“Which means more to you – love or money?”

One of the things I really enjoy doing this time of year is writing about happy events. After all, the holidays are supposed to translate into joy and a sense of completion. We’ve done a lot this year and while it isn’t time to sit back, take off our shoes and relax, it should be a time when we can look back on the memories of all that we’ve done, not only as an organization, but also as a nation, and draw from those memories  a sense that it meant something good, that we moved ahead, made important changes and have accomplished great things.

This year I don’t even want to think about the nation as a whole. That should be left to the great minds, the philosophers, and the politicians. This organization is about equine, and while that isn’t our sole focus, it’s centered on increasing and enhancing their welfare. When the time comes for our moment of reflection, we will focus on what we have done, what we could have done better, and what we intend to do next year.

That’s a measure each of us should take, not only of ourselves, but as families, organizations, companies and governments. Let’s start the process with a look at equine welfare in the United States.

We have a President who made a campaign promise to end horse slaughter. We have a bill in the Senate and one in the House that will end horse slaughter. We have supporters on both sides that see the stupidity of subsidizing foreign companies so they can import the meat of American horses and sell it to butcher shops to satisfy the taste buds of some rich yahoo who thinks there is nothing better in life than to munch down on a Dobbin Burger.

Companion or supper?

One would think that conclusion is a no-brainer. The one thing that stopped these foreign meat importers from opening up horse slaughterhouses in this country again was that we stopped funding USDA meat inspectors in their plants. Why we would spend tax dollars so they could make money never made any sense anyway, but we’re talking about our government, so let’s skip over that part of the insanity.

This past week, that little equation suddenly disappeared in the massive funding bill that just got out of the conference committee. It was deleted, thanks not to the decision of the majority of the people in the US, but by three of the four members of the conference committee:  Senators Herb Kohl, D-Wisc., and Roy Blunt, R-Mo., were joined by Rep. Jack Kingston, R-Ga., in voting for the change. Only the fourth member of the conference committee, Rep. Sam Farr, D-Calif., objected.

The reality is that we lost. More than that, the horses lost. All the work, all the phone calls, and the rational appeals resulted in – nothing. The idiots are taking over again. “There’s money to be made in horses! Breed all the mares! Get them fat! The Europeans want them for supper!”

There’s no way to cover up the disgust and the anger which every horse person should feel right now. I used to think of those representatives in Washington really represented their constituents. I used to think that the majority in this country had a voice in government. I cannot believe I was that naive. While I’m not about to go out and hug all the “Occupy Wall Street” demonstrators right now I’m probably more upset than they ever thought about being. I have no idea what their final goal might be and while I might not be one of the 99% I can guarantee that I’m one of the 70% that does not believe horses should be slaughtered for human consumption.

Talking to politicians about horse slaughter is an absolute waste of time. While I can put words in their ears, there someone else stuffing money in their pockets. At the end of the day who do you think they are going to pay attention to?

This has been a personal fight of mine for the last 15 years. Now I find out that, thanks to the three supposed “representatives,” we are going to right back to slaughtering horses in America.

So what’s the answer? You tell me, because I guarantee you, I don’t know. I don’t understand what kind of human can walk out into the pasture at the ranch and see hamburger meat and steaks. I don’t know what kind of human can tell their children that they sent Old Dobbin off to the slaughterhouse.

But then again, there’s a lot in this world that I will never understand. Politicians who make promises that are never kept, veterinary associations that promote horse slaughter, breed associations that cull foals by putting them on the kill truck all fall under the same cloud of putting money before morals.

Perhaps this is what happens when life becomes so cheap that money becomes the new God.

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