Michael Macartney, 50, confessed to the BBC his role in an extreme monkey torture network.

A ringleader in a global monkey torture network exposed by the BBC has been charged by US federal prosecutors.

Michael Macartney, 50, who went by the alias “Torture King”, was charged in Virginia with conspiracy to create and distribute animal-crushing videos.

Mr Macartney was one of three key distributors identified by the BBC Eye team during a year-long investigation into sadistic monkey torture groups.

Two women have also been charged in the UK following the investigation.

Warning: This article contains disturbing content

Mr Macartney, a former motorcycle gang member who previously spent time in prison, ran several chat groups for monkey torture enthusiasts from around the world on the encrypted messaging app Telegram.

  • MilitantVegan@lemmy.world
    78·
    3 months ago

    Currently billions of animals are raised in atrocious conditions and slaughtered against their will, for food, every year. This alone should be reason enough to want it to end, but the problems don’t end there. Most of the top causes of death in industrialized nations is the result of lifestyle diseases such heart disease, stroke, diabetes, and cancers. The main drivers of these diseases is overconsumption of animal products. In other words eating animals is the leading cause of death in humans.

    https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/56984912-the-proof-is-in-the-plants

    To make it worse, food deserts in low income areas results in disproportionately higher incidences of these diseases and causes of death for black people, indigenous people, and all persons of color.

    https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=w9ixJ3YcmZg&pp=ygUldGhleSdyZSB0cnlpbmcgdG8ga2lsbCB1cyBkb2N1bWVudGFyeQ%3D%3D

    even worse, animal agriculture is one of the worst sources of environmental destruction. It is one of the top causes of climate change, the single largest cause of deforestation, and causes rampant pollution.

    https://www.surgeactivism.org/aveganworld

    And again, it gets even worse. Not only is it strongly arguable that consumption of animals and their products is the cause of the covid pandemic; animal ag is also the leading cause of antibiotic resistant diseases, and if it’s allowed to continue it will only be a matter of when, not if, we end up with an H5N1 pandemic - a flu that has a 50-60% death rate. This should be reason enough for governments to outright declare animal agriculture a threat to national security, and pursue strong policies to transition away from animal consumption as rapidly as possible.

    https://www.surgeactivism.org/notifbutwhenbirdflu

    When something is this bad, aren’t modest proposals the last thing we need?

    • Mastengwe@lemm.ee
      56·
      3 months ago

      How about you let people eat what they want to eat and you just worry about yourself.

      • MilitantVegan@lemmy.world
        97·
        3 months ago

        Animals are generally killed significantly younger than their natural lifespans. The short lives they live are entirely in conditions that are comparable to history’s worst concentration camps. You’re literally living on the rotten flesh of traumatized children.

        Have you ever stopped to wonder what they want?

        • steeznson@lemmy.world
          2·
          3 months ago

          I disagree with you but that is an informative graph. I knew egg laying chickens were killed before they were a year old but 5 months is wild.

          • MilitantVegan@lemmy.world
            24·
            3 months ago

            Taste is subjective, and it changes in response to what you eat. The vast majority of people are used to what are called hyper-palatable foods - foods that are scientifically formulated to be addictive. Every food that is not hyper-palatable tastes flavorless by comparison.

            If you get used to eating real food - that is, real plants in their whole, generally intact forms - then hyper-palatable foods end up tasting disgustingly salty.

            Point is, plants taste perfectly fine.

              • MilitantVegan@lemmy.world
                22·
                3 months ago

                You’re missing the point. Why does your fleeting sensory pleasure justify the murder of innocent sentient beings? And why does it justify the healthcare burden, environmental harm, and pathogenic outbreaks that you impose on everyone?

                • Mastengwe@lemm.ee
                  23·
                  3 months ago

                  Because it’s a freedom I have to eat what I want, regardless of how it makes you feel.

                  This is something that YOU need to deal with. Not me.

            • gimpchrist @lemmy.world
              11·
              3 months ago

              You must have never had okra before. Or dulse. One is disgustingly bitter, one is disgustingly salty. Not all plants taste perfectly fine.

              • MilitantVegan@lemmy.world
                2·
                3 months ago

                Okra did not taste disgustingly bitter to me (genetics play a large role in taste perception). And I used to put a small amount of dulse into all my meals because it is salty, a little goes a long way, and it’s one of very few natural sources of iodine.

                Sounds like a skill issue. The better you get at cooking plants, the better they taste. That and finding the right ones for you.

                • gimpchrist @lemmy.world
                  1·
                  3 months ago

                  Sounds like you just like to be better than all of us as some kind of ascended plant eating freak… you go right ahead and enjoy your fucking plants with no feelings… I’m sure plants enjoy living too, weirdo. Is life more fun for you when we both insult each other? Is life more fun when you are acting like you have all of the answers and we’re all wrong? Is it fun to police people’s eating habits on planet earth? You’re such a fucking weirdo. There is no skill issue, I’ve been a chef since I was 14 in restaurants across the world… sounds just like you hate everybody and you have to argue to feel better

        • wakumul@lemm.ee
          23·
          3 months ago

          that chart is all lies. none of those animals have a natural lifespan that long

        • wakumul@lemm.ee
          23·
          3 months ago

          the vast majority of make dairy calves are brought to full weight before slaughter: 18-20 months

          • MilitantVegan@lemmy.world
            2·
            3 months ago

            Everywhere I’ve looked says the same - cows can live 15-20 years and possibly even longer. That’s significantly more life than 18-20 months.

            • wakumul@lemm.ee
              22·
              3 months ago

              cows can live 15 to 20 years if they have protection from predators, and weather, and disease, and access to enough nutritious food, clean water, and veterinary care.

              their natural life span, being a domesticated animal, is usually about 18-20 months.

              • MilitantVegan@lemmy.world
                2·
                3 months ago

                That’s insane. There’s nothing natural about being slaughtered against your will. Growing less profitable is not a natural cause of death. I don’t know anything more disturbingly capitalist than to perceive intelligent living beings as commodities.

                • wakumul@lemm.ee
                  22·
                  3 months ago

                  There’s nothing natural about being slaughtered against your will.

                  this assumes non-human animals have a will to live. this would require an understanding that they, themselves, might die. we have no proof of understanding personal mortality in non-human animals (though, if you have a study that shows otherwise, i would be very interested to see it). therefore, we have no reason to believe nonhuman animals have a will to live.

                • wakumul@lemm.ee
                  12·
                  3 months ago

                  Growing less profitable is not a natural cause of death.

                  no, and it’s also not the cause of death for any of the animals we eat or otherwise exploit.

                • wakumul@lemm.ee
                  12·
                  3 months ago

                  I don’t know anything more disturbingly capitalist than to perceive intelligent living beings as commodities.

                  intelligent is a relative term. but i can certainly show you something more disturbingly capitalist: exploiting people for profit.

      • A_Random_Idiot@lemmy.worldEnglish
        65·
        3 months ago

        Their user name is MilitantVegan.

        Do you genuinely think they have ever, in their entire life, been capable of keeping their nose out of other peoples business?

        • Korne127@lemmy.world
          62·
          3 months ago

          I’m not even vegan by myself, but saying other people’s business when it’s not about things people do for themselves without harming anyone but killing animals is… really weird.

          • A_Random_Idiot@lemmy.worldEnglish
            43·
            3 months ago

            Yeah, that bullshit “i’m not a vegan, I’m just gonna say vegan things” act wont pass here.

            Also, I love how you are trying to claim something that a significant portion of all animal life on the planet does is “weird”.

            Like, maybe thats a you problem, bro.

            • MilitantVegan@lemmy.world
              53·
              3 months ago

              If you’re familiar with trophic levels, you would know it’s literally impossible for a majority of the planet’s population to be carnivorous. The population levels of species in one trophic level are limited by the population size of what they eat. Primary producers and herbivores must always outnumber omnivores and carnivores.

              And when you look at the full breadth of the harms caused by humans eating animals, it clearly is an abnormal practice. Just because something is popular, doesn’t mean it’s normal. Doing something every day that is completely contrary to our own natures, our own wellbeing, the wellbeing of all the other intelligent beings we share this planet with, and the planet itself, is grotesque and strange in the extreme.

              • gimpchrist @lemmy.world
                1·
                3 months ago

                See this is the thing I’m pissed off about though… we don’t get to eat the animals that are murdered… a good extreme majority of us cannot fucking afford the meat that is on our grocery shelves… we’re not eating animals… we can’t afford to eat animals… they’re just slaughtering animals to throw them in grocery store dumpsters… it’s not an 'us, problem… …so why the fuck are you yelling at us, when you should be yelling at The giant factory Farms and the governments who allow people to overslaughter these animals, put them on a shelf in a store, let it sit and rot while no one affords it, and then throws it into a dumpster at the end of the week… why aren’t you yelling at them?

                Seriously I’m fucking sick of it and I’m fucking hungry… all I eat is God damn potatoes and fucking rice and fucking peanut butter and I hate your stupid vegan food I’m starving and I fucking hate beans. I just want a fucking steak but I’m not allowed to cuz I can’t afford it and it makes me a total fucking asshole I guess, to want to eat food.

                • Sizzler@slrpnk.net
                  1·
                  3 months ago

                  Quick reminder, you are having this rant in a thread about people who just want to torture animals…

                • MilitantVegan@lemmy.world
                  22·
                  3 months ago

                  What kind of rice? Plant based foods can be significantly less expensive than animal products if you get them in their whole food forms. Brown rice might be a little more effort to cook but it’s a lot more filling and nutritious. and in general whole grains are going go be a lot more filling than refined sources.

                  Leafy greens are known to slow metabolism, so if you can include them they will help you feel satiated for longer, and help your body use your nutrients more efficiently.

                  If you’re able to order anything online or find a grocery store that carries them, soy curls and tvp are bean-based meat alternatives that are extremely easy to cook. Prices on those vary though. Nutritional yeast is also great to have because it not only loads your food full of protein, but also adds a delicious cheesy/savory flavor. And it might not be the healthiest choice, but a big bag of msg is probably the least expensive way to give all your meals a good savory kick.

                  And try not to give up on beans. Out of all foods, beans are correlated with the longest lifespans. Try all different kinds, including lentils which are generally easier to cook. Few foods are less expensive than beans, so it’s worth learning to love them.

                  • gimpchrist @lemmy.world
                    11·
                    3 months ago

                    Bro… I can’t afford to eat meat… do you think I can afford your weird alternatives? Stop trying to tell me how to eat.

                    No! You know what, it’s a new day… I’ve been bullied into being stressed out by people like you for far too long this is a new type of social media and I’m going to block you and I’m going to enjoy it and then you’ll never have to exist to me ever again that’s great goodbye

              • rusticus@lemm.ee
                23·
                3 months ago

                Homo sapien is traditionally an omnivore. GTFO with your “normal” and “contrary” arguments.

        • Mastengwe@lemm.ee
          44·
          3 months ago

          Oh, absolutely not. I just wanted people to see how they will respond to a reasonable request.

            • Mastengwe@lemm.ee
              33·
              3 months ago

              Or a ten paragraph copy pasta treatise on how I’m a brainwashed corpo robot that’s destroying the world by propagating capitalism every time I eat a cheeseburger.