Welfare and Subsidies - Doggie Style

The oddities of the racing industry.  No compassion whatsoever for the dogs they overbreed.  Animal welfare - greyhound welfare - advocates point out the failings, and they label us whackos.

I’m not sure how one equates seeking to protect the dogs from injury, electrocution, starvation (you will never live down Ronnie-douche) to a wacko.

More wacko to me is to accept an industry assuming it will have life-time subsidies, props, silver spoons and all from the taxpayers’ money.

The headline states “Subsidy cutbacks ‘disastrous’ to racing industry, lawmakers told"

"Representatives of thoroughbred and greyhound breeders told West Virginia legislators Wednesday that cutbacks in state subsidies of racing purses are devastating the racing industry in the state. “For all of us, it’s been disastrous,” said Sam Burdette, president of the West Virginia Greyhound Owners and Breeders Association, discussing cuts in racing subsidies, the most recent being a 10 percent reduction enacted during the regular session."

And?  So?

Sam predicts doom:

"Burdette said decoupling could be a double-edged sword for the four casinos, since current law requires live racing as a condition of obtaining casino gaming licenses.If that requirement were eliminated, Burdette asked, “Do you open the state up for additional casinos?’”

Rather comical, in a sad way.  In some bombastic way, he's saying without us, you'd be nothing.  Bombastic and savior, all rolled up in one.

Sam?  I did you notice the tremendous dip in revenue?  Or in lingo you would understand, butts in the stands?  Few in the stands to watch them run in circles.

No one wants to bet on the dogs but the owners and breeders and a few old-timers.

      Oh, did we say Sam Burdette is president of WV Greyhound Owners and Breeders Assn?

       Perfect “Cry wolf” individual.  Hell, his retirement plans relies on dogs running in circles, being        injured, PTS and breeding.  So that more can come and run in circles with no one watching.

 

The racing industry is becoming the next "welfare" recipient.  Or has already become.  They rely on the subsidies to survive.

Yet they are an industry.  Not a person.  As an industry they should be governed as such and not some propped up hanger-on.

While their comments amuse the hell out of me in their justification of the industry's existence. I'd rather see them done and gone.

And no, kids, despite the histrionics of the industry, if racing ends the breed will NEVER disappear.  Greyhounds have existed for over a thousand years.  (That's the other cry wolf theme of the industry, once again).

It will never take a few greedy bastards to wipe out a breed.

They will only become what they once were.  Treasured pets and family members.

Right, has-been racers due for oblivion?