Some may know, and other may not, but yearly two male turkeys, destined to be Thanksgiving dinner at the White House, are pardoned by the current president. This year President Obama pardoned Caramel and Popcorn (as they were affectionately named) and sent them on their way to the Mount Vernon estate to live out the rest of their days. Caramel and Popcorn average 1' 11.5" tall and 38 pounds in weight. They have favorite songs, foods as well as definitive and unique walks. You can even vote for which turkey has a better gobble and join their team through social media outlets (spoiler alert: Popcorn won) (http://www.whitehouse.gov/turkey)!
Now this tradition (or lack thereof as the article may argue) may tug at our heartstrings and make us happy to see the turkeys be free, but it is nonetheless quite frivolous and poses some more serious questions. In class, we recently discussed chickens--their genetic modification, manipulation and the conditions in which they are raised. Turkeys are another form of poultry not too far from chickens. As the article discusses, is it really natural that these turkeys average 38 pounds, when a wild turkey averages 9? Even if they are able to free range at Mount Vernon, how long will they actually live if their bodies cannot support their rapid and extreme growth? Is it humane for us even to raise these turkeys and subsequently to pardon them? Additionally, pardoning just two turkeys makes almost no impact on the large-scale meat market in America, but gives false implications that the pardon does or at least provides a more humane setting for these birds to live in.
The turkey pardon also has larger political themes behind it, such as pardoned or commuted human sentences in contrast to those of turkeys. But I think this tradition is just another interesting Holiday-themed food issue!
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