Why Pokemon is NOT animal abuse

Many people seem to claim that pokemon promotes animal abuse. Well that's totally wrong, and if anything it sends a message that speaks out against animal abuse. Here's why. In both pokemon video games and on the show, abusing pokemon or being cruel to them is highly frowned upon, and is usually against the law. The only people that do it are criminal people like Team Rocket or Team Galactic who always wind up either being arrested or becoming nice people and changing their ways.

Then there is the argument that "pokemon get forced/squeezed into balls and forced to fight". That is wrong, on all accounts.

Forced into balls - Wrong because Ash's Pikachu, both on the show and in the game (Pokemon Yellow Version), didn't like pokeballs and thus broke out of his ball. And guess what? Ash did NOT complain or force him back in! Instead, he was accommodating of his partner and let him stay out of his ball. Why are all other pokemon inside their balls then? Because they LIKE being in their balls.

Squeezed into balls - Wrong because pokemon are virtually compressed as data when in their balls. This is never explained in great detail, but it's evident enough to know that they are not "stuffed" into their balls.

Forced to fight - Wrong because Pokemon LIKE to battle. They see it as fun competition, and if they get hurt they are allowed to rest and/or switched out of battle.

Then there is the whole bit about fainting/dying. Pokemon DO NOT DIE (as a result of battle at least), but some see even fainting as being violent. Well it's not, because although it may be hard to figure out, "faint" is just a pokemon-world term for "give-up", "can't battle anymore", and/or "refuses to battle anymore". They do NOT actually go unconscious. I have proof of this in the fact that in the Pokemon Johto episode of the show where Ash battled Gym Leader Bugsy, Ash's Pikachu fainted and was still watching the rest of the battle, cheering Ash on.

I hope this enlightened you on the kindness of Pokemon if you didn't see it already.

Update: I found another website that pretty much agrees with me: http://www.kimsites.net/pokemon/battles.html