reposted from Humanewatch.org

HSUS CEO Wayne Pacelle recently spoke at the Dole Institute of Politics at the University of Kansas. Speaking at an event entitled “Animal Welfare in America,” Pacelle fed the hungry attendees a healthy serving of vegan tripe as he continued his masterful evasion of his past/current radical views on the relationship between animals and humans. (Side note: Of all the meat substitutes, what vegans were crying for a tripe option?)

In the interview, Pacelle harkens back to his childhood where he reminisces about always having a love for animals and feeling a sense of kinship with them. This charming anecdote may fit the whimsical narrative that he has crafted for himself with books likeThe Bond. But it seems like nothing more than a good work of fiction.

During his tenure at Yale, Pacelle displayed a dismissiveness to the idea of having a bond with pets. He frequently boasted about his radical views on pets saying things such as “I don’t love animals or think they are cute” as well as “animals are no one’s property.” Pacelle even remarked in an interview in 1994 that he could envision a future without pets by stating, “If I had my personal view perhaps that might take hold. In fact, I don’t want to see another cat or dog born.” To the same interviewer, he also remarked:

“I don’t have a hands-on fondness for animals. I did not grow up bonded to any particular nonhuman animal. I like them and I pet them and I’m kind to them, but there’s no special bond between me and other animals.” (Emphasis added.)

So who should we believe: Past Pacelle, who had no incentive to lie, or current Pacelle, who has a carefully crafted public relations strategy? These statements not only put into question the idea that Pacelle is in favor of pets, but also the claims by Pacelle of “always” having an unshakeable bond with animals. As if Kansas needed more BS on its hands.

Only time will tell if Pacelle will have to revise his own history again by changing the cover of his book The Bond from a child hugging his loyal companion to a child crying in a field as Mr. Pacelle heartlessly takes the poor boy’s loyal dog away.