The Save Darfur Coalition has declared this week "Global Days for Darfur," a week to raise awareness of the humanitarian crisis in Sudan. This post is my little way of participating. Despite international pressure, the government of Sudan has been performing and supporting ethnic and religious cleansing in the southern province of Darfur. Over 400,000 people have been killed in the last three years. We read so many statistics that it's easy to gloss over them, so I'll say it again: over 400,000 people have been murdered in the last three years! Millions more have lost their homes and are completely reliant on foreign humanitarian aid. Thousands of women have been raped. A peace agreement was reached last winter that was supposed to help. But the government of Sudan is not keeping up its end of the deal, and conditions are getting very dangerous for humanitarian groups.
There are a lot of things you can do. If you have a blog, you can post like me and help to raise awareness. You can join the Save Darfur Coalition and help with advocacy. This effort incorporates regular people from across the political and religious spectrum who just don't want to stand by any more. Their TV ad may have made you cry and their petitions have been getting the attention of Congress. You can support the humanitarian work of Mercy Corps for free via The Hunger Site. Or if you'd like to aid the persecuted Christian Church, you can support The Voice of the Martyrs. Last, but certainly not least, you can pray. It's going to take a God-sized solution to deal with such a huge, evil problem.
Monday, April 16, 2007
Sunday, April 8, 2007
Sunday, April 1, 2007
Horse . . . it's what's for Dinner??
Reader beware: This post is not for the faint of heart. Some of you have been clamoring for more from Tuesday's Child. Well . . . be careful what you wish for, you might get it. Without further ado, my latest work, as follows:
So this is completely unrelated to any of the usual spiritual or insightful themes typically published on this blog . . . but it is a subject very close to my heart(and a very heated and controversial one in certain circles, as well). Some of you may or may not be aware of this, but horses are slaughtered every day in this fine country for dinner. Yes, you read that right, for dinner.
"But do Americans eat horses?" you ask. No, no they don't. American horses are slaughtered for the dining pleasure of such fine people as the Italians, Belgians, French, and Japanese. "What??!??" Oh yes, this nasty little industry has been around for awhile. There are 3 plants, no, slaughterhouses (let's say it like it is) in the US that slaughter horses, Beltex and Dallas Crown in Texas, and Cavel in DeKalb, IL. All 3 of these are foreign-owned. All the meat (since it is actually illegal to sell horsemeat in the US, after all Americans DON'T eat horsemeat) gets shipped back to those other countries where it is consumed as a delicacy *shudder*.
But surely horses get humane treatment, surely they don't suffer in the process, surely they are treated with dignity in their final moments? Well, if you can stomach it, you may watch the video here. Be warned, it is pretty graphic but very accurate.
They are hauled to slaughter in doubledeck trailers designed for cattle, shocked with electric cattle prods, transported long distances without food or water, and then forced into chutes filled that smell of death where they are improperly stunned and then hung by a leg and bled to death. It is a process which is designed for cattle and not for horses, with their longer necks and their sensitivity to fear and pain. Humane? Hardly.
Some of you probably are aware of this, but many are not, I'm sure: I lost a beloved horse to slaughter 10 years ago this August. It was one of the most traumatic moments of my life. I won't go into all the details here, but suffice it to say it was at least 3 years before I could talk about her without breaking down completely. I commended her to Jesus' care, and I firmly hope and believe she is there with Him now . . . I look forward to going on a trailride with Jesus and Lady and some point (hopefully still a long way down the road). I cannot watch the above listed video without feeling the agony of knowing that is what her last hours on this Earth were like. I am haunted by horse slaughter constantly, as I think of all the auctions out there where perfectly good, but unwanted horses are sold to kill buyers for nothing more than their price per pound. I am reminded of her when I read about stolen horses (oh yes, horse thieving is alive and well in the US, and where do you think these horses end up?). I am reminded of her each time I donate money to Midwest Horse Welfare Foundation for an auction rescue, or look into the eyes of one of their horses, like Mary (visit the Adoption Horses page, you'll see who I'm talking about).
I know my current horse, Sammy, will never end up at a slaughterhouse. He will be donated to Scott and Karen at MHWF to adopt out to a loving person if, for some reason, I am not able to care for him any longer. Or he will be euthanized, when the time comes. I owe him that much. And he owes me nothing. None of them do.
They work for us, listen to our sorrows, take out frustrations and anger, teach us and our kids and friends how to ride and how to love and how to be responsible. They can be therapists. They can be confidantes. They can be friends.
And folks, I'm here to tell you that after years of struggle from concerned horsepeople all over the country, they can no longer be dinner!! That's right, as of this past Thursday, March 29, horse slaughter has been completely stopped in this country. 4 truckloads of slaughterbound horses were turned away from Cavel after the announcement was made that the slaughter of horses in the US for human consumption has been declared illegal. The ruling may be temporary, and requires laws passed by Congress to make it permanent and to prevent US horses from being shipped over the borders into Canada and Mexico, but this is great news for the horses! You can read more about the ruling at the MHWF forum thread here. Make sure to read it through from beginning to end. The last page has a link to the above posted video page, where you can send a note to your congressmen urging them to support the permanent bans of both horse slaughter and the transport of US horses to Mexico or Canada to meet the same fate.
This is FANTASTIC news. It came 10 years too late for my poor Lady, but hopefully another girl out there won't lose her horse to the same horrible fate. Hug a horse, and if you don't have one to hug, you are more than welcome to come and hug mine :)
PS : Oh, and while you're at it, use Goodsearch as your search engine and list Midwest Horse Welfare Foundation as your charity. They give money everytime you search, and then you too will be helping America's horses. Thanks for listening . . . er . . . reading :) T.C.
So this is completely unrelated to any of the usual spiritual or insightful themes typically published on this blog . . . but it is a subject very close to my heart(and a very heated and controversial one in certain circles, as well). Some of you may or may not be aware of this, but horses are slaughtered every day in this fine country for dinner. Yes, you read that right, for dinner.
"But do Americans eat horses?" you ask. No, no they don't. American horses are slaughtered for the dining pleasure of such fine people as the Italians, Belgians, French, and Japanese. "What??!??" Oh yes, this nasty little industry has been around for awhile. There are 3 plants, no, slaughterhouses (let's say it like it is) in the US that slaughter horses, Beltex and Dallas Crown in Texas, and Cavel in DeKalb, IL. All 3 of these are foreign-owned. All the meat (since it is actually illegal to sell horsemeat in the US, after all Americans DON'T eat horsemeat) gets shipped back to those other countries where it is consumed as a delicacy *shudder*.
But surely horses get humane treatment, surely they don't suffer in the process, surely they are treated with dignity in their final moments? Well, if you can stomach it, you may watch the video here. Be warned, it is pretty graphic but very accurate.
They are hauled to slaughter in doubledeck trailers designed for cattle, shocked with electric cattle prods, transported long distances without food or water, and then forced into chutes filled that smell of death where they are improperly stunned and then hung by a leg and bled to death. It is a process which is designed for cattle and not for horses, with their longer necks and their sensitivity to fear and pain. Humane? Hardly.
Some of you probably are aware of this, but many are not, I'm sure: I lost a beloved horse to slaughter 10 years ago this August. It was one of the most traumatic moments of my life. I won't go into all the details here, but suffice it to say it was at least 3 years before I could talk about her without breaking down completely. I commended her to Jesus' care, and I firmly hope and believe she is there with Him now . . . I look forward to going on a trailride with Jesus and Lady and some point (hopefully still a long way down the road). I cannot watch the above listed video without feeling the agony of knowing that is what her last hours on this Earth were like. I am haunted by horse slaughter constantly, as I think of all the auctions out there where perfectly good, but unwanted horses are sold to kill buyers for nothing more than their price per pound. I am reminded of her when I read about stolen horses (oh yes, horse thieving is alive and well in the US, and where do you think these horses end up?). I am reminded of her each time I donate money to Midwest Horse Welfare Foundation for an auction rescue, or look into the eyes of one of their horses, like Mary (visit the Adoption Horses page, you'll see who I'm talking about).
I know my current horse, Sammy, will never end up at a slaughterhouse. He will be donated to Scott and Karen at MHWF to adopt out to a loving person if, for some reason, I am not able to care for him any longer. Or he will be euthanized, when the time comes. I owe him that much. And he owes me nothing. None of them do.
They work for us, listen to our sorrows, take out frustrations and anger, teach us and our kids and friends how to ride and how to love and how to be responsible. They can be therapists. They can be confidantes. They can be friends.
And folks, I'm here to tell you that after years of struggle from concerned horsepeople all over the country, they can no longer be dinner!! That's right, as of this past Thursday, March 29, horse slaughter has been completely stopped in this country. 4 truckloads of slaughterbound horses were turned away from Cavel after the announcement was made that the slaughter of horses in the US for human consumption has been declared illegal. The ruling may be temporary, and requires laws passed by Congress to make it permanent and to prevent US horses from being shipped over the borders into Canada and Mexico, but this is great news for the horses! You can read more about the ruling at the MHWF forum thread here. Make sure to read it through from beginning to end. The last page has a link to the above posted video page, where you can send a note to your congressmen urging them to support the permanent bans of both horse slaughter and the transport of US horses to Mexico or Canada to meet the same fate.
This is FANTASTIC news. It came 10 years too late for my poor Lady, but hopefully another girl out there won't lose her horse to the same horrible fate. Hug a horse, and if you don't have one to hug, you are more than welcome to come and hug mine :)
PS : Oh, and while you're at it, use Goodsearch as your search engine and list Midwest Horse Welfare Foundation as your charity. They give money everytime you search, and then you too will be helping America's horses. Thanks for listening . . . er . . . reading :) T.C.
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