Animal rights activists are demanding Birmingham’s historic Sly Old Fox pub ditch its “derogatory” name for offending foxes… The Mail has more.
PETA has suggested the pub, which dates back to 1891 and has hosted a number of famous faces including Charlie Chaplin, becomes ‘The Clever Old Fox’ instead.
They have argued the current name is “negative” and perpetuates foxes’ “unearned” reputation as pests.
In a letter written to the Sly Old Fox, Elisa Allen, Vice President of Programmes at PETA, said derogatory descriptions of foxes has led to their “violent persecution”.
She explained they are now considered pests and “may be poisoned or hunted, often leaving behind helpless babies”.
“The word ‘sly’ often carries negative connotations like ‘deceitful’ – a wholly inaccurate and unfair perception of foxes,” Ms. Allen wrote.
“‘Clever’, on the other hand, is synonymous with ‘intelligent’ and ‘resourceful’ – words which perfectly describe these iconic animals.”
She continued: “We hope you agree that these magnificent animals deserve our respect.
“You can help reframe how we talk about them, which would go some way towards protecting them from cruel acts like being dug out of their homes, chased across the countryside and viciously attacked by dogs.”
While the Sly Old Fox has so far made no public announcement as to whether it will agree to PETA’s demands, the suggestion has been ridiculed on social media.
One person wrote: “These activists are delusional if they honestly believe foxes will be offended by a pub sign! I wasn’t aware foxes could even read.” …
It comes after PETA asked the new owners of Britain’s “oldest pub” Ye Olde Fighting Cocks to rename it ‘The Happy Hens’ in 2022.
Activists said the pub’s name “calls to mind the violence and cruelty of a hideous blood sport that has been outlawed in the U.K. for more than a century”. …
Campaigners also demanded the pub, which serves classic British grub and dates to 793AD, adopt a fully plant-based menu.
Worth reading in full.
To join in with the discussion please make a donation to The Daily Sceptic.
Profanity and abuse will be removed and may lead to a permanent ban.
Ideal response: The pub will not be renamed and you’re welcome to not drink here. Take your nonsense elsewhere.
Seconded
PETA has form for this kind of rubbish – remember ‘sea kittens’?. Still if it’s in the headlines, WW3 hasn’t started yet.
Like the
wordname ‘Slye’One distinguishing feature that characterizes wokery is that the insane demands never stop. Nothing ever satisfies any woke cause.
No matter how bizarre, absurd, contrived the alleged injustice, no matter how totally you submit to their demands, there is always something new, even more bizarre.
For this reason alone, the only sensible response is to ignore them and say no. Because if you don’t, they will see weakness and push even harder. More bizarre causes will be invented, more offenses unearthed, more demands issued.
Reminds me of that film with the line, “the only winning move is not to play”
Wargames
“The word ‘sly’ often carries negative connotations like ‘deceitful’
Hence Sly News
And ‘Labour’….
According to PETA, the word ‘pet’ is derogatory. Seriously, you can read about it here:
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-7954103/Dont-call-pet-pet-Animal-rights-charity-chief-says-term-derogatory.html
But the name ‘PETA’ contains the derogatory word ‘PET’, so the owners of the pub should demand that PETA change its derogatory name.
PETA could be renamed COMPANIONA which wouldn’t be derogatory to
petscompanions.Oh, get a life, you tragic morons.
Ignore PETA. Don’t give them the publicity they crave for these stunts.
They are done for two reasons: to get publicity, and to recruit similar mentally deformed narcissists.
I’d like to ask PETA if they could next turn their attention to all of the Fat Oxes and Black Bulls in the land please. I definitely think somebody needs to advocate for and be offended on behalf of all of these animals being fat shamed and subjected to racist segregation.
‘The Cock&Bull’ is still my fave though…
Personally, I rather like ‘The Crafty Fox’ for a real ale pub.
I suspect the country’s population of black and brown horses consider themselves marginalized by that other pub, hmmm… what’s it called again?
PETA: Publicity-seeking morons.
“Demanding”?????——-All of these silly activists always think their issue is top of everyone else’s priorities as well, when in almost every case everyone thinks the point they are raising is moronic. These silly people need to be totally ignored and not one bit of time or money ever wasted on them and their silly ideas.
A pub in Wales is called The Black Boy and pressure groups (mostly from outside the area) wanted it changed. If they had done a tiny bit of research with their tiny brains they would know it was named two centuries ago after the poor children that were sent to clean chimneys and got covered in soot.
“Sly Old Fox” is simply a cartoonish characterization of a fox, and if hunting them has been, and I quote, “outlawed in this country for more than a century” then where is the problem?
If you feel that strongly, then please, call a summit of the local fox community, hand them some petitions and ask them to sign. Then if there really is a consensus among the sly animals, then they’d better do something about that pub I suppose!
Elsewhere, I’ve heard there is outrage amongst Scottish wildlife that a pub in the Highlands was named “The Winking Owl”, suggesting that owls are patronizing.
PETA has lost the plot. What were they set up to do? How does this help that?
If it is explained to PETA that sly is of Old English descent akin to “slay”, perhaps they’d understand. Clever is Scandinavian and has too many syllables.
Perhaps the correct answer is ‘Certainly. Can you show us a list of the foxes that have found this offensive first.’