I got in a discussion with one who said I shouldn't support PETA because they believe that all domesticated animals, including pets, should be released into the wild. When I asked where PETA had stated such a thing, he said "they never did, but people claiming to be acting on behalf of PETA have kidnapped and released pets." I asked him, given why this was illegal, 1) why those responsible would so readily rat out their organization, and 2) why PETA, which has many enemies among capital who would benefit greatly from crushing it, has never been hit with RICO charges over this.
His response? "Well, PETA's never denied it!"
It's funny how much PETA lives rent free in every carnist's head, it's basically inversely proportional to how much you actually hear about them in real life.
Peta is a symbol of the unresolved contradiction between a carnist's self image as an ethical person and their knowledge of the horrors of industrial agribusiness. That contradiction is what haunts them to defensiveness