First, good news about HR 6388 (or whatever number it's going to be): it will be introduced this session. As far as I understand, some changes will be made. The rumors I've heard is that the changes are GOOD and will help the horse.
So for now, please contact your Congress persons and make them aware of HR 6388, as follows.
House: www.house.gov - use the Find Your Representative search in the upper right corner.
Senate: www.senate.gov - see above instructions.
To be able to contact Congress persons in the states where it matters most (TN, KY, etc.) you will need a local zip code. Use this link and enter the city and state the Congress person is in: http://www.melissadata.com/lookups/zipcityphone.asp
Contact Congressman Whitfield and Congressman Cohen voice your support: http://whitfield.house.gov/; http://cohen.house.gov/
POPVOX page: https://www.popvox.com/bills/us/112/hr6388
REMEMBER: WRITE YOUR OWN LETTERS! You may use information from www.forthetwh.com to back up the facts.
Now, normally I keep this blog solely to reporting and talking about issues concerning soring of the TWH. Now we have a new concern that has a secondary effect on the TWH: the newly proposed Senate Bill SB1248 and House Bill HB1191.
Also known as the "ag-gag" or "anti-whistleblower" bill, this bill is being introduced in Tennessee on March 26th and would disallow people to do undercover photographing and videotaping animal cruelty for investigative purposes to turn in their product within 24 hours of taking the photos or footage to law enforcement authorities. Folks, this is absolutely NOT enough time to get evidence prepared for law enforcement to be able to act on it. It will also make work like the HSUS did to prove soring still exists and to convict Jackie the Jerk near impossible.
Quite frankly, this bill protects the guilty, period. Follow the money trail--those who run large operations where abuse is known to take place are funding this bill. I'm sure the lickers, burners and cheaters are happy to hand over some money as well. And this is one that's going to be hard to beat--Dolores Gresham, a well known cattle rancher, is leading the charge on this and she's not backing down.
So what do we do about it?
Humane Tennessee PAC has this wonderful page to explain what to do and who to contact. Follow their links and sign away! You can also make phone calls and send faxes.
We also need to contact the Tennessee Agriculture Committee via this link. Let them know plain and simple that this is clearly going to be used to protect the guilty and allow more abuse to continue. Remind them of the fact that they EAT some of these animals that they would be allowing to be abused if this passed. Again, phone calls and faxes also get the point across.
Click here for a great editorial from the Tennessean about these bills. Be sure to go to the comments and provide your own. The more "likes" from Facebook the comments and the article get, the more it'll be taken seriously.
Even if you don't live in Tennessee, it's important to note that California and Nebraska are also going to be considering this bill for their states. This could become widespread, especially in states that aren't known to help solve animal cruelty cases or take them seriously. It can also lead to more restrictions put on those who want to stop this madness--give them an inch and they will take a mile.
Please take the time to call or email. Be the voices for those who don't have any.
"Today, Tennessee Walking Horses are known throughout the industry
as the breed that shows abused and tortured horses."
~ Jim Heird, Ph.D., Do Right By The Horse, February 2010
"If you have men who will exclude any of God's creatures from the shelter of compassion and pity,
you will have men who will deal likewise with their fellow men."
~ St. Francis of Assisi
1 comment:
Indiana is also considering such a bill. It was passed by the Indiana Senate and now goes to the Indiana House of Representatives.
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