Snakes do NOT have to be fed live prey. I'm against that. Reptiles can and do enjoy affection from humans. Not all, of course. It's not abuse unless you're actually abusing them - hurting them, neglecting them, etc.

I'm not sure where you get your snake information from, but most of what you said was your personal preachy feelings, and the rest of what you said is wrong. Like snakes eating and digesting live prey. That's a big NOPE. This is why snakes are either constrictors or venomous, they either squeeze the prey until blood can no longer flow and it dies, or they inject it with venom and it dies. THEN they eat it. Yes, they will suffer in a display case. Thankfully most of us snake owners keep them in a habitat, which is specified to their ideal parameters of living. Look at Ball Pythons: they enjoy a lifespan of 20-40 years this way, with a record of 48. In the wild, their average lifespan is ten. Many die from small injuries that get infected, or are preyed upon by other animals. Some starve. Mine gets mice every month guaranteed. Most snakes in the pet industry are captive bred, and fine with people. Mine actually prefers to be around my neck when out of his vivarium, because he likes soaking up my body heat while hiding in my hair. TL;DR - My snake is happy and healthy whereas in the wild he'd prolly already be dead.

Somebody has never done any research on captive bred snakes beyond that awful and wrong article PETA released a while back.