Go HSUS! April 25, 2010
Posted by nrhatch in Nature, Sustainable Living.comments closed
Not long ago, I received an invitation to join “The Real HSUS” on Facebook.
Intrigued, I went around to take a peak. After reading through its mission and some of the group’s comments, I hit the “Reject Invitation” button.
“The Real HSUS” group on Facebook describes its mission as follows:
When you think of the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) you think of the nice people who save all the little kittys and doggys on TV.
No. The HSUS in a anti-beef activist group who’s main goal is to “abolish all animal agriculture” They belive that eating meat is bad. They belive that ranching is bad. They say that animal ag is inhumane and unsafe. That we are cruel to the animals that we raise.
This group is here so that the public can hear our side of the story. This is not a hate group, just us, us putting out our side of the story so people will know what we stand for and what we do.
After reading that introduction to “The Real HSUS” Facebook group, I went round to the HSUS to see what it had to say about its mission.
Fact and Fiction: The HSUS Mission is an excellent overview for anyone not familiar with the work of the Humane Society of the United States:
There are people within animal abuse industries and their allies who keep trotting out the canard that Americans think they are giving to animal shelters when they donate to The HSUS. We’ve never said we run animal shelters—just that we help them run better with our many programs. But we’ve always been more than that…. For more than a half century, it’s been the mission of The HSUS to work for all animals.
So, what kind of work does the HSUS do? Glad you asked. Straight from the pen of Wayne Pacelle, President and CEO of HSUS:
The HSUS has program departments devoted to animal research issues, companion animals, equine protection, farm animal welfare, and wildlife and habitat protection.
Our website is a compendium of information on our animal care centers, our veterinary programs, our global work on spay and neuter and the wildlife trade, our disaster response deployments in Haiti and other parts of the world as well as across the United States, our advocacy campaigns (puppy mills, factory farming, animal fighting, seal killing, wildlife abuses, and the exotic pet trade), and so much more.
Reading through A Humane Nation (Wayne’s Blog as spokesperson for animals) gave me a chance to learn about:
The Inhumane Treatment of Animals on Factory Farms
Humane Solutions to Wildlife Issues
The Recent Supreme Court Decision on an Anti-Cruelty Law
Actions to help animals and the environment on Earth Day & Every Day
Passion and Compassion in Action
Bio-Medical Research on Animals
Force-feeding Geese to Produce Foie Gras . . . or should that be Foie GROSS
A Happy Ending for Gentle Ben after years of abuse at a Puppy Mill
Public Reaction to Wayne’s Blog Posts
Cracking down on Animal Trafficking with CSI Techniques
Shutting down Puppy Mills (which maximize profits by neglecting animals)
Reaction to the Supreme Court’s ruling in the Anti-Cruelty case
Wow!
After reading through just SOME of what the HSUS has done to advocate for animals in the past 10 months, I’m satisfied that my donations to the HSUS are being put to good use . . . even if not a single dime makes it to local animal shelters.
Local animal shelters can raise their own funds to support their rescue missions . . . but how would a goose with a force-feeding tube stuck down its throat speak up on its own behalf?
No rules. Just write!
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