PUNXSUTAWNEY, Penn. — Groundhog Day is quickly approaching but instead of seeing beloved Phil decide if we will have six more weeks of winter or have an early spring, we may see a coin flip instead.
PETA wrote a letter to The Punxsutawney Groundhog Club’s president, Tom Dunkel, offering to toss the club a giant coin if it agrees to send Phil to a reputable sanctuary.
As a way to get the community in on its initiative, PETA has placed “I’m ME, not a meteorologist” ad on 10 buses to encourage people.
Tim Roche, a meteorologist at Weather Underground, has observed that from 1969 till today, Phil’s overall accuracy rate is about 36%. “Even if you flip a coin, you’ll still be right close to half of the time,” Roche said. “That’s a 50 percent accuracy rate. So you’ll be better off flipping a coin than going by the groundhog’s predictions.”
PETA summarizes that groundhogs are “shy, solitary animals who only socialize with other groundhogs to choose a partner.” They are creatures that hibernate, burrow and dig. They don’t necessarily interact with other animals or many other groundhogs.
They claim that when groundhogs interact or come into human contact it “induces stress in them and increases the risk that they or a visitor will be harmed.”
The goal for PETA is to have Phil and Phyllis relocated to a nice sanctuary where they can hibernate and live their lives as natural as they can.
To replace them, PETA is wanting to use a huge gold coin to decide if there will be six more weeks of winter or if it will be an early spring. They think that this “gimmick” could still draw tourists to their town.
But, this has been a tradition throughout the country for a long time, it may be hard for some members of the community to agree.
Well, for this year the groundhog will make its decision on Feb. 2. But in 2025, a gold coin may be the future.
For more information about PETA’s goal to have the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club retire Phil and Phyllis, head over to their website.
