to the extent that our own messages are professionally portrayed on our own websites. We must never stop communicating with mainstream media in order to encourage those outlets to discuss animal use issues, and we must make sure that our own legislators know that we are observing their behavior, and evaluating their job performance. The world has changed. If the media is the message, then we all must do our utmost to portray our goals, our values, and our beliefs in a straightforward manner that reaches the maximum possible audience. Only then will we also be effective in advocating and defending our sustainable and ethical use of animals and the environment.