paul_shapiro

That inhumane treatment of animals is the norm, not the exception. Practices like confining breeding pigs in cages so small they can't even turn around for virtually their entire lives (a standard pork industry practice) are so extreme that were more Americans familiar with them, the outrage would be even greater.

Here's a short overview of the problems millions of farm animals face: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z-cor1uZ2AM

The HSUS partners with local animal shelters and rescue groups on a wide range of issues, and we celebrate their life-saving work in local communities. We host the largest training conference for sheltering professionals, Animal Care Expo; we publish Animal Sheltering magazine and animalsheltering.org, which are the best resources in the field; and we launched The Shelter Pet Project with Maddie's Fund and the Ad Council, which has resulted in more than $50 million in free advertising to promote the adoption of shelter pets and drive down euthanasia rates.

You might be interested to know that in December 2011, the Humane Research Council conducted a survey of about 300 animal shelter and rescue personnel around the country—most of them CEOs, executive directors, or individuals serving in other leadership positions within their organizations. Among other findings, the survey confirmed that there is overwhelming agreement among local organizations that they view the humane movement broadly as taking on large-scale cruelties to pets, wildlife, and farm animals. They also value the services that The HSUS provides to local animal shelters and rescue groups, and they see The HSUS as having an important role as a powerful organization battling the root causes of cruelty nationwide.

The attack on HSUS, specifically the 1% claim, originates from Rick Berman, a corporate front-man, a Washington, D.C. lobbyist and PR operative. Over the years, he has created a spider web of organizations whose aim is to attack established charities, nonprofits and public interest groups—from Mothers Against Drunk Driving to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to The Humane Society of the United States. He refuses to divulge specific companies financing his dirty work, but it is known that he launched this line of work by taking money from tobacco companies to battle those seeking restrictions on smoking—a template that has defined his career. Learn more about Berman his front group “HumaneWatch” here: http://www.humanesociety.org/issues/opposition/opposition.html

I'm glad to report that we've killed nearly all of the ag-gag bills so far. 11 states intro'd them in 2013 and zero have passed. TN is the gravest concern, considering that it's on the gov's desk right now. If you have friends/family there, pls send them this link! www.humanesociety.org/tn

These ag-gag bills that you're referring to are Exhibit A in the case demonstrating that the animal ag industry is desperately grasping at straws to keep Americans in the dark about its routinely abusive practices. This is an industry that regularly locks animals in cages so cramped they can barely move an inch for essentially their entire lives. Again, this isn't a few rotten eggs, but rather standard meat industry practices that are simply rotten. When such cruelty is the norm in your industry, you should be trying to clean up your act, not trying to criminalize those who are exposing these problems.

I don't eat animals, which is a decision I made in 1993 and feel good about. Interestingly, the trend in the US at this time doesn't seem to be that overwhelming numbers of people are becoming strict vegetarians, but large numbers of people are cutting back on their animal consumption, which is the primary reason per capita meat consumption fell by more than 12% in the US from 2007-2012.

It was a video like this that helped make my decision: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z-cor1uZ2AM