WARNING: Video contains live footage of animals being killed.
In her role as governor of Alaska, Sarah Palin pardoned a Thanksgiving turkey. Then she gave an interview to a local news station while turkeys were slaughtered in the background.
Uh… whoops. Here’s to an increase in Tofurkey sales this year.
Ha. I was just about to post this, too!
As I said over at BFP’s . . . my favorite bit is how she goes on about all of the FUN and LEVITY as a turkey is struggling for its life in the background.
I think it’s important to know where what we eat comes from. This is not, however, the way I would have liked to find out.
I so want to see Tina Fey perform a response to this one.
You know – this is actually a very humane way to slaughter a turkey. By placing it in that cylinder upside down, the turkey is calmed…you have to hold it in there like that for a minute or so (like the guy did), and the blood moves towards the head-end of the bird and calms it. After about a minute or so, you then cut its neck and it bleeds out, calmly and peacefully instead of factory-farming methods that bind a bird forcefully together, stretch out its neck and chop it off leaving the body in shock…and possibly contaminating the meat with what is in its crop.
I would wager the farm she is at is an organic turkey farm.
Nobody said slaughter is pretty, but from what I saw it was the most humane method.
That being said, I still loathe Palin and think maybe the background wasn’t the best choice for the interview….
Methinks someone will be fired over this one…
That was truly surreal. Levity indeed…
I would say this is the fault of the dumbass cameramen more than Sarah Palin’s.
Still, she probably could see what was going on, and the farmer could tell that they were shooting. He keeps looking at the camera like…umm, okay, I guess they’re shooting me doing this. Let alone the person asking Palin the questions. You’d think *one* of them would think, huh, maybe Kafkaesque absurdity isn’t really the tone one wants to go for in a local cutesy news story centered on a family holiday.
It’s not like she pardoned ALL the turkeys.
Actually I heard that she was told by the camera crew what was in the background and asked if she wanted to move, and no, she said she was fine with it.
i just want to second vanessa’s observation about the farmer. his look is priceless, like, “REALLY? do you REALLY want to film me killing some birds? well, if you insist.”
I’m just wondering if the $300 Burberry scarf was something she, errr, “forgot” to send back to the RNC….
I agree with ElleBeMe, and I think this video highlights the disconnect we have between what we want to eat and what has to happen for us to get it. I’m not a crazy PETA person, but I find the reactions on a bunch of blogs to be kind of interesting. I don’t imagine they’re all vegetarian, so it seems strange to me that they seem to think it represents how callous and awful Sarah Palin is for standing there while the birds are killed. I mean, they’re going to eat them, right? If it’s not callous and awful to eat the birds, it seems pretty hypocritical to act like her mere presence there is indicative of heartlessness. I actually prefer it when omnivores don’t hide from what’s necessary to get meat onto their plates.
I am thinking that PETA is already working on a way to use this to raise awareness. Though I have great issues with this organization if they decide to jump all over this with a hammer this is one time I will not comment.
I actually think that most of us are more concerned with absurdity and the fact that it’s just so clearly bad publicity but she’s doing it anyway. It’s just a ridiculously stupid move, and a really, really weird one. And it’s not even the standing there so much that’s callous as the talking about “fun” and “levity” while she does it.
Betsy, I don’t think the issue is that it’s callous or heartless, it’s that it’s really really awkward to be talking about Happy Fun Nice Times while animals are being killed behind you. It’s just a horrible TV moment, and a politician’s nightmare.
Well, that was disturbing.
And not just the cruelty to animals.
But, what will Joe Not the Plumber, and Jane the Hairdresser think of their working class hockey Mom, drinking a fancy Latte from Starbucks. That seems pretty effing elitist.
As Jill and Cara note, it’s the situation. She even glances back toward the guy before she talks about taking part in the fun event – is she really that oblivious to what he’s doing and to how she’s coming off? That’s what gets me (or is one of many things that get me) about Palin – she never really seems to have a handle on how odd and/or inappropriate her behavior appears.
As I watched I kept hoping the reporter would work towards asking Palin about her views on rendition, detainee interrogation, or waterboarding. I do give the reporter some kudos for having Palin talk about the Iraq war as the slaughter is going on in the background.
And yea, the farmhand there is great. He really seems to be the only one of the group wondering as to whether or not the job at hand would be an appropriate backdrop for the story and interview.
nod Jill–A few months ago I was able to see a chicken I was going to eat be slaughtered in those kill-cones. It’s not pretty, but I felt that if I was going to eat meat I should at least square with where it comes from and not shy away from the truth of it.
Part of me wonders if Palin was trying to make a statement about “her constituency” sort of like she talks about “real America” — ie, “The Republican Party is the party of farmers, of those hardworking folks who get their hands dirty so that we can all eat — we’re not like those snotty uptight eastcoast urban vegetarians who can’t even swat a mosquito because they think that all animals have souls.” I’m not saying it was a smart move, but I think it was a mistake of judgement, not a mistake of staging.
Don’t see what the big deal is. Pretty much all of us eat turkey for Thanksgiving, right? That’s where they come from, deal with it! Kinda makes her seem more down to earth than MOST politicians.
If you listen carefully around 1:15 you can hear a reporter ask about state programs that are “on the chopping block.” Get that woman on the Daily Show!
I agree that it’s not a “OMG she’s so heartless” moment. That’s where turkey comes from. It’s just so surreal in this world of hyper-managed media spin.
So, any bets that she’ll be booted from office only to reappear as a FAUX News analyst?
@Mighty Ponygirl – I agree. She’s out with the “real people” making a statement – she also hunts and presumably eats at least some of what she kills, which is part of her image. There’s been more than one local politician where I live trying to look “real” in their $2000 suit being interviewed in front of cattleyards and the local slaughterhouse (though not IN it, I have to say!)
The MSNBC guy last night said that she was told what was happening in the background, and she said “no worries” before the cameras started rolling.
Also the “I might even get criticized for THIS!” seems a bit deliberate. I think it was an in-your-face gesture.
So glad to be vegetarian when I see this.
As someone who’s worked with filming for news stories, even on the fly:
That camera crew knew exactly what they were doing and how that shot was set up. Not dumbass at all. I’m pretty sure that at least one person on the crew was hoping that people would catch the irony they saw.
Which people did.
Well, I actually don’t have a problem with killing for food, and as another commenter noted I’ve seen far less humane techniques than this one. But there are lots of things I have no problem with which I don’t think make good backdrops for political interviews. Like, say, an orgy. Or postmodern performance art. Or an elephant taking a dump.
Kai, that made me laugh my ass off.
I celebrate Thanksgiving twice and eat meat at both dinners. Sorry, vegetarians and vegans. I just can’t stomach a meatless diet (literally. I tried). But anyway, I would say this was an unfortunate moment of Palin’s if she didn’t look at the guy killing the turkeys and continue the interview!
Kai wins the thread.
Also, I was wondering the same thing about the Burberry scarf (and the latte), but that’s me.
Well, I don’t know about y’all, but that’s totally how I kit up to go to a slaughterhouse. The latte’s crucial.
This is amazing and clearly is an extended scene from one of those confusing indie arthouse films that cuts scenes with close ups of bugs and a giant clock ticking and then a turkey being killed behind a politician and then a volcanic eruption followed by a cello being played by a six year old wearing a wedding gown and then cut to a a woman staring blankly out of a window and then bam! Movie’s over. And it would all be in black and white and subtitled in French for absolutely no reason at all. Also, a guy in an Easter bunny costume may show up somewhere in the background, just for kicks.
Her act in America’s historical play is just so darn hilarious and so ridiculous that there is no way it’s FOR REAL. The interviews…the fake Sarkozy call…Joe The Plumber…this has all just been some hilarious national prank concocted by Improv Everywhere, written by Christopher Durang, and directed by Tim Burton, right? Because if not, then a grown person vying for a powerful political position literally said, “The time for choosin’s a-comin’s real soon.”
I can’t wait until someone greenlights Broadway’s musical take on her four-ish weeks of national prominence, tentatively titled YOU BETCHA!
FYI, for those who don’t like Tofurkey, there’s the Celebration Roast ( http://www.celebrationroast.com/ which is extremely tasty!) and at least two or three other faux turkey options in your local Whole Foods freezer.
Or.. you could just do like I did in my childhood and have a big vegetarian or vegan Thanksgiving dinner without relying on processed faux meat products – which is probably a little more similar to the ACTUAL first Thanksgiving dinner than the “traditional” turkey or the alternative Tofurkey. Wow, what a concept.
“we’re not like those snotty uptight eastcoast urban vegetarians who can’t even swat a mosquito because they think that all animals have souls.””
I’m offended by that idea. None of those people exist. It’s a ridiculous stereotype. Many of us vegans came from small towns where we witnesses animal cruelty and animal slaughter firsthand.
And those people who think all animals have souls… well, those would probably be Buddhists, or even Christians. The notion of a “soul” is not necessary for veganism. That’s a religious idea, not a ‘let’s prevent needless suffering of sentient beings by going vegan’ idea.
The part that gets me is that she just got through with the traditional pardoning of the thanksgiving turkey…then goes on to an interview where turkeys are being slaughtered?
I also don’t have a problem with people knowing where their food comes from, and I say this as someone with a deer carcass hanging in my garage, but it just seems to me that an astute politician would know that there is a time and place for everything. This probably wasn’t a good time for a documentary on bleeding out turkeys while she’s talking about how much fun she’s having.
This is actually really smart for Palin. She is defining a constituency that she represents. In this case it would be the farmers and others who have unpleasant jobs.
She wont represent the majority of America with such antics, but she was never going to do that regardless of what she did.
I admit I actually liked this. Personally I feel like that she was pointing out that governors and such live in an absurd world and when you realize that its easy to understand why they do what they do. Their sense of reality has atrophied and if they get out of rhythm they just start dancing all over the place not knowing what to do.
You’d think Palin’s PR guy would have found a more, um, family-friendly backdrop for the Guv to stand in, probably a pen of living, happy turkeys instead of the abbatoir (sp?).
I have to pity that farm worker. He keeps looking over to the camera and Palin with that WTF look on his face…
I am utterly horrified with how SNL could stage this. Be prepared for a bloodletting that will make Dan Ackroyd’s Julia Childs classic skit look like a boo-boo…
Like some people have pointed out, I find the outrage over this a bit hypocritical. Not everyone complaining about this is vegetarian, which means that those turkeys will be eaten by many of those who complain. We don’t care about the slaughter, we just don’t want to see it or actually perform it ourselves. We want to go to the store and buy our meat / fish in forms that don’t remind us of the animals they come from, and thus of our part in the whole process. The truth is that not literally slaughtering turkeys does not mean that you don’t contribute to the business. What’s more, customers are the first ones who could stop the practice is they really were so outraged. Simply put, if you are so outraged, stop eating turkey.
Is Palin any more insensitive than we are? Not at all. I personally don’t like her politics, but at least she does not try to hide the fact that in order for us to eat turkey for Thanksgiving, we slaughter turkeys. In other words, our amusement feeds on others’ suffering, and we allow that to happen. We are just a little fashionably disgusted when we are actually made to face the realities of the process. But that’s nothing that won’t be forgotten once we shove that turkey down our throats.
I agree with those that have no problem with it, other than thinking that it would make a great SNL skit. As someone who grew up vegetarian and eats meant occasionally now, I find a huge problem with our culture is that we don’t acknowledge where our food comes from, in addition to our hiding death in general. I think being reminded of mortality is an essential part of life, and for meat-eaters, understanding that an animal died in order to give them this meal, that death begets life, is something to feel and appreciate. Palin is showing who she is, and that she isn’t bothered or doesn’t want to hide the people and interests she represents. I think people are so accustomed to making fun of her (much of which she has earned!) that sometimes they jump too quickly now.
“You’d think Palin’s PR guy would have found a more, um, family-friendly backdrop for the Guv to stand in, probably a pen of living, happy turkeys instead of the abbatoir (sp?).”
All they would have had to do is turn the cameras a bit more to the right where the pen of turkeys were milling about to still get the message she’s folksy and goes to farms…
This message says to me a bit more – that (if you look at her beliefs) animals and the world are here for man’s domination. So what a turkey is being slaughtered in the background – it has no soul and we preside in dominion over Gawd’s cration. If it isn’t a dog whistle scenario, I don’t know what is. The holy culture wars are still alive and well… I’ll wager James Dobson and his followers saw nothing wrong with it, and may have even enjoyed it.
Well, a good friend of mine slaughters chickens at home, and I’m sure he wouldn’t find this too absurd. I get the impression that Palin’s so comfortable with this sort of thing that she didn’t really think twice about the message it would send. Which makes it clear that she is not a seasoned politician, I guess.
I’ll bet that, as a hunter, Palin probably doesn’t see the issue with slaughtering animals and, living in a state where a majority of people hunt, gut, and butcher their own meat, it is much less of an issue than in the lower 48, where “hunting” means getting a turkey for .59 a pound rather than .79.
but once again, clueless to appearances.
Can I take a whack at explaining the whole WTF reaction? The whole turkey-pardoning thing is a cutesy, feel-good, for-the-kids thing. ‘This One Turkey was saved! Awww…’ And the 4 year old can hopefully be distracted from realizing his turkey wasn’t pardoned…doing an interview right afterwards w/ a background of turkey killing (even humanely done) kinda negates the pardoning thing.
Question: Am I a bad person for eagerly awaiting the December Sarah Palin interview where she happily talks about Rudolph the Rednosed Reindeer as she butchers her caribou kill? “Yep, Rudolph’s nose was even brighter than these bloodstains right here on the snow”
I’m sorry–perhaps I’m just an evil meat-eater, but I don’t see the hypocrisy in objecting to this. I don’t have a problem with turkeys being killed so we can eat them (well, so other people can eat them–I’m not a fan of farmed turkeys, although I hear wild turkeys have actual flavor and don’t require artificial insemination to be able to breed).
But seriously, HOW is this a relevant backdrop for her interview? And the irony of pardoning one turkey and then filming an interview with turkey slaughter in the background? Well, it’s ironic. And I don’t think going “WTF?!” at that makes me a hypocrite for eating meat (I’m squicked by watching scientific specimens get prepared, but that’s because I find turning skins inside out and peeling them off the dead animal gross even when the animal died a perfectly natural death).
[...] remarks as the non-pardoned turkeys were slaughtered in the background. This is supposed to be “awkward” at best, and an abomination at worst. Now, chickies, maybe you don’t know where your Thanksgiving turkeys come from, or why a [...]