The latest sign that the world is ending comes courtesy a recent CNN poll. Over the past several days we have been discussing the recent attention that the national media has been giving to horse slaughter. I have been surprised at how positively the media has written about horse slaughter, but a recent CNN poll shows that they might just be reflecting the mood of their readers. CNN.com asked their readers if they would be willing to eat horse meat, and the responses were as follows:
I have and I enjoy it – 9.65%
I haven’t, but I would – 28.38%
Only under dire circumstances – 19.74%
I could never do that – 42.23%
Where should I even begin? Who exactly are the one in ten respondents who ‘have eaten horse meat and enjoyed it’ and what about their barbaric freak friends who have eaten horse meat but didn’t enjoy it? Furthermore, if 28% of CNN.com readers would be willing to try horse meat but just haven’t had the opportunity, then an argument could be made that McDonald’s should start offering a horse sandwich. I’d bet that less people would be willing try tofu. [CNN Poll Results] If the world is ending, we might as well go out with a few eventing news and notes:
–Aside from the horse slaughter debate, the talk of the town this week is helmets. Starting this spring with Courtney King-Dye’s tragic accident, there has been a growing movement in support of helmets throughout the sport horse community. Eventing scored a major victory when the mandatory helmet rule proposal passed through the USEA Convention with little resistance, and, as I have said, I expect that rule to be ratified at the USEF’s annual meeting later this month. But there is still much work to be done in other horse sports. The Rider4Helmets organization is holding a Helmet Safety Symposium in Wellington on January 8th. There are a lot of big name speakers and Samantha will be there to tell us about all the details and inside info. Our good friend Monty White learned from experience to always wear his helmet.
–The 2011 George Morris Horsemastership Training Sessions are going on this week. The Chronicle has good coverage of Wednesday, or you can watch the sessions live online in the mornings at the USEF Network.
–Speaking of horse videos online, a website called Watch Free Live Sport Online has published Buzzterbrown’s WEG video. I’m not sure that WEG videos on Youtube from October are precisely ‘live,’ but they are free and it’s good to see eventing getting some love.
—Apparently dressage riders do have a sense of humor after all [via LEC]
—Foxhunting can be dangerous, but apparently so can watching foxhunting. A 61 year old man in Scotland was thrown from his horse and severely injured while watching a foxhunt when his horse tried to follow the hunt. The man, who was not wearing a helmet, later died at the hospital. [BBC]
—It’s good to be Penny Rowland
–Buckingham Palace has announced that in Kate Middleton’s wedding to Prince William, the future princess will travel to the wedding in a car rather than the traditional horse drawn carriage. Horses everywhere feel scorned. The royal couple also recently said that they will forego servants in their new home. How very democratic of them. [Time.com]
—The first US event of 2011 starts this weekend at the Florida Horse Park.
Annie is busy with school stuff this week and Coren is somewhere in France, probably reminding the French why they hate America. But, fear not Eventing Nation because Samantha has just arrived home from the Holidays and we have some great guest articles lined up. See you soon… #WearYourHelmet
