Something written a while back that now resonates with some of the opinions in Nass' "The times they are a Changin'." Again and again the age old debate raises it's ugly head, to race or not to race? Proponents of the sport, if it can indeed be called a that, have long had to fight a rear guard action against an ever growing force being amassed against them. The fight at the moment can only be viewed as a skirmish, but there is no reason to believe that it won't in the future, grown into a full blown war. From where we now stand, it's pretty hard to see the business being wiped from the face of society. So heavily is it entrenched in our everyday lives, that it's said that the economic aftershock of a banning of racing, would cause some serious financial pain to the country at large. How true this is, I for one can't say. I could come over all emotive and espouse all manner of doom and gloom scenarios, but I'd have no concrete proof to support any of them. I'm not an economist. The jobs lost, I should imagine, would for the most part, be absorbed in other industries, which in themselves would then grow, pouring further wealth into the countries coffers. But that's for others to debate. So where does the racing animal stand in the world of ethics? Well it would seem that they now have an “intrinsic value”. One that enables some people to argue that the animal not only has an interest in it's own well being, which must lead us to have not only the same concerns for it's welfare, but that it should have a right to be not considered a piece of property. The basis for this claim evolves around a duty of care. Animals as sentient beings feel pain, pleasure, exhilaration etc, and as such deserve the same compassion and treatment, we accord those human's amongst us who have the misfortune of being unable to take care of their own needs, or lack the ability to realize that they even need attention. This is not to say the the animal should be placed above or alongside us in order of importance. But it does call on us to give it equal rights when it comes to the alleviation of suffering. So do race horses suffer from participation in the noble sport? Do they suffer injuries and death in numbers over and above the average, well cared for family cuddy? Without the numbers to support my point of view, I'm guessing that they probably do. Racing is a dangerous business for both horse and rider, as well as the hip pocket. Especially racing during the Hunt Season. Are we asking too much of our selves to say we love the beautiful animal that is the race horse, when we're more than eager to try and explain away each and every death, with all manner of platitudes about the deceased animal? "He showed great heart, he was a wonderful athlete who died doing something that he loved." etc. Whenever a horse dies on a race track, something inside me stirs up a rather uncomfortable feeling. I think that feeling is probably guilt. I'm forced to confront my own demons. I'm shamed into admitting that I've allowed myself to derive great dollops of enjoyment from an activity that I know will eventually end in the sad demise of a sentient creature. I engorge my appetite in a parasitic nature. In an effort to justify my cravings, I tell myself that the horse is looked after like few others, he's pampered, well fed and groomed, but I still feel empty. An animal has died because I wanted to fulfill a need. I had a void in me that had to be satisfied. I needed the excitement of racing or the punt. But there is another side to the racing scene. The esthetics. I can go to a race meeting and sit in the grandstand all day long, and not bother with the betting ring. I love to see the horses belting around the course in a pack, their jockeys, valiant one and all, resplendent in the bright, blazing silks. The sound of dozens of hooves thundering over the lush turf is for me, almost breath taking. I even like the smell of the stables. But again, do my pursuits of a wonderful afternoon's entertainment come at the expense of another creature who is there participating in an activity that's foreign to his natural instinct? His instinct is indeed inclined to running with the herd, but racing's connection to herd behavior, is tenuous at best. He is there doing man's dirty work. And so I find myself back where I began. I have to put up my hand and say animal racing is cruel and unusual, and should be banned. But I'm also a pragmatist. I fully understand that if I want the society to go on growing, I have to sell one principle down the drain to appease another, it's the nature of the world in which we live. So despite my distaste for what we're doing to the noble horse, I'll happily wander down to the track next Sunday, push my ethics to the back of my mind and go on exploiting the defenseless equines who know not, their lot.
a great piece cyc , the dilemma of horse racing , I have similar views on boxing - at least in that 'sport' it only involves humans , but our coercion of noble animals for our dubious pleasures is unsettling -
