Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Rteacher]

Here's Barbaro pulling away from the field at last spring's Kentucky Derby in a moment of glory...

He was heavily favored to win the next leg of the "Triple Crown" for three-year old thoroughbreds, the Preakness, but he crashed through the starting gate. After examined by track physicians, he was cleared to run, but - probably overanxious to get a good start - he quickly took a bad step and sustained multiple fractures in his hind leg. His jockey, Edgar Prado, wisely pulled him up right away to give the horse at least a chance to survive that type of always serious injury.

Normally, horses in that condition are euthanized on the spot, but Barbaro's loving owners were advised that their popular horse had a fighting chance to recover enough to walk again - and possibly even breed - if given state-of-the-art medical care...

Since they had the money and really cared for the horse (who had gallantly overcome obstacles winning all his races through the Derby...) they decided to do all they could to try to save its life...

Many thousands of fans offered emotional support sending carrots and flowers, and lots of kids sent get-well cards that featured their drawings of Barbaro...

Having once worked closely with horses myself (in a stable for show horses) I could understand why many people would care about such beautiful animals. I learned first-hand that each horse had its own personality - some were gentle and easy-going, while others were finicky or high-strung...

Here are more pics of the horse and those who cared for it (before focusing on the bad guys in my next post...)








http://www.vet.upenn.edu/newsandevents/news/BarbaroPhotos.htm http://sports.espn.go.com/sports/horse/news/story?id=2747087

[blaseblasphemener]

Loved the book "Seabiscuit", if you haven't read it yet anyone out there, it's a must read. However, that said, after months and months of Barbaro headlines, I have to say, I don't get it. It's a horse. This kind of sums it up for me:

[Rteacher]

Now I'll focus on the bad guys - those who don't care at all for the lives of such noble animals who have historically rendered valuable service to humans in various ways through their natural bravery, strength, beauty, speed and hard work...

Even in terms of recreation and sport, horses have excelled. Where would Roy Rogers have been without Trigger, or the Lone Ranger without Silver, or Toby McGuire without Seabiscuit? (Well, OK - he still had Spiderman...) And arguably, Secretariat was the greatest athlete of the Twentieth Century...http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Secretariat_(racehorse)

There have always been some bad elements in the horse racing industry itself (eg: mysterious barn fires to collect insurance on horses no longer deemed profitable enough...) but that's not the most urgent threat to equines in the U.S. right now. The most dastardly culprits are foreign-owned companies running slaughterhouses that currently kill large numbers of healthy American horses every month to supply markets in Europe and Asia...

Such highly developed animals are obviously meant for purposes other than being slaughtered to satisfy the blood-thirsty cravings of ignorant little folks who like to eat horse flesh (and probably think it'll increase their genital size...) Unnecessary killing should always be avoided (a principle understood by anyone with any moral or spiritual sense...)

Here are some of the facts - as reported in an article about "America's Dirty Little Secret":

Facts About Horse Slaughter

There are only three slaughterhouses left in the U.S. - two in Texas, and one in Illinois.

All three slaughterhouses are owned by a Belgian company.

These three slaughterhouses kill more than 100,000 horses per year - 100% of the horsemeat
is sent to Europe and Japan for fine dining.

Horsemeat is not sold in the U.S. In fact, in some states it is illegal to sell horsemeat for human consumption.

These three slaughterhouses are a net loss for the U.S.

The Belgian owners operate these slaughterhouses at a loss to avoid paying taxes in the U.S.
They ship all the horsemeat to Europe and Japan, and make their profits abroad.

These three slaughterhouses require more that $5 million per year in oversight from the USDA -
even though 100% of the horsemeat is sent to Europe and Japan.

Bragging, "from the stable to the table in four days," healthy horses are stolen and butchered
within hours. Horse theft in California dropped 34% when that state banned horse slaughter.

Nearly all of the horses arriving at these kill plants are in good to excellent condition
http://www.endhorseslaughtering.com/

[blaseblasphemener]

I know as recently as 3 or 4 years ago there was a horse slaughterhouse, at least one, outside of Calgary. There may well be more. I've heard that they've been slaughtered for glue, among other things, but I think these were dead or old horses, not healthy ones.

As for the big shlong theory, does it ever occur to Asians who believe that eating horse meat, turtles, rhino horn, seahorses, etc. makes their dinks bigger, that no races with supposedly bigger junk are eating that stuff? Interesting logic.

[Rteacher]

But, reportedly there's a big market in Europe, too (the French?...) And all three companies are from Belgium...

Hey, if that runt Jean-Claude van Damme is behind this somehow, I'll beat the livin' crap outta him! somebody better hold me back...

[blaseblasphemener]

Van Damme reportedly has the biggest shlong in Hollywood this side of Milton Berle, may it rest in peace. VD's from Belgium. Coinci-dink?

[Hollywoodaction]

[Cerebroden]

[Rteacher]

I think that you're wrong about Barbaro's owners' motivation - it wasn't mainly the money. If it was, they could have cashed their $25 million insurance policy immediately after the horse's catastrophic injury. They were not likely to ever collect that much in stud fees, and it was always a longshot that he could recover to that extent, anyway... They mainly wanted to save the life of an animal they had admittedly grown to love. The lady owner used to rise at 6am every morning to check on Barbaro to make sure that he wasn't suffering too much ...

Even regular jockey Edgar Prado had grown very attached to the horse and visited it whenever he got the chance...

[Tarmangani]

My dog wants to know if he can order the Barbaro Special off Alpo's menu anytime soon.

[rocklee]

People who love horses should check out Phar Lap. Beats Seabiscuit by a mile.

[Kimchi Cowboy]

I love these claims about the slaughter of horses being "America's Dirty Little Secret".

How many horses are slaughtered per year vs. how many cows, pigs, and chickens...? And what are the condition under which THOSE animals are slaughtered...?

...and how many HUMAN workers are inured, maimed, or killed for the slaughter and processing of the above-mentioned animals? Talk about a DIRTY SECRET!



Hey, I'm an omnivore. I eat meat. And I like it. And I'm not going to change. And I'm under no illusions about HOW that meat makes its way to my table. And yes, it's a vile industry that needs change. Send me a petition, and I'll sign it. (North) America's meat supply is dangerous both for consumers AND the producers.

But what, exacty, makes a horse any more "noble" than a cow, or a pig, or a chicken... and thus entitled to any kind of special consideration?

[blaseblasphemener]

[Rteacher]

In the evolutionary cycle of species, the individual soul automatically transmigrates from a species with a lower level of consciousness to the species with the next higher level of developed consciousness - until it finally attains a human form. That's according to the Vedic spiritual science, but even if one doesn't accept that, it's obvious that different species have different levels of consciousness - and correspondingly more personality...

Relatively advanced animals like monkeys, cats, dogs, cows and horses have more personality - and are more potentially loveable - than animals (and plants, fish, insects, etc...) that have much less developed consciousness...

[Corky]

What about "Dreamer"?