Did you enjoy your Butterball turkey this Thanksgiving? (Then don't read this)

[JohnnyHammersticks]

Butterball Employees Implicated In Allegations of Inappropriate Sexual Acts With Turkeys
Unfortunately, you read that correctly.
By Hazel Hawke
Nov 26, 2024 at 9:12 am

Avoiding uncomfortable topics at Thanksgiving dinner this week just got a little more difficult. Allegations against Butterball—the most popular commercial producer of turkeys in a country that has an annual, nationwide turkey feast later this week—have come to light, implicating several employees in acts of animal cruelty. One of the cruel acts? Sexual assault of the turkeys, both living and already slaughtered for the grocery store. To quote What We Do in the Shadows, “You’d enjoy it a lot more if you didn’t know it’d been f_cked.”

So, here’s what happened in a nutshell. PETA did what PETA does: when they heard whisperings of inappropriate things happening at the Butterball factory, they went sniffing around. Apparently, they found quite a bit of shocking and inappropriate behavior, not the least of which was turkeys being hit and stomped on while they were still alive. There was also evidence of sexual assault happening between men who worked in the factory and the turkeys while the birds were restrained. Unfortunately, this is not the first time Butterball has faced legal trouble for mistreating animals at their facilities. In 2012, Butterball was hit with legal action after an undercover investigation by Mercy For Animals exposed cruelty against animals.

The timing of releasing this information to the public so soon before the national “let’s eat turkey” day—Thanksgiving—was possibly intentional. With so much national attention already on turkeys, it’s no surprise that this story was met with widespread outrage. Holiday-specific controversies have a way of stirring up a media storm, and those storms are frequently linked to activists who have been carefully stoking the flames of controversy behind the scenes to draw attention to their cause.

This most recent—and disgusting—controversy raises the issue of media literacy. In a nation where the average reading comprehension level hovers around that of a sixth grader, it’s important to take a moment and remember a few key rules for processing shocking news. Whenever you see a headline that instantly raises your blood pressure, remember that this is exactly what the headline was designed to do. Then, run through the following list of questions.

Who benefits from this information being out in the world? Is there a company that stands to profit from the information you’re reading? Is there a rival to the entity being implicated in the story? Take a moment to see if there’s a clear benefit for someone who might profit from your outrage.

How reliable is the source? Is the news outlet owned by a major corporation that thrives on keeping you angry? Do they have partnerships with organizations that benefit from your attention being focused on this topic? A quick Google search can help you learn about the outlet and where it falls on the media bias scale.

What biases might be at play? After checking the source’s biases, think critically: what’s the benefit of trusting the information you’re reading in this case? If the answer isn’t “you” as the reader, it might be time to find a new source.

Verifying your sources is critical, especially when stories repeatedly make you angry. Chances are, you’re not the only one, and it’s a good idea to ensure you aren’t being manipulated to sway public opinion.

The controversy surrounding the mistreatment of turkeys—animals being prepared to grace our holiday tables with love in the form of food—is horrible, no doubt about that. But it does raise questions about the need to examine how all our food is produced. If turkeys are treated this way, they’re likely not the only animals suffering up to the point of slaughter. Acknowledging this is hard, especially before holiday gatherings centered around eating. But if we don’t confront the uncomfortable truths, we’ll never make it better. Ignorance might be Aunt Pam’s favorite seasoning, but it leaves a bitter aftertaste.

Will these allegations affect your Thanksgiving meal? Well, that’s up to you. Butterball turkeys are still for sale, though there’s no guarantee certain cavities were treated with the dignity they deserve. If you have strong feelings about giving your money to a company that fostered such a terrible environment, maybe it’s time to explore those feelings and consider how your spending can make a difference. After all, you’ll enjoy your food a lot more if you know it wasn’t f_cked.

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[Womble]

Bit of a nothing story. Times are tough for medium sized businesses and salt is getting more expensive by the day. They made the correct business decision to let their workers do their business in the turkey and season it with their salty ejaculate.

[BigRedChief]

Who is ****ing a restrained turkey? Pica of that human please.

[JohnnyHammersticks]

Originally Posted by Womble

Bit of a nothing story. Times are tough for medium sized businesses and salt is getting more expensive by the day. They made the correct business decision to let their workers do their business in the turkey and season it with their salty ejaculate.

You know, you're right.

I now feel ashamed for even bringing it up.

#letbutterballemployees****theturkeys

[Jewish Rabbi]

Originally Posted by BigRedChief

Who is ****ing a restrained turkey? Pica of that human please.

[Spott]

Well, you gotta stuff the turkey somehow.

[Sassy Squatch]

This scandal is from 2006

[BWillie]

Originally Posted by Jewish Rabbi

Rofl

[cdcox]

Don’t cha think if there was an iota of truth to thisTHREE DAY OLD story that it would have been national news and not scraped off the bottom of the shoe of the River Front Times.