Posted on 11/29/2011 4:55:10 PM PST by SJackson
Horse slaughter plants are legal again in the United States. Restrictions on horse meat processing for human consumption have been lifted.
In a bipartisan effort, the House of Representatives and the United States Senate approved the Conference Committee report on spending bill H2112, which among other things, funds the United States Department of Agriculture. On November 18th, as the country was celebrating Thanksgiving, President Obama signed a law, allowing Americans to kill and eat horses. Essentially, one turkey was pardoned in the presence of worldwide media while in the shadows, buried under pages of fiscal regulation, millions of horses were sentenced to death.
Horse slaughter has been prohibited in the United States as funding for inspections of horses in transit and at slaughter houses was non-existent. This worked because the horse meat cannot be sold for human consumption without such inspections. The House version of the bill retained the de-funding language and the Senate version did not. The conference committee charged with reconciling the two opted to not include it. The result is that it is now legal to slaughter horses for humans to eat.
Notwithstanding that 70% of Americans oppose horse slaughter, that President Obama made a campaign promise to permanently ban horse slaughter and exports of horses for human consumption (horses can be sent to Mexico and Canada), that documentation of animal cruelty, slaughterhouse stench, fluid runoff and negative community impact exists, it is taxpayers that will bear the costs!
Wyoming state representative Sue Wallis and her pro-slaughter group estimate that between 120,000 and 200,000 horses will be killed for human consumption per year and that Oregon, Idaho, Wyoming, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Georgia and Missouri, are considering opening slaughter plants.
During these trying times, is the only thing that Democrats and Republicans can agree on is that Americans need to eat horses?
Read more:
Those who say Americans don’t eat horse meat are correct only about the last 30 years or so. I seem to remember that the last butcher shop that sold horse meat in Trenton NJ stopped selling it in the early 1970’s.
In American restaurants people can eat pig, bison, buffalo, cattle, deer, boar, alligator, snake, all sorts of awful looking sea creatures, bear, and I’m sure much else.
While State’s Sovereignty would allow a State to ban a particular class of meat or species, for whatever reason that state thinks is good — there is simply no Federal non-health emergency power that would grant the federal government the authority to nationally ban a food.
Yes, the horse is different.
Will you eat your pet? Dog or cat? Should we empty the shelters? Maybe we can start raising dogs/cats for consumption because it is acceptable someplace, right?
Where do you draw the line.
Apparently; in the sand. . .and we know what that means. Can we not ‘just say NO; to ourselves’? And find ‘another’ better way?
Good find.
Whatever your post means.
Mark Levin is reading a post from a lady who is a authority on this subject. According to this lady that the horses, including wild ones, are being rounded up and shipped off to the slaughterhouses for consumption.
Mark Levin is against it.
You never grew up or hung around farm country have you? Plenty of pet “companion” animals were beloved and named pets one day and graced the family table the next.
In other parts of the world they both eat dogs and cats and have them as beloved pets as well.
Yes we in America have no tradition of eating cats and dogs in our diet, only in extrema, almost as rare as cannibalism. Yet we do have a tradition for eating horsemeat.
Where do you draw the line? With light bulbs, with shower heads? With toilet gallon flushes? With what you may teach your children?
Someone eats lobster, another avoids catfish. Both are bottom feeders. Should the one that likes lobster ban catfish for all?
But to be clear, Obama wants us to eat horses.
Don't know his reasons; but am with Mark; on this one.
Horse tastes like old people.
This is what it’s all about.
Part of Obamacare.
“Horse tastes like old people.”
Gee thanks. I’m one of the “old people”
What a thoughtful,mature comment. /s
Lots of folks who love horses are HAPPY this happened. It happened over Obama’s objections, too.
http://www.horseforum.com/horse-protection/help-stop-horse-slaughter-america-104402/
Thank You,
I’m getting older, and more mature every day.s/
“Yes, the horse is different.”
No, it’s not. Horse was always on the menu, it’s just that they were usually more valuable as labor than as dinner.
And of course, young women have some strange affinity for them. From “Cruel Intentions” (1999):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xAFzndSWhBg
“Maybe we can start raising dogs/cats for consumption because it is acceptable someplace, right?”
In some places (India), cows are sacred. Should we not eat cows? Some people keep pigs as pets in this country.
“Where do you draw the line.”
I draw the line at people (under most circumstances), and bugs.
Yes indeed, Doe Eyes, we need to remember Obama PROMISED the HSUS, other AR activists he would not allow this to happen. If I had time I’d go to the DU (not Ducks Unlimited) site to hear them wail!!!!!!
somehow I can't equate eating a thousand pound animal which shares a pasture with other herbivores (cattle), with eating my 6 pound cat.....cats and dogs can live in your house with you and be trained not to mess up your floors...they are "lap animals" so to speak. Horses are nice, but so are cows....cows give marketable milk, horses don't, horses pull covered wagons to settle the west, cows don't. Since we still need milk, and no longer need draft animals, let's eat horses instead of cows.........oh well, maybe both, I love beef!!
The problem is that if humane slaughter exists in the abstract it is not used in the concrete. I doubt USDA has the man power to inspect plants to assure this.
Cannibalism! Or worse! (That any politician could okay eating the animal when there are so many horse’s asses in DC is amazing.)
That could be true. I do not know the answer.
What I can figure out is it is best done here (instead of a third world country like Mexico) and with a spotlight on it to make sure it is as humane as possible. I don’t think, unfortunately, in our lifetimes we are going to see the end of overbreeding and overpopulation of companion animals.
There are dozens of anima rights organizations, like the HSUS, PETA, and on and on. But they suck money from local shelters, and don’t feed, spay neuter or house these animals. If they gave only a small portion of the money they raise they could end a lot of this.
ACKKKK, Don’t get me started on those bastards of PETA. I agree on one point the transport of horses for slaughter outside of the USA resulted in many unspeakable cruelties.
I have read the descriptions of horse slaughter when it was legal here. The harsh truth is there is enough man power whether by government agency or voluntary watchdog group to propery police and enforce violations of humane standards for slaughter.
I’ll be honest too. If tomorrow every objection I raised was removed I would still be against it for moral reasons. Yeah there are times when I don’t let logic to take point. I would of course still support humane euthanasia and rail against the irresponsible breeding of horses.
I support animal welfare and have no use for animal rights.
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