The animal-rights Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) came out with its first-ever grisly “undercover” slaughterhouse video this week, and it’s scandalous all around. Scandalous that employees of the plant (now fired) were behaving so unforgivably. Scandalous that appropriate government oversight was apparently lacking. And equally scandalous that HSUS waited around four months to share its footage with anyone. 

Four months? U.S. Agriculture Secretary Ed Schafer made the point on Wednesday in a press release:

It is unfortunate that the Humane Society of the United States did not present this information to us when these alleged violations occurred in the fall of 2007. Had we known at the time the alleged violations occurred, we would have initiated our investigation sooner, and taken appropriate actions at that time.

An organization truly interested in protecting the welfare of farm animals would have held a press conference a day or two after its undercover mole witnessed such atrocities. But HSUS isn’t an animal “welfare” group. It’s PETA with a nicer wristwatch.

This week’s HSUS exposé had little to do with animal welfare. The same can be said for HSUS.