PETA undercover in Asmussen's barn - Whoa!

[GenuineRisk]

It doesn't hurt to wade into comment threads on other boards and dispel misinformation, I find. As long as you can keep your temper and limit your response to correcting to the specific error the person is stating. As a racing fan, I found the Lasix threads here very, very helpful and they really did reshape my opinion on it.

Unfortunately, it's easy for people to condemn something they have no interest in. They'll scream about undocumented workers on the backstretch, but not a word about undocumented workers harvesting the food they eat. Because they don't want to pay more for their produce. They'll scream about cruel and inhumane treatment for race horses, but not a word on far more barbaric conditions at factory farms for pigs, chickens and cows. Because they like to eat pigs, chickens and cows, want to eat it a lot and don't want it to cost very much money. But horse racing? Oh, that's easy to scream about, because nothing in their lives would change if it were gone. Sigh.

[Arletta]

Originally Posted by GenuineRisk

It doesn't hurt to wade into comment threads on other boards and dispel misinformation, I find. As long as you can keep your temper and limit your response to correcting to the specific error the person is stating. As a racing fan, I found the Lasix threads here very, very helpful and they really did reshape my opinion on it.

Unfortunately, it's easy for people to condemn something they have no interest in. They'll scream about undocumented workers on the backstretch, but not a word about undocumented workers harvesting the food they eat. Because they don't want to pay more for their produce. They'll scream about cruel and inhumane treatment for race horses, but not a word on far more barbaric conditions at factory farms for pigs, chickens and cows. Because they like to eat pigs, chickens and cows, want to eat it a lot and don't want it to cost very much money. But horse racing? Oh, that's easy to scream about, because nothing in their lives would change if it were gone. Sigh.

Good point.

[cmorioles]

Originally Posted by Arletta

Good point.

Hmmm, was Riot the vet that stated Lasix is a performance enhancer and that a lot of horses don't need it?

[The Bid]

That's not standard procedure at all. To treat any horse the way Nehro was treated is not normal procedure, and it was extremely disturbing to watch. You can tell when the blacksmith backed Blasi off he wasn't happy w the feet. The groom was so clueless he was still trying to brush his feet.

I think a lot of Blasi language was just being a knowitall cowboy. That's how he talks, f word is an adjective in Oklahoma.

Very hard to defend that video whether it was shot over 10 months or 10 minutes.

I would like to know what the insurance was on Nehro, who insurer was, and what he was put down for, and who made that decision

Zayat is claiming he had no idea the horses feet were that terrible on twitter

PETA always wants to sensationalize these stories but it's real hard to dispute what was shot on video. The language and disdain for the horses, the willingness to discuss defrauding the irs, uscis, not good. I'm floored

[GenuineRisk]

Originally Posted by cmorioles

Hmmm, was Riot the vet that stated Lasix is a performance enhancer and that a lot of horses don't need it?

No, in fact she argued just the opposite on these boards.

[cmorioles]

Originally Posted by GenuineRisk

No, in fact she argued just the opposite on these boards.

Yeah, that was sarcasm. I argued the opposite. At least one prominent vet agrees with me.

[GenuineRisk]

Originally Posted by cmorioles

Yeah, that was sarcasm. I argued the opposite. At least one prominent vet agrees with me.

My apologies. I think all my anger at the carriage horse craziness (holy heck, who knew so much bias against the Irish still existed?) has broken my sarcasm detector.

I did notice that somewhere between the PETA video and at least one news article about it, that "In Europe Lasix is illegal.... on race days" became "In Europe Lasix is illegal." Ladies and gentlemen, the American media at its finest.

[Kasept]

Steve Crist Column

PETA’s charges

The racing world awoke Thursday to a huge and ugly mess in the form of charges of animal cruelty and labor violations by the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, accompanied by hidden-camera video taken last year by a PETA investigator posing as an employee of the Steve Asmussen stable. It was typically dishonest, sensationalized propaganda from PETA, but was given a veneer of credibility by being leaked to and endorsed by The New York Times, which first reported the story after being given exclusive access to the material.

Nobody expects PETA to be fair or accurate, but the Times is supposed to be better than that and never would have run the story on its own without observing the basic tenets of journalism its readers expect and deserve – putting the taped remarks in context, investigating the assertions or going to the targeted parties for their reaction and explanation. Instead, it avoided any of those basic obligations with a one-sided “scoop” on a third party’s uninformed and unanswered allegations.

This one isn’t going away quickly. The video, however unfair, is sickening in its coarseness and callousness. Racing’s supposed leaders and spokesmen need to formulate a swift and strong response, exposing the more ludicrous insinuations and addressing those with any merit.

[Sightseek]

Originally Posted by GenuineRisk

It doesn't hurt to wade into comment threads on other boards and dispel misinformation, I find. As long as you can keep your temper and limit your response to correcting to the specific error the person is stating. As a racing fan, I found the Lasix threads here very, very helpful and they really did reshape my opinion on it.

Unfortunately, it's easy for people to condemn something they have no interest in. They'll scream about undocumented workers on the backstretch, but not a word about undocumented workers harvesting the food they eat. Because they don't want to pay more for their produce. They'll scream about cruel and inhumane treatment for race horses, but not a word on far more barbaric conditions at factory farms for pigs, chickens and cows. Because they like to eat pigs, chickens and cows, want to eat it a lot and don't want it to cost very much money. But horse racing? Oh, that's easy to scream about, because nothing in their lives would change if it were gone. Sigh.