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Finally someone that can see that involving the federal government in all this is not in the best intrests of racing. |
I predict
Now that the people with the agenda have had their sham prerequisite federal "hearing", the real danger begins as the first step to introducing legislation has just occured.
The feds have just established that the TB community cannot save itself, we are heartless and cruel to our horses, and it is up to them - and interested animal rights groups - to protect racehorses from our abuse. Congressman Whitfield, R-KY, whose wife Connie is a VP in the Humane Society of the United States (goal: eliminate horse racing because it's an evil practice that abuses horses - HSUS also contributed campaign funds to Whitfields election) will now introduce an amendment to a current law into Congress within the next 2 months. This amendment will have the feds establish a national racing committee to oversee horse racing. The Feds will control it for the first 2 years. The people on this committee will be federal government folks like Whitfield, and hand-picked appointed horse racing people. This committee will be formed and funded by an amendment to the Interstate Wagering Act, where a 1.5 - 2 % federal tax on gross takeout nationwide will be placed into law (out of the 15 billion "gambling handle" the feds think is just hangin' around somewhere) and go into federal coffers. The money will be used to place a federally-appointed inspector at each sale and race track, to "protect the horses" and oversee what's going on. The money will be used to establish a national health insurance pool for jockeys. The act will be amended to include severe nationwide federal restrictions on use of drugs within the horse breeding or racing industries (no funding for testing, however), and of course have the obligatory no use of whips - ever - provision. The horse racing world will panic and fight this (as yes, financially it means the end of the sport), and meanwhile, while the horse racing world is incensed over the takeout and control issue, the HSUS will quietly tack on an amendment in the last committee before the vote (as they secretly do very well), "for the safety and welfare of the horse", forbidding TB and STB horses from racing and training before they are 3 years of age. The only people that saw the hearings yesterday as the farce they were is probably only 1/3 of the "horse racing world" at best - everyone else - and the public - thinks they were accurate, insightful and true. So if anyone thinks this is going fade away, I fear you are much mistaken. |
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Anybody who missed it, grab a drink and here ya go:
http://energycommerce.house.gov/cmte...seracing.shtml |
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Great quotes from the audio archives:
Mr. Jackson says that "we need sound breeding principles." Congress would like to make The Jockey Club put required sound breeding practices in place. "Why won't you do that, Jockey Club?" Because to itemize and outline breeding practices "would be arbitrary and restrictive." But why not disallow 4 x 4 inbreeding, and prohibit breeding horses that have ever been on steroids? Hint to Congress - because breeding isn't an exact science. For example, you can't dependably breed out stupidity from humans .... And will the horses confess to ever having been on steroids, as they go through their first breeding soundness exam? Jess Jackson: "eliminate medication, and you'll eliminate unsound horses. They will eliminate themselves." Hey Jess, how will that happen? By the unsound horses breaking down on track? LOL - Arthur Hancock complains about corrective limb procedures in foals going to sales (buyers are unawares). Then Jess Jackson complains about how vet fees have increased. A congressman asks Jess what his average vet bill is. Jess says, "Well, with all the wires and screws and corrective surgeries .... " And he's PROUD to put his name on the foals he sells. |
Someone may have already asked this question,but,what the hell is Randy Moss doing testifying as a racing representative?
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People can debate whether the hearing is good or bad for racing. However, on the politics of it, does anyone give any of this stuff a realistic chance of actually becoming law so long as Mitch McConnell (R-KY) is the minority leader in the Senate?
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i wonder how many pigs drowned in the midwest last week?
we should have a hearing. or call peta. |
Government intervention would be a terrible thing. But if these hearings do serve as a catalysts towards steps towards reform, how can they be bad? If anything, hopefully they instill some drive or a greater sense of urgency than what turf writers do almost daily now.
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I don't trust the feds any more than you do. However, I don't have any confidence in the governing bodies of racing to do what needs to be done. At this point, the feds may not necessarily be needed. Those hearings may have been enough of an impetus to get the governing bodies in racing to finally get their act together. |
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First, general public opinion is definitely on the side of "save those poor innocent horses from the evil owners and trainers who drug them and run them to death" (just read the public blog comments - from horse people - after Eight Belles). Secondly, the opinion of what appears to be an alarming portion of "interested horse racing fans" and members of the industry appears to support government intervention and control. Third, but most importantly: the Humane Society of the United States has jumped on this. Indeed, they are front and center and leading the charge through Connie Whitfield. The HSUS is a very efficient and well-funded lobbying machine with excellent timing, and an increasing number of sympathetic lawmakers on board. Proof - look at the head start the AR groups got on horse racing with Eight Belles - they controlled the media and public opinion. And still do. The HSUS knows the historical timing is right to step into horse racing and impose their opinions and desires upon this tiny niche sport. HSUS has unfortunately begun to be successful recently having legislation passed restricting ownership rights of pet dogs and cats. Legislation I could never imagine could be passed 5 or 10 years ago. Do I think HSUS can get a law forbidding racing and training of 2-year-old TB horses passed within the next two or three years? Absolutely. The general public is entirely on their side. Truth or reality does not matter in this fight. Only emotion and perception. This issue is cast as black and white, with only two views: either you want to save and protect abused, drugged horses with us, or you are evil. We are no longer an agricultural society. We no longer have a broad societal experience or exposure to real animals - let alone horses or any horse sports. Many people - I believe the majority - see no reason for anybody to be allowed to "use" horses for "our own purposes". Who would ever have believed that foxhunting and greyhound coursing would be outlawed in England, where both sports are far more ingrained into hundreds of years of societal history than in any other country on earth? And horseracing is targeted over in Europe, now, too. |
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I think the horseracing industry has no idea how powerful these AR groups are, and the lengths they will go to push their agenda. This is a completely ochestrated sham by the HSUS and Connie Harriman/Whitfield. Until the owners, breeders, tracks, trainers and anyone else involved in horseracing gets together and hires a good lobbying firm they will loose every battle. Our legislators are bombarded by lobbying efforts every day all day by the well oiled manical AR groups. Did someone say that Randy Moss said he was a trainer? Is that true? |
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Naw, I didn't hear him say he was ever a trainer. |
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I have hunting and herding dogs. Black & Tan Coonhounds, Catahoulas, Pit bulls and Dogos(Argentian Mastiffs), and a useless Basenji, she doesn't even like to be outside. She's in bed under the covers right now. Our dogs hunt everything from large game, bears, big cats, wild boar hogs, and deer, mainly blood trailers for deer with our dogs, and smaller game coons and such. The catahoulas also herd mean, charging longhorns and brahmas. But because our dogs are used to stop prey and will do it aggressively the AR people want us stopped. Actually they want all hunting stopped. So it goes to legislators and as Riot said we are mainly an urban society, so all the legislators don't understand what goes on when a 3000 lb bull gets loose and is running the roads with nothing to stop them but one of our dogs. The odd thing is they never worry about the dogs only those 500 lb wild boar hogs with razor sharp tusks that are 3 inches long and would as soon kill them and then eat them. On the other side the Dept. of Wildlife & Fisheries is always trying to allow for the use of our bay and catch dogs to hunt the wild boar hogs that destroy 1000's of acres of marsh land and levees. They have found the most efficient way to hunt wild boar hogs is with dogs. As well our dogs the Catahoula is not a man-made species they are self-developed from the dogs that DeSoto brought here in the 1500's during the exploration of the Mississippi River. I've done this dance with the politicians, it rarely ends up good even in a rural state such as mine. As an owner you should be very worried about the reprucussions of these types of hearings. This is an ochestrated event led by Connie Harriman as ploy for the HSUS. I believe in animal welfare, I believe there are some very shady trainers. But the Fed intervening led by a bunny huggers husband is not going to achieve anything but bad legislation. |
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I haven't had time to listen to it yet, as I expected it doesn't sound good. |
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I don't know why you would be so sure that the federal government would write bad legislation in this case. They're not going to do anything without getting input from people in the business. That was why they had the hearings and had an expert panel. I don't know how any of you could claim that the people on the panel were not qualified to give advice to the committee. You had Dr McIlwraith who is considered by many to be the top equine surgeon in the country. You had the head of the Jockey's Club, the head of the NTRA, the head of the CHRB, a hall of fame trainer, a state vet, etc. How can anyone say with a straight face that this was some kind of farce. That is absurd. If you guys could have picked 2 additional people to be on the panel, who would you have picked? Do you really think that would have made a big difference? I don't. I think you had very compelling witnesses on that panel. If you would have had a couple of big-time trainers up there who claimed that no major changes need to be made, do you think that anyone would have believed them? Do you think that they would have had any credibility? The people on that panel had no reason to lie. If you had a couple of big-time trainers up there, they would have had every reason to lie. |
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No AAEP representation either. |
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Believe me I'm not in anyway saying there does not need to be change, but your point of contention amongst the people in the business is what needs to be addressed. Ideally what needs to happen is the state racing commissions, the tracks, the horsemen, the vets need to come together come up with a plan that works for all tracks. Make your own intersate commission. Then the correct people that work on a day to day basis with these animals are the ones to bring it to each state and have legislation passed in each state that is basically the same around the country and that will govern racing. That way you don't and can't have the likes of PETA and HSUS interfering. It is so much easier to have legislation like that passed, the horsemen and commissions come up with a plan make the reccomendations bring to a bill and it goes thru without a hitch and you don't have anti-AR people like myself upset that the AR's influenced the bill. The problem is when you leave it to the legislators on their own you have the AR people in their ears 24/7. No matter what the horseracing people say or think...... PETA and HSUS think you are all animal abusers and should be stopped, it is but one of their sole missions in life. Oh and you really need to hire a good lobbying firm ASAP. |
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You guys are talking as if the people on the panels were from PETA and HSUS. Practically every person on the panel was from horseracing. |
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The Chairman leading the hearing is the husband of a vice president of HSUS. They cut off or ignored everybody whose viewpoint they didn't want to hear and whose viewpoint didn't directly support federal control (don't read about what was said, go listen to it yourself) Do not underestimate these people. PETA is nothing, but HSUS is something. HSUS dresses up well and goes to Washington daily. HSUS wants to control horseracing with the point of banning it in the future. They know exactly what they are doing and how to garner public support, and how to lobby. And they have plenty of money to fund whatever they want. THE HSUS CALLED THIS HEARING - it wouldn't have occured except for the Humane Society of the United States VP Connie Whitfield telling her husband to call it The HSUS contributed campaign funds to Whitfields' husband, the Congressman who called this hearing. To underestimate these people (the HSUS), or believe they will "help racing", is unbelievably naive. Look at their history in the animal rights arena. |
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I think I suggested a pretty good alternative to the Fed, now how to enact that with fragmented groups is another thing. Seems some are determined that the Fed is the way to go. Falls on deaf ears how influential these AR groups are. Oh well, they say hindsight is 20/20, once the bad legislation is passed they can't say we didn't warn them. |
"Since its inception, HSUS has tried to limit the choices of American consumers, opposing dog breeding, conventional livestock and poultry farming, rodeos, circuses, horse racing, marine aquariums, and fur trapping."
http://www.activistcash.com/organization_overview.cfm Just click under "activist groups" and click on Humane Society of the United States |
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By the way, Dutrow was invited to testify. Is he in the pockets of PETA? |
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Animals can't protect themselves. They need a voice. I am thankful that there are animal right's groups out there. I wish the animal right's groups had more power. Unfortunately they don't. By the way, who funds that website that you provided the link to? That website is hilarious. They bash all animal right's groups. I didn't realize that all animal right's groups are bad. How in the world could you think that any information from that site is credible? |
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Any changes that will be made, will only be made with the support of some powerful people in racing. Even an issue like the whip. If they end up changing the whip or banning the whip, it will only be because there are plenty of people in racing that think the whip is not necessary. People like Jerry Bailey and Nick Zito don't think the whip is needed. I asked one of my trainers. He said he would have no problem with the elimination of the whip. I made two posts in a row, so you may have missed my last post. In that post, I asked who was behind that website that you provided the link to. |
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What does that have to do with what activistcash says about HSUS? All the information they list about HSUS is indeed true, and independently verifiable. |
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Saying that what activistcash says about HSUS is all true would be like saying that everything that PETA says about an issue is true. Whether you are talking about an animal right's group or an anti-animal right's group, you have to realize that most of what they are telling you is one-sided and half-truths. That site is laughable. They refer to all these charities as "anti-consumer". That's a joke. Activistcash and Center For Consumer Freedom were created by multi-billion dollar corporations to try to discredit all the good work of any charity(mainly animal right's charities) that may affect their business adversely. They are ruthless. They will smear anyone that might hurt their bottom line. If you honestly think that site is an unbiased, reliable source for information I have some swamp land I'd like to sell you. |
Do you want to know who the Center For Consumer Freedom is?
Here you go: http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php...nsumer_Freedom |
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It's no secret what HSUS is. That site is certainly not the only information available about that organization on the internet, in the press or in the public record. |
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http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php...nsumer_Freedom You can't believe a word they say. I'm not saying that every word they say is untrue, but it is mainly a bunch of half-truths. |
I recall some of the testimony from the researcher from the University Of Colorado. He is collaborating with a researcher from the U. of Maine to determine the best conditions for any type of track surface, how to maintain that condition and how to evaluate surfaces.
I believe he also stated that there is blood testing that is 90% accurate in indicating a horse has a minor injury that may progress to a fracture. His research indicates that catostrophic injuries are often the result of a progression of a minor injury evolving into a catostrophic injury over time. The implication is this : the data seems to indicate that if a horse blood test shows the beginning of what might become a fracture, the horse needs rest, not medication to mask the injury. Once the horse's blood test shows he is sound he can resume training. |
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