Barbaro frames Goodman's charitable act
By Victoria Cherrie
Special to the Observer
Posted: Sunday, May. 24, 2009
Adele Goodman plays with Buck, one of three horses she cares for near her home in Rowan County. Goodman's love for horses led her to paint a portrait of the one still in everyone's heart – Barbaro – the Kentucky Derby champion whose life and death was celebrated and mourned by a nation. DAVID T. FOSTER III – dtfoster@charlotteobserver.com
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Adele Goodman's portrait of Barbaro will be auctioned Saturday to benefit the Horse Protection Society. PORTRAIT BY ADELE GOODMAN
Adele Goodman throws down hay from the loft for one of three horses she cares for near her Rowan County home. DAVID T. FOSTER III – dtfoster@charlotteobserver.com
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More Information
Horse Protection Auction
What: More than 300 items will be sold at a fundraising auction for the China Grove-based Horse Protection Society of North Carolina.
When: Saturday. Cocktails at 5:30p.m.; buffet dinner starts at 7.
Where: The Speedway Club, Lowe's Motor Speedway, U.S. 29, Concord.
Tickets: $35.
Details: E-mail hps@horseprotection.org.
Adele Goodman fell in love with horses in the first grade.
She drew her first one when she was 7. By the time she was 8, she was riding her own horse along the corn fields of her family's farm in the Corriher Grange community of Rowan County.
“I love to watch them run. It's like they float,” she said. “They are so powerful and strong, yet so graceful.”
From her childhood sketches, Goodman, 44, blossomed into an artist known for pastel drawings that capture soulful eyes and highlight the spiritual connection between people and their pets.
Her latest work is a 16-by-20-inch portrait of Barbaro, the beloved 2006 Kentucky Derby winner. The portrait will be auctioned Saturday to raise money for the Horse Protection Society of North Carolina.
It's one of the most tedious pieces she's ever accomplished. And it will always be more than just a donated portrait.
This piece taught Goodman how one horse became a hero to children, soldiers and cancer patients. And it should remind others, she said, that all animals are gifts like Barbaro, who – through his own death mourned by a nation – is saving other horses' lives.
“When he died, me and some of the women at work cried,” Goodman said. “He just brought out this compassion in all of us.”
For Goodman – especially when it comes to animals – that's an everyday thing.
Art studio, three horses, 100-acre farm
In a pair of rubber shoes and a lambs wool jacket, Adele Goodman stepped out on a recent chilly evening to wet down some bran mash for her horses – talking the whole time to the dinner crowd – and then topped each meal with bright-green apple pellets.
Buck stomped his feet impatiently as Prince, the youngest, got his bucket first. Inside a century-old barn, Princess, the only girl, reveled in a hearty pat before dipping her copper-toned head to eat.
“Just look at those eyes,” Goodman said, stroking the horse and leaning in for a hug. “She is my baby.”
Goodman's sweet, soft voice is as country as her living in a tiny white cottage on a 100-acre farm surrounded by barley fields and her two dogs, Dudley and Sadie. Barley blossoms swayed in the breeze as a tabby cat danced along the edge of a field near her one-room studio.
Bright sketches of horses, cats and dogs lean against the shelves in the solar-powered room where she spent about 30 hours over two months carefully capturing the ridges of Barbaro's thick veins, the right shades of his nose and the shine off his neck.
A graduate of East Carolina University, Goodman studied with known artists John Faucett and Leslie Tolles-Hudson. She works full time for Penske Racing, but her true love is art. She focuses on nudes, her pet portraits and horses like her own that she connects with through idle conversation.
When she shows up, they give her a horse's version of a purr and whip their tails around.
Goodman had drawn Barbaro's portrait before, after he died. She wanted to memorialize the young horse, who broke his leg at the Preakness Stakes in Maryland, the second leg of thoroughbred racing's Triple Crown. She hung it in her booth at art shows for weeks before sending it to Barbaro's veterinarian as a gift.
But she really didn't learn how special Barbaro was until she began trying to get permission for his portrait to make money for the charity. Permission was a requirement, since he was a licensed race horse.
A good friend of Goodman happened to know Barbaro's owners, Roy and Gretchen Jackson, from college. So she contacted them, and they gushed about Barbaro's life.
The Jacksons said a 12-year-old boy wrote that he'd kept a scrapbook about Barbaro, and now he knew he was in heaven running around with his father, who had died, she said.
Goodman said her Barbaro portrait is simple. There's no background and only a few details in his upper body.
“I wanted everyone to focus on that perfect little majestic face,” she said. “He had these eyes – they were so soulful, so beautiful. I didn't want anything distracting people from him.”
Even in death, Barbaro is still moving people, she said. Friends of Barbaro, a fundraising group started by Alex Brown Racing, has raised more than $1million and has saved more than 2,500 horses from slaughter.
Locally, the Horse Protection Society maintains a sanctuary for neglected horses to be adopted or retire. The center in China Grove also is available to people who can no longer afford to care for their horses and rehabilitates other horses in need.
“There is something about an innocent animal who is struggling or dying,” Goodman said. “I can't get my hands around what it is that touches us so much. It just does.”
Victoria Cherrie is a freelance writer.
Click on title above for full story with slide-show;
http://www.charlotteobserver.com/local/story/740345.html
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
Special Interest a Conflict of Interest?
Click on title above to see what you think, concerning NY state racing;
http://greedybastardsclub.blogspot.com/2009/05/special-interest-conflict-of-interest.html
http://greedybastardsclub.blogspot.com/2009/05/special-interest-conflict-of-interest.html
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
Further Evidence of PAST POST BETTING
Posted by: XXXXXX XXX
Mon May 25, 2009 3:50 pm (PDT)
Txxxx,
I know this is something you strongly believe goes on, and I found the below link very, very interesting. A CONFIRMED past-posting incident from hollywood park recently...
I'll post the link in a second, but there were 2 incidences at the Meadowlands today that motivated me to even do a search on the topic.. Margarita Momma in the 4th today.. is 2/1 well past the quarter, and then at the next odds switch drops to 1/1... yes, i know, she was the heavy ML favorite, so maybe that can be excused... then in the 7th race, #1 Vesuvio As is 5/2 going to the quarter, and #2 Hot Shot Blue Chip is 7/2... well, Hot Shot Blue Chip makes a break, and at the next odds flash, he was drifted to 9/2, while Vesuvio As goes to 8/5...... Say what you want, but this just does not look good.....
here is the hollywood link..
http://www.paulickreport.com/blog/hollywood-park-past-posting-incident-under-investigation/
Fxxxxx,
thanks for link, well documented.....truth is these are just a few of the
stories told.
At my local HUB (OTB), I know every teller on a first name
basis........they have for years punched tickets on windows that don't close. Sometimes,
it is 30 secs after the bell, sometimes a minutes, sometimes until the race
finishes, other times it's never.
One particular instance, a Huge track like Hollywood didn't close the race
and they punched out numerous straight superfecta's. Caused the payoff to
drop to $3,000 on what should have been $8-12K.
The Feds came in and actually waxed 2 or 3 of the tellers for that
instance.....
Now toss in The Big M's survival challenge infiltrated by the upstate New
York hacker(s).
the list goes on and on.....
we have two forces of nature at play:
1> the tellers or track computer geeks that have the ability to change
things
2> the outside hackers who can figure out a way to past post.
Only way to fix some or any of the problems is a commissioner like I have
stated numerous times.
I, like you, believe it happens at the Big M a good bit, the Person(s) that
does it though is a good vandal, he strikes and then goes away....greed
has not caught up with him to do it night after night, it seems more every
3-4 months...IMO
thanks for sharing your thoughts
Txxxx
Mon May 25, 2009 3:50 pm (PDT)
Txxxx,
I know this is something you strongly believe goes on, and I found the below link very, very interesting. A CONFIRMED past-posting incident from hollywood park recently...
I'll post the link in a second, but there were 2 incidences at the Meadowlands today that motivated me to even do a search on the topic.. Margarita Momma in the 4th today.. is 2/1 well past the quarter, and then at the next odds switch drops to 1/1... yes, i know, she was the heavy ML favorite, so maybe that can be excused... then in the 7th race, #1 Vesuvio As is 5/2 going to the quarter, and #2 Hot Shot Blue Chip is 7/2... well, Hot Shot Blue Chip makes a break, and at the next odds flash, he was drifted to 9/2, while Vesuvio As goes to 8/5...... Say what you want, but this just does not look good.....
here is the hollywood link..
http://www.paulickreport.com/blog/hollywood-park-past-posting-incident-under-investigation/
Fxxxxx,
thanks for link, well documented.....truth is these are just a few of the
stories told.
At my local HUB (OTB), I know every teller on a first name
basis........they have for years punched tickets on windows that don't close. Sometimes,
it is 30 secs after the bell, sometimes a minutes, sometimes until the race
finishes, other times it's never.
One particular instance, a Huge track like Hollywood didn't close the race
and they punched out numerous straight superfecta's. Caused the payoff to
drop to $3,000 on what should have been $8-12K.
The Feds came in and actually waxed 2 or 3 of the tellers for that
instance.....
Now toss in The Big M's survival challenge infiltrated by the upstate New
York hacker(s).
the list goes on and on.....
we have two forces of nature at play:
1> the tellers or track computer geeks that have the ability to change
things
2> the outside hackers who can figure out a way to past post.
Only way to fix some or any of the problems is a commissioner like I have
stated numerous times.
I, like you, believe it happens at the Big M a good bit, the Person(s) that
does it though is a good vandal, he strikes and then goes away....greed
has not caught up with him to do it night after night, it seems more every
3-4 months...IMO
thanks for sharing your thoughts
Txxxx
Monday, May 25, 2009
Jockey Douglas Paralyzed in Lower Extremities
Not to worry, the racing industry takes good care of their disabled jockeys, right? By Claire Novak
Posted: Sunday, May 24, 2009 11:11 AM
Jockey Rene Douglas came out of a seven-hour surgery at Northwestern Hospital on May 24 without feeling in his lower extremities, and doctors there said the 42-year-old rider may not walk again, agent Dennis Cooper reported on May 24.
Douglas, who entered surgery around 2:30 a.m. (CST) and came out around 9:30 a.m., was injured in a racing accident at Arlington Park in the May 23 Arlington Matron Handicap (gr. III).
"They said he might not walk again, it didn't look like," Cooper said. "He'll probably have use of his upper body, but they gave it to me straight that he's not likely to walk. They won't be a million percent sure until after the swelling goes down in about 10 to 14 days, but it doesn't look good."
Douglas will remain in the intensive care unit of Northwestern for two weeks, until he moves to rehab.
"It's devastating," Cooper said.
Douglas was worked on by a team of specialists who made efforts to repair compressed vertebrae and damage to the rider's neck. But the main concerns centered on Douglas' spinal cord, which may have been damaged by a fragment of splintered bone, Cooper said.
Cooper said Douglas was alert and able to speak with his wife before he was moved to surgery. Doctors had him transferred via helicopter from Northwest Hospital near Arlington to Northwestern before they began the procedure. He had initially lost feeling in his lower extremities after the accident, but was reported to have regained some feeling in his legs while still at the first hospital. He was also complaining of pain in his arms and back.
Douglas was thrown from his mount in the Arlington Matron Handicap (gr. III) when the 4-year-old Born to Be was bumped by Sky Mom, clipped heels with Boudoir, and fell in upper stretch. Born to Be flipped and tossed Douglas over her head, then landed on top of the prone rider. Track workers had to drag the daughter of A.P. Indy off of Douglas before he could be transferred to a backboard. He was removed from the track via ambulance, as was his mount.
Cooper said he had been told that the horse, trained by Eric Coatreiux, had recovered from the incident. A spokesperson for Arlington Park said the filly returned to the barn and had not been euthanized on the day of the accident.
"She went straight down head over heels just like in slow motion," Cooper said. "She hit him with her whole body, dropped there on top of him and just laid there."
The filly remained on the track for several moments before being transferred to the equine ambulance. Sky Mom, who finished fifth, was disqualified for interfering with Born to Be and was placed last.
Douglas has been the leading rider at Arlington six times (2001-2004 and 2007-2008) and holds the record for most consecutive titles at the Chicago track with four (2001-2004). This season, he was tied with E.T. Baird in the early contest for leading rider honors at the track with 15 wins going into the May 23 card.
Posted: Sunday, May 24, 2009 11:11 AM
Jockey Rene Douglas came out of a seven-hour surgery at Northwestern Hospital on May 24 without feeling in his lower extremities, and doctors there said the 42-year-old rider may not walk again, agent Dennis Cooper reported on May 24.
Douglas, who entered surgery around 2:30 a.m. (CST) and came out around 9:30 a.m., was injured in a racing accident at Arlington Park in the May 23 Arlington Matron Handicap (gr. III).
"They said he might not walk again, it didn't look like," Cooper said. "He'll probably have use of his upper body, but they gave it to me straight that he's not likely to walk. They won't be a million percent sure until after the swelling goes down in about 10 to 14 days, but it doesn't look good."
Douglas will remain in the intensive care unit of Northwestern for two weeks, until he moves to rehab.
"It's devastating," Cooper said.
Douglas was worked on by a team of specialists who made efforts to repair compressed vertebrae and damage to the rider's neck. But the main concerns centered on Douglas' spinal cord, which may have been damaged by a fragment of splintered bone, Cooper said.
Cooper said Douglas was alert and able to speak with his wife before he was moved to surgery. Doctors had him transferred via helicopter from Northwest Hospital near Arlington to Northwestern before they began the procedure. He had initially lost feeling in his lower extremities after the accident, but was reported to have regained some feeling in his legs while still at the first hospital. He was also complaining of pain in his arms and back.
Douglas was thrown from his mount in the Arlington Matron Handicap (gr. III) when the 4-year-old Born to Be was bumped by Sky Mom, clipped heels with Boudoir, and fell in upper stretch. Born to Be flipped and tossed Douglas over her head, then landed on top of the prone rider. Track workers had to drag the daughter of A.P. Indy off of Douglas before he could be transferred to a backboard. He was removed from the track via ambulance, as was his mount.
Cooper said he had been told that the horse, trained by Eric Coatreiux, had recovered from the incident. A spokesperson for Arlington Park said the filly returned to the barn and had not been euthanized on the day of the accident.
"She went straight down head over heels just like in slow motion," Cooper said. "She hit him with her whole body, dropped there on top of him and just laid there."
The filly remained on the track for several moments before being transferred to the equine ambulance. Sky Mom, who finished fifth, was disqualified for interfering with Born to Be and was placed last.
Douglas has been the leading rider at Arlington six times (2001-2004 and 2007-2008) and holds the record for most consecutive titles at the Chicago track with four (2001-2004). This season, he was tied with E.T. Baird in the early contest for leading rider honors at the track with 15 wins going into the May 23 card.
Oneida Capital LLC to Expand Racing/Gaming Operations to Idaho
Another group interested in horse racing at Les Bois; Greene Group gets good news
Nick Jezierny - njezierny@idahostatesman.com
Published: 05/19/09 - Idaho Statesman
Ada County commissioners have received a letter from Oneida Capital LLC, which owns and operates racing and gaming facilities in Montana, Nevada, New York and Wyoming, stating it would like to meet with the county officials and discuss a lease proposal for Les Bois Park.
Ada County Public Information Director Rich Wright said the commissioners likely will entertain a proposal from Oneida, though no meeting date has been finalized.
Edward Spector, who signed Oneida's letter to the county, didn't immediately return a telephone call from The Idaho Statesman.
Oneida joins the Greene Group, an Alabama-based company that operates a simulcast center and a charitable bingo operation in Post Falls, as potential operators for the horse racing track located at Expo Idaho.
On Tuesday, the Greene Group received good news in its quest to be awarded the lease when the Idaho Lottery Commission gave the group a clean bill of health, which was "one hurdle" in possibly securing the lease.
Ada County commissioners stopped lease negotiations with the Greene Group because of some findings in a recent audit by the state lottery.
Those issues, many of which were about the interpretation of state statutes, are gone now.
"We have no issues going forward with them to conduct charitable gaming," said Jeff Anderson, a director of the Idaho Lottery Commission.
The public meeting also attracted Ada County staff. Commissioner Sharon Ullman said "this was one hurdle" the Greene Group had to clear before taking the next step, which appears to be the two parties negotiating terms of a lease.
"This means we have some talking to do," Ullman said. "I can't give you a timetable."
Scott Okuniewicz, the general manager of the Greene Group's simulcast operation in Post Falls and the president of the group's charitable gaming operation, said his group is waiting for the county to provide a list of equipment that is included in the lease.
"We're going to meet with them and get a list of the property that comes with the lease so we can better determine a fair lease price," Okuniewicz said.
http://www.idahostatesman.com/235/story/775519.html?storylink=omni_popular
Nick Jezierny - njezierny@idahostatesman.com
Published: 05/19/09 - Idaho Statesman
Ada County commissioners have received a letter from Oneida Capital LLC, which owns and operates racing and gaming facilities in Montana, Nevada, New York and Wyoming, stating it would like to meet with the county officials and discuss a lease proposal for Les Bois Park.
Ada County Public Information Director Rich Wright said the commissioners likely will entertain a proposal from Oneida, though no meeting date has been finalized.
Edward Spector, who signed Oneida's letter to the county, didn't immediately return a telephone call from The Idaho Statesman.
Oneida joins the Greene Group, an Alabama-based company that operates a simulcast center and a charitable bingo operation in Post Falls, as potential operators for the horse racing track located at Expo Idaho.
On Tuesday, the Greene Group received good news in its quest to be awarded the lease when the Idaho Lottery Commission gave the group a clean bill of health, which was "one hurdle" in possibly securing the lease.
Ada County commissioners stopped lease negotiations with the Greene Group because of some findings in a recent audit by the state lottery.
Those issues, many of which were about the interpretation of state statutes, are gone now.
"We have no issues going forward with them to conduct charitable gaming," said Jeff Anderson, a director of the Idaho Lottery Commission.
The public meeting also attracted Ada County staff. Commissioner Sharon Ullman said "this was one hurdle" the Greene Group had to clear before taking the next step, which appears to be the two parties negotiating terms of a lease.
"This means we have some talking to do," Ullman said. "I can't give you a timetable."
Scott Okuniewicz, the general manager of the Greene Group's simulcast operation in Post Falls and the president of the group's charitable gaming operation, said his group is waiting for the county to provide a list of equipment that is included in the lease.
"We're going to meet with them and get a list of the property that comes with the lease so we can better determine a fair lease price," Okuniewicz said.
http://www.idahostatesman.com/235/story/775519.html?storylink=omni_popular
Saturday, May 23, 2009
NY to Enact Racehorse Protection Law
Maybe they should call it Ernie Paragallos Law." Of course, the racehorse slaughter" issue is not even mentioned here, in this new proposed bill. There will be no protections in this bill to prevent racehorses from going to slaughter. Maybe now would be a good time to contact these NY legislators and let them know what a good idea we think it would be to write this protection in. After all, if they are really so concerned about "racehorse welfare," why in the world wouldnt they?????
$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$
New York lawmakers want to close cruelty loophole
>
> by Paul Post
>
> New York lawmakers plan to introduce legislation that would close an
> apparent loophole and make mistreatment of race horses a felony.
>
> On April 10, Thoroughbred owner Ernest Paragallo was charged with 22
> misdemeanor counts of animal cruelty, two days after authorities
> raided
> his Center Brook Farm in Climax, Greene County, and seized 177 horses,
> three of which had to be euthanized.
>
> Paragallo has pleaded not guilty and is free on bail.
>
> Unlike "Buster’s Law," which deals with the abuse of companion animals
> such as cats and dogs, equine cruelty does not carry felony status.
>
> Assemblyman Tony Jordan (R-Greenwich) and state Senator Roy McDonald
> (R-Saratoga) both represent portions of Saratoga County, home of
> Saratoga Race Course. The lawmakers are seeking to make cruelty toward
> race horses a felony.
>
> "As we are discovering now, a race horse breeder can be charged with
> the
> significant mistreatment of the animals he is employed to raise and
> care
> for, but there is no provision to charge him with a felony or ban him
> from complete involvement in horse racing," Jordan said. "This gap
> needs
> to be closed and this is exactly what Senator McDonald and I are going
> to work towards accomplishing by putting forward this legislation to
> bring about this necessary change.”
>
> The bill, expected to be introduced shortly, would specifically be
> geared toward race horses, not farm animals. It would fall under state
> racing and wagering law, not agriculture and markets.
>
> Jordan and McDonald said they plan to meet with racing leaders to make
> sure the law helps and protects horses and the industry. McDonald is a
> member of the Senate Racing, Wagering and Gaming Committee.
>
> "We need to ensure the safety of these beautiful and incredible
> animals,
> because they play a significant role in the agricultural community
> here
> in upstate New York," he said. "We also need to protect our nationally
> recognized breeding program by preventing these animals from being
> mistreated, and also having the means to remove the individual who
> instituted that mistreatment. It is also important to recognize that
> studies have shown that people who hurt animals will eventually cause
> harm to other people."
>
> A legal conference between prosecutors and Paragallo’s attorney is
> scheduled for June 22. The state Racing and Wagering Board and New
> York
> Racing Association have stripped him of all racing privileges pending
> the outcome of upcoming legal action.
>
> Paul Post is a New York-based THOROUGHBRED TIMES correspondent
>
>
>
$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$
New York lawmakers want to close cruelty loophole
>
> by Paul Post
>
> New York lawmakers plan to introduce legislation that would close an
> apparent loophole and make mistreatment of race horses a felony.
>
> On April 10, Thoroughbred owner Ernest Paragallo was charged with 22
> misdemeanor counts of animal cruelty, two days after authorities
> raided
> his Center Brook Farm in Climax, Greene County, and seized 177 horses,
> three of which had to be euthanized.
>
> Paragallo has pleaded not guilty and is free on bail.
>
> Unlike "Buster’s Law," which deals with the abuse of companion animals
> such as cats and dogs, equine cruelty does not carry felony status.
>
> Assemblyman Tony Jordan (R-Greenwich) and state Senator Roy McDonald
> (R-Saratoga) both represent portions of Saratoga County, home of
> Saratoga Race Course. The lawmakers are seeking to make cruelty toward
> race horses a felony.
>
> "As we are discovering now, a race horse breeder can be charged with
> the
> significant mistreatment of the animals he is employed to raise and
> care
> for, but there is no provision to charge him with a felony or ban him
> from complete involvement in horse racing," Jordan said. "This gap
> needs
> to be closed and this is exactly what Senator McDonald and I are going
> to work towards accomplishing by putting forward this legislation to
> bring about this necessary change.”
>
> The bill, expected to be introduced shortly, would specifically be
> geared toward race horses, not farm animals. It would fall under state
> racing and wagering law, not agriculture and markets.
>
> Jordan and McDonald said they plan to meet with racing leaders to make
> sure the law helps and protects horses and the industry. McDonald is a
> member of the Senate Racing, Wagering and Gaming Committee.
>
> "We need to ensure the safety of these beautiful and incredible
> animals,
> because they play a significant role in the agricultural community
> here
> in upstate New York," he said. "We also need to protect our nationally
> recognized breeding program by preventing these animals from being
> mistreated, and also having the means to remove the individual who
> instituted that mistreatment. It is also important to recognize that
> studies have shown that people who hurt animals will eventually cause
> harm to other people."
>
> A legal conference between prosecutors and Paragallo’s attorney is
> scheduled for June 22. The state Racing and Wagering Board and New
> York
> Racing Association have stripped him of all racing privileges pending
> the outcome of upcoming legal action.
>
> Paul Post is a New York-based THOROUGHBRED TIMES correspondent
>
>
>
Friday, May 15, 2009
Racetrack veterinarian's 5-year suspension upheld
May 14, 2009
DVM NEWSMAGAZINE
Lexington, Ky. -- The Kentucky Horse Racing Commission (KHRC) this week upheld the five-year suspension of a track veterinarian accused of possessing banned medications, including cobra venom.
The commission decided to adopt a hearing officer's recommendation filed April 6 stating that two suspensions totaling five years against Dr. Rodney Stewart are "legally supportable" and that "the penalties were imposed in connection with the possession of the most highly dangerous substances and serious violations of commission regulations, which represent a catastrophic threat to the safety of horses and riders."
In September 2007, racing stewards suspended Stewart four years for possession of alpha cobra toxin and one year for possession of carbidopa and levodopa. Stewart also was under other suspensions for medication labeling violations and other infractions, but those run concurrently with the five-year suspension.
The five-year total is believed to be the longest one the commission has ever imposed.
Stewart, a resident of Saratoga Springs, N.Y., had appealed on grounds of the suspensions' severity, saying he had cooperated with investigators and provided all records they requested. The suspensions prevent him from practicing at any racetrack, including New York, and from practicing on any performance animals (horses, greyhounds and camels), including in Australia where he is from.
An earlier suspension against him, dating from August 2007, was dismissed based on his cooperation with investigators by turning over some records.
At a hearing before the KHRC last December, Stewart said three vials of powdered cobra venom found in a refrigerator at a training barn at Keeneland race course in Lexington were there only by chance, packed in a case in transit on his way to New York, and that he never gave cobra venom to an active racehorse. The venom, used to deaden nerves, has limited therapeutic use in non-racing horses but is banned at racetracks. There is no test that can detect it. Stewart said in December he bought the powdered venom in 2006 from a Florida veterinary supplier and used some of it only once, to treat a retired racehorse with a sore right front foot.
http://veterinarynews.dvm360.com/dvm/Veterinary+Equine/Racetrack-veterinarians-5-year-suspension-upheld/ArticleStandard/Article/detail/598302?contextCategoryId=378&ref=25
DVM NEWSMAGAZINE
Lexington, Ky. -- The Kentucky Horse Racing Commission (KHRC) this week upheld the five-year suspension of a track veterinarian accused of possessing banned medications, including cobra venom.
The commission decided to adopt a hearing officer's recommendation filed April 6 stating that two suspensions totaling five years against Dr. Rodney Stewart are "legally supportable" and that "the penalties were imposed in connection with the possession of the most highly dangerous substances and serious violations of commission regulations, which represent a catastrophic threat to the safety of horses and riders."
In September 2007, racing stewards suspended Stewart four years for possession of alpha cobra toxin and one year for possession of carbidopa and levodopa. Stewart also was under other suspensions for medication labeling violations and other infractions, but those run concurrently with the five-year suspension.
The five-year total is believed to be the longest one the commission has ever imposed.
Stewart, a resident of Saratoga Springs, N.Y., had appealed on grounds of the suspensions' severity, saying he had cooperated with investigators and provided all records they requested. The suspensions prevent him from practicing at any racetrack, including New York, and from practicing on any performance animals (horses, greyhounds and camels), including in Australia where he is from.
An earlier suspension against him, dating from August 2007, was dismissed based on his cooperation with investigators by turning over some records.
At a hearing before the KHRC last December, Stewart said three vials of powdered cobra venom found in a refrigerator at a training barn at Keeneland race course in Lexington were there only by chance, packed in a case in transit on his way to New York, and that he never gave cobra venom to an active racehorse. The venom, used to deaden nerves, has limited therapeutic use in non-racing horses but is banned at racetracks. There is no test that can detect it. Stewart said in December he bought the powdered venom in 2006 from a Florida veterinary supplier and used some of it only once, to treat a retired racehorse with a sore right front foot.
http://veterinarynews.dvm360.com/dvm/Veterinary+Equine/Racetrack-veterinarians-5-year-suspension-upheld/ArticleStandard/Article/detail/598302?contextCategoryId=378&ref=25
Monday, May 11, 2009
Brumbies to Dubai
Running, but not wild: Dubai warms to brumbies
Andrew Stevenson in Dubai
May 9, 2009
THEIR names are Luca, Marran and Paraku. Born in the Kimberley and captured in Western Australia last year, the three brumbies are starting a new life in the stables of the deputy ruler of Dubai, Sheik Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum.
They and 11 other brumbies including a young colt have left life as wild bush horses far behind. In the sheik's stables they are training for the demanding sport of endurance racing.
Their arrival in Dubai completes a circle of sorts. Born wild, their pedigree traces back to the Arab horses taken to Europe over many centuries, the stock from which the modern thoroughbred was made.
The horse, once the most important animal in Australia, still stands at the heart of Bedouin culture - and when Ali Mohammed Al Mohairi, Sheik Hamdan's racing manager, heard tales of the brumbies in Australia, he wanted to know more.
Two years ago he went bush in the Northern Territory to see brumbies up close. But wild horses stop for no man.
"There was a mare and foal and they were galloping from behind and I yelled to go, I was screaming at the driver," he recalled. "It was something amazing. Then they crossed in front of us and the sparks were coming off the road. When they came to a lake, they jumped straight in and swam across.
"There was a rocky hill on the other side and I said: 'Impossible, they will not climb that'. And they did.
"My imagination cannot go as far as this. I was amazed. And [then] they were gone and we never saw them again."
But the story, worthy of an Arab Paterson in Mr Al Mohairi's retelling, took root. Sheik Hamdan, a leading racehorse owner and winner of two Melbourne Cups, was intrigued by the animals' capability in the wild but also concerned the brumbies - there are an estimated 400,000 in Australia - were being culled.
"I felt I wanted to do something to help this animal. I told him people shoot them, five or six hundred at a time, and I said we [can] get some to try," Mr Al Mohairi said.
The next step was to send a team into Lake Gregory, on the edge of the Great Sandy Desert, and to catch a dozen or so brumbies which were then trucked to Glen Innes, NSW, where they were broken in before being flown to Dubai.
One mare, Marran, dropped a skewbald colt after capture. Marjii might have grown up in Arabia but he can't hide his past.
"He's happy, friendly and playing but you can tell he's a brumby, with his face, big and ugly," Mr Mohairi said.
The horses arrived last year and since then several have been prepared for endurance racing, which is conducted under the enthusiastic patronage of Dubai's royal family, notably Sheik Hamdan's brother, Sheik Mohammed bin Rashid al Maktoum, the country's ruler, who also competes in the events.
On the track the brumbies' results have not been a complete success. The horses have speed, and can rapidly recover after running one stage of the race, but they don't want to run again.
"They're not tired but they take care of themselves," said Mr Al Mohairi, who believes their wild instincts lead them to to preserve their energy for whenever it might be needed in the future.
But the experiment at Seeh Al Salam stables will be given at least another year. "People here are waiting to see what this stable will do. If we do well with them, they will go there and do the same as we did," Mr Al Mohairi said.
"To be honest, we spent money on them and I hope it will work. It will help me to look good in front of my boss because I asked him to do it, plus it will help the horses."
http://www.smh.com.au/news/sport/horseracing/running-but-not-wild-dubai-warms-to-brumbies/2009/05/08/1241727604379.html
Andrew Stevenson in Dubai
May 9, 2009
THEIR names are Luca, Marran and Paraku. Born in the Kimberley and captured in Western Australia last year, the three brumbies are starting a new life in the stables of the deputy ruler of Dubai, Sheik Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum.
They and 11 other brumbies including a young colt have left life as wild bush horses far behind. In the sheik's stables they are training for the demanding sport of endurance racing.
Their arrival in Dubai completes a circle of sorts. Born wild, their pedigree traces back to the Arab horses taken to Europe over many centuries, the stock from which the modern thoroughbred was made.
The horse, once the most important animal in Australia, still stands at the heart of Bedouin culture - and when Ali Mohammed Al Mohairi, Sheik Hamdan's racing manager, heard tales of the brumbies in Australia, he wanted to know more.
Two years ago he went bush in the Northern Territory to see brumbies up close. But wild horses stop for no man.
"There was a mare and foal and they were galloping from behind and I yelled to go, I was screaming at the driver," he recalled. "It was something amazing. Then they crossed in front of us and the sparks were coming off the road. When they came to a lake, they jumped straight in and swam across.
"There was a rocky hill on the other side and I said: 'Impossible, they will not climb that'. And they did.
"My imagination cannot go as far as this. I was amazed. And [then] they were gone and we never saw them again."
But the story, worthy of an Arab Paterson in Mr Al Mohairi's retelling, took root. Sheik Hamdan, a leading racehorse owner and winner of two Melbourne Cups, was intrigued by the animals' capability in the wild but also concerned the brumbies - there are an estimated 400,000 in Australia - were being culled.
"I felt I wanted to do something to help this animal. I told him people shoot them, five or six hundred at a time, and I said we [can] get some to try," Mr Al Mohairi said.
The next step was to send a team into Lake Gregory, on the edge of the Great Sandy Desert, and to catch a dozen or so brumbies which were then trucked to Glen Innes, NSW, where they were broken in before being flown to Dubai.
One mare, Marran, dropped a skewbald colt after capture. Marjii might have grown up in Arabia but he can't hide his past.
"He's happy, friendly and playing but you can tell he's a brumby, with his face, big and ugly," Mr Mohairi said.
The horses arrived last year and since then several have been prepared for endurance racing, which is conducted under the enthusiastic patronage of Dubai's royal family, notably Sheik Hamdan's brother, Sheik Mohammed bin Rashid al Maktoum, the country's ruler, who also competes in the events.
On the track the brumbies' results have not been a complete success. The horses have speed, and can rapidly recover after running one stage of the race, but they don't want to run again.
"They're not tired but they take care of themselves," said Mr Al Mohairi, who believes their wild instincts lead them to to preserve their energy for whenever it might be needed in the future.
But the experiment at Seeh Al Salam stables will be given at least another year. "People here are waiting to see what this stable will do. If we do well with them, they will go there and do the same as we did," Mr Al Mohairi said.
"To be honest, we spent money on them and I hope it will work. It will help me to look good in front of my boss because I asked him to do it, plus it will help the horses."
http://www.smh.com.au/news/sport/horseracing/running-but-not-wild-dubai-warms-to-brumbies/2009/05/08/1241727604379.html
Sunday, May 10, 2009
Race is On for Swine Flu Vaccine: BIG Pharma a FAV to Win
INFLUENZA A (H1N1) - WORLDWIDE (21)
***********************************************
A ProMED-mail post
ProMED-mail is a program of the
International Society for Infectious Diseases
Date: Fri 8 May 2009
Source: World Health Organization (WHO), EPR [edited]
For the current influenza A(H1N1) virus, WHO Collaborating Centres
for influenza (WHO CCs), Essential Regulatory Laboratories (ERLs) and
other institutions are developing candidate vaccine viruses under the
coordination of WHO (1). Once a vaccine virus is available, WHO will
announce the availability on its public website (2). For general
queries, please email to.
Candidate vaccine viruses using reverse genetics technology are being
developed by:
- WHO CC in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC),
Atlanta USA, from A/California/4/2009(H1N1)swl. Expected availability
end of May 2009. Email queries to:.
- ERL in the National Institute for Biological Standards and Control
(NIBSC), UK, from A/California/7/2009(H1N1)swl and A/England/195/2009
(H1N1)swl. Expected availability end of May 2009. Email queries to:
.
- ERL in the Centre for Biologics Evaluation and Research (CBER),
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) USA, from
A/California/4/2009(H1N1)swl and A/Texas/5/2009(H1N1)swl. Expected
availability not yet known. Email queries to:.
- WHO CC at the St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis USA,
from A/California/4/2009(H1N1)swl, A/New York/20/2009(H1N1)swl and
A/Ohio/7/2009 (H1N1)swl. Expected availability not yet known. Email
queries to:.
- WHO CC at National Institute of Infectious Diseases (NIID), Japan,
from A/California/4/2009(H1N1)swl and A/California/7/2009(H1N1)swl.
Expected availability not yet known. Email queries:.
- CSL Limited, Australia, from A/California/4/2009(H1N1)swl and
A/California/7/2009(H1N1)swl. Expected availability not yet known.
Email queries:.
Candidate vaccine viruses using classical reassortment technology are
being developed by:
- ERL NIBSC, UK, from A/California/7/2009(H1N1)swl, an egg virus
isolate. Expected availability not yet known. Email queries:
.
- New York Medical College, USA, from A/California/7/2009(H1N1)swl.
Expected availability not yet known. Email queries:.
- CSL Limited, Australia, from A/California/7/2009(H1N1)swl. Expected
availability not yet known. Email queries:.
Development of vaccine potency reagents for inactivated vaccines
against influenza A(H1N1) is planned in:
- ERL NIBSC, UK. Email queries to:
- ERL CBER FDA, USA. Email queries to:
- ERL, Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA), Australia. Email
queries:
- ERL NIID, Japan. Email queries:
Wild type viruses have been/ are being sent to vaccine manufacturers
on request including: Baxter, CSL Limited, GlaxoSmithKline
Biologicals, MedImmune, Microgen, Nobilon International, Novartis,
Omninvest Vaccines, Pasteur, Solvay and Vivaldi.
References:
(1) WHO coordinates WHO CCs, National Influenza Centers and ERLs.
This network is monitoring the evolution of influenza viruses, both
seasonal and those with potential to cause a pandemic, including the
current influenza A(H1N1). The network also provides recommendations
and updates on diagnostics, monitors the susceptibility of emerging
influenza viruses to antiviral drugs, and selects, develops and
distributes vaccine viruses.
(2)
--
Communicated by:
ProMED-mail
[see also:
Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (20): case counts 20090510.1741
Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (19) 20090509.1733
Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (18): case counts 20090509.1728
Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (17) 20090508.1722
Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (16): case counts 20090507.1715
Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (15) 20090507.1709
Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (14): case counts 20090507.1702
Influenza A (
***********************************************
A ProMED-mail post
ProMED-mail is a program of the
International Society for Infectious Diseases
Date: Fri 8 May 2009
Source: World Health Organization (WHO), EPR [edited]
For the current influenza A(H1N1) virus, WHO Collaborating Centres
for influenza (WHO CCs), Essential Regulatory Laboratories (ERLs) and
other institutions are developing candidate vaccine viruses under the
coordination of WHO (1). Once a vaccine virus is available, WHO will
announce the availability on its public website (2). For general
queries, please email to
Candidate vaccine viruses using reverse genetics technology are being
developed by:
- WHO CC in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC),
Atlanta USA, from A/California/4/2009(H1N1)swl. Expected availability
end of May 2009. Email queries to:
- ERL in the National Institute for Biological Standards and Control
(NIBSC), UK, from A/California/7/2009(H1N1)swl and A/England/195/2009
(H1N1)swl. Expected availability end of May 2009. Email queries to:
- ERL in the Centre for Biologics Evaluation and Research (CBER),
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) USA, from
A/California/4/2009(H1N1)swl and A/Texas/5/2009(H1N1)swl. Expected
availability not yet known. Email queries to:
- WHO CC at the St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis USA,
from A/California/4/2009(H1N1)swl, A/New York/20/2009(H1N1)swl and
A/Ohio/7/2009 (H1N1)swl. Expected availability not yet known. Email
queries to:
- WHO CC at National Institute of Infectious Diseases (NIID), Japan,
from A/California/4/2009(H1N1)swl and A/California/7/2009(H1N1)swl.
Expected availability not yet known. Email queries:
- CSL Limited, Australia, from A/California/4/2009(H1N1)swl and
A/California/7/2009(H1N1)swl. Expected availability not yet known.
Email queries:
Candidate vaccine viruses using classical reassortment technology are
being developed by:
- ERL NIBSC, UK, from A/California/7/2009(H1N1)swl, an egg virus
isolate. Expected availability not yet known. Email queries:
- New York Medical College, USA, from A/California/7/2009(H1N1)swl.
Expected availability not yet known. Email queries:
- CSL Limited, Australia, from A/California/7/2009(H1N1)swl. Expected
availability not yet known. Email queries:
Development of vaccine potency reagents for inactivated vaccines
against influenza A(H1N1) is planned in:
- ERL NIBSC, UK. Email queries to:
- ERL CBER FDA, USA. Email queries to:
- ERL, Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA), Australia. Email
queries:
- ERL NIID, Japan. Email queries:
Wild type viruses have been/ are being sent to vaccine manufacturers
on request including: Baxter, CSL Limited, GlaxoSmithKline
Biologicals, MedImmune, Microgen, Nobilon International, Novartis,
Omninvest Vaccines, Pasteur, Solvay and Vivaldi.
References:
(1) WHO coordinates WHO CCs, National Influenza Centers and ERLs.
This network is monitoring the evolution of influenza viruses, both
seasonal and those with potential to cause a pandemic, including the
current influenza A(H1N1). The network also provides recommendations
and updates on diagnostics, monitors the susceptibility of emerging
influenza viruses to antiviral drugs, and selects, develops and
distributes vaccine viruses.
(2)
--
Communicated by:
ProMED-mail
[see also:
Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (20): case counts 20090510.1741
Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (19) 20090509.1733
Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (18): case counts 20090509.1728
Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (17) 20090508.1722
Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (16): case counts 20090507.1715
Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (15) 20090507.1709
Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (14): case counts 20090507.1702
Influenza A (
Saturday, May 9, 2009
Magna in Bankruptcy: What, no bailout?
By JOE DRAPE
Published: March 5, 2009
Magna Entertainment Corporation, which owns some of the most prominent horse racing tracks in the United States, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in a Delaware court Thursday and announced that it would sell Gulfstream Park in Florida and other racetracks to its parent company and largest creditor.
In a news release, M.E.C. said it had arranged a six-month secured loan of $62.5 million from a subsidiary of M.I. Developments, its controlling shareholder. It will use that money to protect certain assets and keep racing going at Gulfstream Park, Santa Anita and its other tracks. In the filing, there is no clear arrangement to protect Pimlico, which hosts the Preakness Stakes, the second leg of the Triple Crown.
“Simply put, M.E.C. has far too much debt and interest expense,” its chairman, Frank Stronach, said in a statement. Stronach, who built his fortune with the Canadian auto parts maker Magna International and assembled his track holdings over the past 10 years, controls Magna Entertainment and M.I. Developments, whose top assets are real estate.
“M.E.C. has previously pursued numerous out-of-court restructuring alternatives but has been unable to complete a comprehensive restructuring to date due, in part, to the current economic recession, severe downturn in the U.S. real estate market, and global credit crisis,” Stronach added.
The other holdings Magna apparently values in its agreement with M.I. Developments include the Palm Meadows training center in Florida, Golden Gate Fields in Northern California, Lone Star Park in Texas and its wagering companies AmTote and XpressBet. M.I. Developments has agreed to buy the assets for $44 million in cash, the rights to a $15 million lease and a credit on $136 million in debt Magna owes to M.I. Developments. It leaves open the possibility that the properties could be sold to a third party for a higher bid.
Magna has lost $500 million over the last five years. The filing was prompted by the fact it has $200 million of debt coming due over the next few weeks.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/06/sports/othersports/06magna.html
Published: March 5, 2009
Magna Entertainment Corporation, which owns some of the most prominent horse racing tracks in the United States, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in a Delaware court Thursday and announced that it would sell Gulfstream Park in Florida and other racetracks to its parent company and largest creditor.
In a news release, M.E.C. said it had arranged a six-month secured loan of $62.5 million from a subsidiary of M.I. Developments, its controlling shareholder. It will use that money to protect certain assets and keep racing going at Gulfstream Park, Santa Anita and its other tracks. In the filing, there is no clear arrangement to protect Pimlico, which hosts the Preakness Stakes, the second leg of the Triple Crown.
“Simply put, M.E.C. has far too much debt and interest expense,” its chairman, Frank Stronach, said in a statement. Stronach, who built his fortune with the Canadian auto parts maker Magna International and assembled his track holdings over the past 10 years, controls Magna Entertainment and M.I. Developments, whose top assets are real estate.
“M.E.C. has previously pursued numerous out-of-court restructuring alternatives but has been unable to complete a comprehensive restructuring to date due, in part, to the current economic recession, severe downturn in the U.S. real estate market, and global credit crisis,” Stronach added.
The other holdings Magna apparently values in its agreement with M.I. Developments include the Palm Meadows training center in Florida, Golden Gate Fields in Northern California, Lone Star Park in Texas and its wagering companies AmTote and XpressBet. M.I. Developments has agreed to buy the assets for $44 million in cash, the rights to a $15 million lease and a credit on $136 million in debt Magna owes to M.I. Developments. It leaves open the possibility that the properties could be sold to a third party for a higher bid.
Magna has lost $500 million over the last five years. The filing was prompted by the fact it has $200 million of debt coming due over the next few weeks.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/06/sports/othersports/06magna.html
Horse Racing As Public Good?
By Marc Scribner,"OpenMarket.Org."
Maryland politicians really have their hands full as the legislative session draws to a close. Instead of focusing on their state’s looming long-term budget crisis, the Maryland General Assembly and Governor Martin O’Malley spent yesterday working on a far more important issue: authorizing the use of public resources to seize and operate the Preakness Stakes.
The owner of the Preakness and its Pimlico race track, Magna Entertainment, is currently in federal bankruptcy. Last week, a Baltimore Sun editorial compared the oh-so-dire situation to the 1984 Baltimore Colts’ move to Indianapolis (in part precipitated by the city’s threat of eminent domain condemnation), when the city attempted and failed to seize the team through eminent domain a day after it had already left for Indiana.
The presumption seems to be that municipalities and states are somehow entitled to their sports teams and facilities, regardless of current ownership and market conditions, and that spending public money on such ventures is beneficial to the local economy. But one need only look at neighboring Washington, DC’s ongoing depressing experience with the billion dollar Nationals Park/Navy Yard debacle to get a handle on how ridiculous this line of thought is. Unfortunately, given the current “stimulus” culture, this probably won’t be the last time a government decides to initiate eminent domain or subsidize development for the purpose of “saving sports.”
Maryland politicians really have their hands full as the legislative session draws to a close. Instead of focusing on their state’s looming long-term budget crisis, the Maryland General Assembly and Governor Martin O’Malley spent yesterday working on a far more important issue: authorizing the use of public resources to seize and operate the Preakness Stakes.
The owner of the Preakness and its Pimlico race track, Magna Entertainment, is currently in federal bankruptcy. Last week, a Baltimore Sun editorial compared the oh-so-dire situation to the 1984 Baltimore Colts’ move to Indianapolis (in part precipitated by the city’s threat of eminent domain condemnation), when the city attempted and failed to seize the team through eminent domain a day after it had already left for Indiana.
The presumption seems to be that municipalities and states are somehow entitled to their sports teams and facilities, regardless of current ownership and market conditions, and that spending public money on such ventures is beneficial to the local economy. But one need only look at neighboring Washington, DC’s ongoing depressing experience with the billion dollar Nationals Park/Navy Yard debacle to get a handle on how ridiculous this line of thought is. Unfortunately, given the current “stimulus” culture, this probably won’t be the last time a government decides to initiate eminent domain or subsidize development for the purpose of “saving sports.”
Who is behind the Amnesty Push for Illegal Aliens...
Besides OBOMBA, Pelosi, & CONGRESS ?
By NWV News writer Jim Kouri
Posted 1:00 AM Eastern
March 25, 2009
© NewsWithViews.com
In the midst of a recent diatribe, US House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi told a crowd of illegal aliens and their advocates that federal or local law enforcement of existing immigration laws is "un-American."
Pelosi, an avowed liberal-left Democrat from San Francisco, condemned operations by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents. Then she called the illegal aliens in the audience she was addressing "very, very patriotic."
"Who in this country would not want to change a policy of kicking in doors in the middle of the night and sending a parent away from their families?" Pelosi said to a mostly Hispanic gathering at St. Anthony's Church in San Francisco.
Unbeknownst to Pelosi, her speech was being taperecorded and the audiotape was played by syndicated talk show host Mark Levin on Wednesday night and Fox News Channel on Thursday morning.
Speaker Pelosi is then heard saying, "It must be stopped....What value system is that? I think it's un-American. I think it's un-American."
Pelosi told the few reporters covering this story that she was invited to speak to the Latino congregation by Rep. Luis Gutierrez (D-IL) as part of a national tour called United Families, which he says is "intended to put a human face on the immigration debate."
Congressman Gutierrez, who in the past called ICE agents and Border Patrol agents "Gestpo" is currently collecting signatures for a petition that demands President Barack Obama to "stop the immigration raids and deportations that are tearing our marriages, families and children apart."
He told reporters that he's expected to present those petitions when Hispanic members of Congress meet with the President next Wednesday.
Referring to work site enforcement actions by ICE agents, Pelosi said, "We have to have a change in policy and practice and again ... I can't say enough, the raids must end. The raids must end.
"You are special people. You're here on a Saturday night to take responsibility for our country's future. That makes you very, very patriotic," she's quoted as saying during her church speech.
"This is outrageous that one of the most powerful government officials would call the action of sworn law-enforcement officers' actions 'Un-American.' If anyone is Un-American here, it's Nancy Pelosi!" exclaimed an angry former-NYPD detective, Sydney Frances.
"This is par for the course with these left-wing politicians: cops are the bad guys and criminals are patriotic," he added.
"This is classic Stalinist behavior: change the meaning of the term Un-American. It now means any patriot who wants US immigration laws enforced is Un-American, while lawbreakers are called patriots. It's newspeak at its worst," said political strategist Mike Baker.
Meanwhile, the Secretary for Homeland Security, former Arizona governor Janet Napolitano, ordered the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents to cease their workplace investigations. Secretary Napolitano informed his immigration supervisory staff that she would order an investigation into complaints by illegal alien advocates that ICE agents were abusing illegal aliens they discovered working for US businesses.
According to ICE procedures, agents arrest illegal aliens discovered working in the US and conduct investigations of employers who hire these illegals. A background check is then conducted to discover the criminal background of some illegal aliens or to determine if illegal aliens re-entered the US after being deported, a felony crime punishable by up to 20 years in federal prison.
Bringing in and harboring certain aliens according to §1324(a)(1)(A)(iii), makes it a felony to encourage an alien to reside in the United States knowing that such residence is in violation of law. §1324(a)(1)(A)(iii).
Congress also made it a felony for anyone who "knowing or in reckless disregard of the fact that an alien has come to, entered, or remains in the United States in violation of law, ...harbors...such alien in any place, including any building...," according to the Friends of Immigration Law Enforcement.
Secretary Napolitano's directive has had a chilling effect on rank-and-file ICE agents, some of whom fear they will be investigated or prosecuted by the Obama Justice Department.
"Suddenly, almost overnight, federal immigration enforcement people have become the bad guys while lawbreakers are portrayed as abused individuals. While the Bush Administration's record on border security and immigration enforcement was poor, the Obama Administration is accelerating the destruction of America's sovereignty," warns Baker.
A perfect example of the turn-around by the Obama Administration is the recent harassment of Sheriff Joe Arpaio in Arizona's Maricopa County. Attorney General Jeff Holder recently told advocates and attorneys for illegal aliens that the Department of Justice would investigate Sheriff Arpaio's department.
Arpaio's deputy sheriffs were sent to the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center in Glynco, Georgia for training by the Homeland Security Department so that they would be certified to enforce US immigration laws. As a result, Arpaio's deputies have arrested thousands of illegal aliens, most of whom have committed crimes other than those involving entering the United States illegally.
The Department of Justice didn't provide specifics of the allegations, but Sheriff Joe Arpaio said the probe was prompted by his immigration efforts, including his crime and immigration sweeps of some heavily Latino areas in metropolitan Phoenix. Arpaio denied allegations that his deputies racially profiled people during the sweeps, according to Rachel Alexander of the Maricopa County Attorney's Office.
The U.S. House's judiciary committee also plans to hold a hearing next month on the allegations against Arpaio.
"The Obama Administration and members of the US Congress are conspiring to stop and silence those in law enforcement who do not share their liberal viewpoint regarding illegal aliens. Don't be surprised to see American citizens as well being dragged into courtrooms because they oppose illegal aliens being given amnesty," warns Det. Frances.
"These liberal-left fanatics want to replace American citizens -- who won't buy their ideology -- with Third-World peoples who don't even understand what's happening to this country," he said
© 2009 NWV - All Rights Reserved
----------------
What industry in the U.S. utilizes the most illegal alien workers?
Farming / agriculture
Horse Racing
Arguments against Amnesty
from "The American Resistance"
http://www.theamericanresistance.com/issues/amnesty.html
InfoWars;
http://www.infowars.com/articles/immigration/immigration_bill_alive_and_well.htm
http://www.newswithviews.com/NWV-News/news134.htm
By NWV News writer Jim Kouri
Posted 1:00 AM Eastern
March 25, 2009
© NewsWithViews.com
In the midst of a recent diatribe, US House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi told a crowd of illegal aliens and their advocates that federal or local law enforcement of existing immigration laws is "un-American."
Pelosi, an avowed liberal-left Democrat from San Francisco, condemned operations by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents. Then she called the illegal aliens in the audience she was addressing "very, very patriotic."
"Who in this country would not want to change a policy of kicking in doors in the middle of the night and sending a parent away from their families?" Pelosi said to a mostly Hispanic gathering at St. Anthony's Church in San Francisco.
Unbeknownst to Pelosi, her speech was being taperecorded and the audiotape was played by syndicated talk show host Mark Levin on Wednesday night and Fox News Channel on Thursday morning.
Speaker Pelosi is then heard saying, "It must be stopped....What value system is that? I think it's un-American. I think it's un-American."
Pelosi told the few reporters covering this story that she was invited to speak to the Latino congregation by Rep. Luis Gutierrez (D-IL) as part of a national tour called United Families, which he says is "intended to put a human face on the immigration debate."
Congressman Gutierrez, who in the past called ICE agents and Border Patrol agents "Gestpo" is currently collecting signatures for a petition that demands President Barack Obama to "stop the immigration raids and deportations that are tearing our marriages, families and children apart."
He told reporters that he's expected to present those petitions when Hispanic members of Congress meet with the President next Wednesday.
Referring to work site enforcement actions by ICE agents, Pelosi said, "We have to have a change in policy and practice and again ... I can't say enough, the raids must end. The raids must end.
"You are special people. You're here on a Saturday night to take responsibility for our country's future. That makes you very, very patriotic," she's quoted as saying during her church speech.
"This is outrageous that one of the most powerful government officials would call the action of sworn law-enforcement officers' actions 'Un-American.' If anyone is Un-American here, it's Nancy Pelosi!" exclaimed an angry former-NYPD detective, Sydney Frances.
"This is par for the course with these left-wing politicians: cops are the bad guys and criminals are patriotic," he added.
"This is classic Stalinist behavior: change the meaning of the term Un-American. It now means any patriot who wants US immigration laws enforced is Un-American, while lawbreakers are called patriots. It's newspeak at its worst," said political strategist Mike Baker.
Meanwhile, the Secretary for Homeland Security, former Arizona governor Janet Napolitano, ordered the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents to cease their workplace investigations. Secretary Napolitano informed his immigration supervisory staff that she would order an investigation into complaints by illegal alien advocates that ICE agents were abusing illegal aliens they discovered working for US businesses.
According to ICE procedures, agents arrest illegal aliens discovered working in the US and conduct investigations of employers who hire these illegals. A background check is then conducted to discover the criminal background of some illegal aliens or to determine if illegal aliens re-entered the US after being deported, a felony crime punishable by up to 20 years in federal prison.
Bringing in and harboring certain aliens according to §1324(a)(1)(A)(iii), makes it a felony to encourage an alien to reside in the United States knowing that such residence is in violation of law. §1324(a)(1)(A)(iii).
Congress also made it a felony for anyone who "knowing or in reckless disregard of the fact that an alien has come to, entered, or remains in the United States in violation of law, ...harbors...such alien in any place, including any building...," according to the Friends of Immigration Law Enforcement.
Secretary Napolitano's directive has had a chilling effect on rank-and-file ICE agents, some of whom fear they will be investigated or prosecuted by the Obama Justice Department.
"Suddenly, almost overnight, federal immigration enforcement people have become the bad guys while lawbreakers are portrayed as abused individuals. While the Bush Administration's record on border security and immigration enforcement was poor, the Obama Administration is accelerating the destruction of America's sovereignty," warns Baker.
A perfect example of the turn-around by the Obama Administration is the recent harassment of Sheriff Joe Arpaio in Arizona's Maricopa County. Attorney General Jeff Holder recently told advocates and attorneys for illegal aliens that the Department of Justice would investigate Sheriff Arpaio's department.
Arpaio's deputy sheriffs were sent to the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center in Glynco, Georgia for training by the Homeland Security Department so that they would be certified to enforce US immigration laws. As a result, Arpaio's deputies have arrested thousands of illegal aliens, most of whom have committed crimes other than those involving entering the United States illegally.
The Department of Justice didn't provide specifics of the allegations, but Sheriff Joe Arpaio said the probe was prompted by his immigration efforts, including his crime and immigration sweeps of some heavily Latino areas in metropolitan Phoenix. Arpaio denied allegations that his deputies racially profiled people during the sweeps, according to Rachel Alexander of the Maricopa County Attorney's Office.
The U.S. House's judiciary committee also plans to hold a hearing next month on the allegations against Arpaio.
"The Obama Administration and members of the US Congress are conspiring to stop and silence those in law enforcement who do not share their liberal viewpoint regarding illegal aliens. Don't be surprised to see American citizens as well being dragged into courtrooms because they oppose illegal aliens being given amnesty," warns Det. Frances.
"These liberal-left fanatics want to replace American citizens -- who won't buy their ideology -- with Third-World peoples who don't even understand what's happening to this country," he said
© 2009 NWV - All Rights Reserved
----------------
What industry in the U.S. utilizes the most illegal alien workers?
Farming / agriculture
Horse Racing
Arguments against Amnesty
from "The American Resistance"
http://www.theamericanresistance.com/issues/amnesty.html
InfoWars;
http://www.infowars.com/articles/immigration/immigration_bill_alive_and_well.htm
http://www.newswithviews.com/NWV-News/news134.htm
Thursday, May 7, 2009
OK Horsemen's bill to rescue unwanted race horses blocked; PETA paranoia blamed
By Associated Press
5:19 PM CDT, May 6, 2009
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — PETA paranoia is being blamed for a bill being held up in the Oklahoma House to rescue neglected race horses who are dying of sickness and neglect.
John Smicklas, a well-known horseman and Republican contributor, says breeders have agreed to raise fees they pay to the Oklahoma Horse Racing Commission to take care of the problem.
Smicklas says the bill passed the Senate unanimously, but is being held up by a legislator who believes the measure is backed by the animal-rights group PETA, which also backs controversial federal legislation to ban horse slaughter.
http://www.kfor.com/news/sns-ap-ok-xgr--deadhorsebill,0,4533617.story
5:19 PM CDT, May 6, 2009
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — PETA paranoia is being blamed for a bill being held up in the Oklahoma House to rescue neglected race horses who are dying of sickness and neglect.
John Smicklas, a well-known horseman and Republican contributor, says breeders have agreed to raise fees they pay to the Oklahoma Horse Racing Commission to take care of the problem.
Smicklas says the bill passed the Senate unanimously, but is being held up by a legislator who believes the measure is backed by the animal-rights group PETA, which also backs controversial federal legislation to ban horse slaughter.
http://www.kfor.com/news/sns-ap-ok-xgr--deadhorsebill,0,4533617.story
AU: Victorian jumps races suspended after more deaths
May 7, 2009 - 5:05PM
Pride of Westbury died after this fall at Warrnambool yesterday, one of three horses to die in the past two days in Victorian jump races.
Photo: Liss Ralston
AdvertisementJumps racing in Victoria has been suspended immediately pending a review of the sport, with a decision on its future to be made by the Racing Victoria Limited (RVL) Board next week.
RVL CEO Rob Hines said the decision to bring forward the review was prompted after three fatalities in two days at Warrnambool's famous three-day May carnival.
Topweight Clearview Bay had to be put down after falling at the fourth last fence of the gruelling Grand Annual Steeplechase run over 5500m and 33 fences.
The nine-year-old suffered the same fate as the Robbie Laing-trained Pride Of Westbury, who fell at the last jump and died in the Galleywood Hurdle on Wednesday, while his stablemate Hassle had to be put down after shattering a sesamoid in a hurdle earlier on Thursday.
"The RVL Board has decided we need to have an urgent review of jumps racing,'' Hines said after the running of the Grand Annual.
"We have asked the Jumps Review Panel to make a report to the board by early next week on the season so far and on all the incidents that have occurred.
"The RVL Board will be having an urgent board meeting next week and making a decision on the future of jumps racing and making a statement next week.''
Hines said the three jumps events at Moe on Sunday would all be converted to jumpers' flats or highweights.
"I don't want to pre-empt what the RVL Board do, but the incidents have been so serious this season that we have to have a good hard look at it, but we need our experts, the Jumps Review Panel, to have a look at it and put the information together,'' he said.
Hines said the panel, formed as a result of the David Jones review last year, would look at issues such as were the horses going too fast and whether the jumps were too small.
"What a fantastic spectacle the race (Grand Annual) was and yet we still had a disaster,'' he said.
"So, clearly, it's very difficult and the board have got a lot of serious matters to consider.''
Hines said the number of fatalities would have to be lower than the 12 of last year.
Already there have been five this year.
"We cannot continue at the rate we are at the moment,'' Hines said.
"I think the outlook is difficult but let us do the review and we'll have a position for you in a week.''
AAP
http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2009/05/07/1241289301661
Tuesday, May 5, 2009
Military Police at the Kentucky Derby
Tue May 5, 2009 1:49 am (PDT)
_Military Police at the Kentucky Derby _
(http://www.infowars.com/military-police-at-the-kentucky-derby/)
Infowars
May 3, 2009
A Google News search does not produce a story or even a brief mention of the fact military police were on hand at the Kentucky Derby to keep restless plebs in line. However, an Associated Press photograph, posted on the Yahoo! News website, shows two MPs in combat fatigues with side arms restraining a man at the derby.
Military police detain a fan who ran onto the track
following the running of the 135th Kentucky Derby horse race at Churchill Downs
Saturday, May 2, 2009, in Louisville, Ky.
"Military police detain a fan who ran onto the track following the running
of the 135th Kentucky Derby horse race at Churchill Downs Saturday, May 2,
2009, in Louisville, Ky.," the photo caption reads.
The photo was also included in a slideshow on the _Yahoo! Sports_
(http://sports.yahoo.com/rah/news?prov=ap&slug=ap-kentuckyderby&type=lgns) website, although the text of the article does not contain a mention of military police at the event.
"The military has NO BUSINESS policing the citizens except during
extraordinarily exceptional times of national emergency by an executive order. This is very disturbing and completely un-American. Maybe even more disturbing is that no one seems to care how quietly and easily we have accepted the burgeoning police state," an article comment states.
Infowars has reported on numerous instances of military involvement with local law enforcement in violation of Posse Comitatus. In March, we reported on _U.S. Army troops dispatched to patrol the streets of Samson, Alabama, after a murder spree_
(http://www.infowars.com/army-times-reports-on-military-deployment-in-alabama/) .
On April 6, we reported on a _DHS, federal, state, Air Force, and local law enforcement checkpoint in Tennessee_
(http://www.infowars.com/massive-checkpoint-operation-in-tennessee-violated-posse-comitatus-fourth-amendment/) .
On April 3, _Infowars_
(http://www.infowars.com/infowars-story-on-illegal-tennessee-checkpoint-prompts-action-by-governor/) was instrumental in the
cancellation of a seatbelt checkpoint that was to be conducted in conjunction with the Department of Homeland Security and the 251st Military Police in Bolivar, Tennessee.
Last December, we reported on the Marine Corps Air and Ground Combat Center dispatching troops to work with police on checkpoints in in _San
Bernardino County, California_
(http://www.infowars.com/marines-establish-military-presence-on-san-bernardino-california-roads/) .
On Aprill 22, _we reported_
(http://www.infowars.com/combat-support-battalion-deployed-to-maintain-public-order-at-boston-marathon/) the deployment of
400 National Guard Combat Support Battalion troops to "maintain public order" at the Boston Marathon.
Last June, Infowars posted an article by _D. H. Williams_
(http://www.infowars.com/us-army-puts-soldiers-on-the-street-in-alabama-in-response-to-shootin
gs/) of the Daily Newscaster reporting the deployment of 2,300 Marines in the city of Indianapolis under the direction of FBI and the Department of Homeland Security.
Prison Planet´s _Paul Joseph Watson_
(http://www.infowars.com/insane-cop-arrests-abc-news-reporter-for-filming-traffic-accident/) reported a story on
April 22 covering the assault of a local television news team by an irate police officer in El Paso, Texas. A video taken by the news videographer shows uniformed soldiers working with police officers at the scene of a car accident.
The presence of uniformed and armed military police at the Kentucky Derby is part of an ongoing campaign to acclimate the populace to the presence of soldiers at public events.
_Military Police at the Kentucky Derby _
(http://www.infowars.com/military-police-at-the-kentucky-derby/)
Infowars
May 3, 2009
A Google News search does not produce a story or even a brief mention of the fact military police were on hand at the Kentucky Derby to keep restless plebs in line. However, an Associated Press photograph, posted on the Yahoo! News website, shows two MPs in combat fatigues with side arms restraining a man at the derby.
Military police detain a fan who ran onto the track
following the running of the 135th Kentucky Derby horse race at Churchill Downs
Saturday, May 2, 2009, in Louisville, Ky.
"Military police detain a fan who ran onto the track following the running
of the 135th Kentucky Derby horse race at Churchill Downs Saturday, May 2,
2009, in Louisville, Ky.," the photo caption reads.
The photo was also included in a slideshow on the _Yahoo! Sports_
(http://sports.yahoo.com/rah/news?prov=ap&slug=ap-kentuckyderby&type=lgns) website, although the text of the article does not contain a mention of military police at the event.
"The military has NO BUSINESS policing the citizens except during
extraordinarily exceptional times of national emergency by an executive order. This is very disturbing and completely un-American. Maybe even more disturbing is that no one seems to care how quietly and easily we have accepted the burgeoning police state," an article comment states.
Infowars has reported on numerous instances of military involvement with local law enforcement in violation of Posse Comitatus. In March, we reported on _U.S. Army troops dispatched to patrol the streets of Samson, Alabama, after a murder spree_
(http://www.infowars.com/army-times-reports-on-military-deployment-in-alabama/) .
On April 6, we reported on a _DHS, federal, state, Air Force, and local law enforcement checkpoint in Tennessee_
(http://www.infowars.com/massive-checkpoint-operation-in-tennessee-violated-posse-comitatus-fourth-amendment/) .
On April 3, _Infowars_
(http://www.infowars.com/infowars-story-on-illegal-tennessee-checkpoint-prompts-action-by-governor/) was instrumental in the
cancellation of a seatbelt checkpoint that was to be conducted in conjunction with the Department of Homeland Security and the 251st Military Police in Bolivar, Tennessee.
Last December, we reported on the Marine Corps Air and Ground Combat Center dispatching troops to work with police on checkpoints in in _San
Bernardino County, California_
(http://www.infowars.com/marines-establish-military-presence-on-san-bernardino-california-roads/) .
On Aprill 22, _we reported_
(http://www.infowars.com/combat-support-battalion-deployed-to-maintain-public-order-at-boston-marathon/) the deployment of
400 National Guard Combat Support Battalion troops to "maintain public order" at the Boston Marathon.
Last June, Infowars posted an article by _D. H. Williams_
(http://www.infowars.com/us-army-puts-soldiers-on-the-street-in-alabama-in-response-to-shootin
gs/) of the Daily Newscaster reporting the deployment of 2,300 Marines in the city of Indianapolis under the direction of FBI and the Department of Homeland Security.
Prison Planet´s _Paul Joseph Watson_
(http://www.infowars.com/insane-cop-arrests-abc-news-reporter-for-filming-traffic-accident/) reported a story on
April 22 covering the assault of a local television news team by an irate police officer in El Paso, Texas. A video taken by the news videographer shows uniformed soldiers working with police officers at the scene of a car accident.
The presence of uniformed and armed military police at the Kentucky Derby is part of an ongoing campaign to acclimate the populace to the presence of soldiers at public events.
Monday, May 4, 2009
Derby Winner Owner Tied to Alaskas Bribery Scandal
Derby Winner Owner has ties to Alaska Bribery Scandal
Posted on Sun, May. 03, 2009
Richard Mauer | Anchorage Daily News
last updated: May 03, 2009 09:10:55 AM
ANCHORAGE — If it weren't for the plea deal that his dad, former Veco chief
executive Bill Allen, made with federal prosecutors, Mark Allen might not
have been in the winner's circle Saturday at the Kentucky Derby,
celebrating the victory of his thoroughbred Mine That Bird and a $2 million purse.
Bill Allen, in pleading guilty in 2007 to three counts related to his
central role in the Alaska public corruption scandal, won immunity from federal
criminal charges for Mark Allen.
Mine That Bird, a 50-to-1 long-shot, stunned the racing world when he came
from behind and won the Derby, America's premier thoroughbred event. Mark
Allen's Double Eagle Ranch of Roswell, N.M., along with a neighbor, Leonard
Blach, purchased the gelding last year. The racing Web site BloodHorse.com
said they paid $400,000 after the horse had initially sold for $9,500 as a
yearling.
While prosecutors haven't said whether they could have charged Mark Allen,
Bill Allen himself has testified that his son paid off a state legislator.
A felony conviction against Mark Allen would have led to revocation of his
license as a racehorse owner in New Mexico, racing officials there said.
Under Bill Allen's plea deal with the Justice Department, he was required
to cooperate fully with the government and provide "substantial assistance
to the ongoing investigation." In return, the government agreed to "not
charge Allen's son, Mark Allen, or other family members of Allen with any
criminal offenses arising out the government's investigation that have been
disclosed to the government."
Bill Allen's testimony about his son’s payoff to a legislator came in
October during the trial of former U.S. Sen. Ted Stevens. While Allen was under
orders by the judge in the case to not name any legislators who received
Veco or Allen money &mash; one would have been former state Sen. Ben Stevens,
Ted's son, and the judge wanted to avoid prejudicing the jury — Allen used
the pronoun "her" to describe the legislator paid by Mark.
In March, former Rep. Bev Masek pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit
bribery for accepting at least $4,000 from Allen. Among the overt acts listed
in the conspiracy charge was that a "relative" of Bill Allen — the name
wasn't given — gave her "several" thousand dollars in cash at a restaurant in
South Anchorage on April 18, 2003, after she complained to Allen that she
was broke.
"Masek accepted this money knowing that Veco and its (oil-company) clients
had matters pending before the Alaska State Legislature that were important
to Allen and Veco's business interests," the charge against Masek said.
Two weeks later, Bill Allen himself bribed her with $2,000 to spike a bill
that would have raised oil taxes, according to her plea.
Bill Allen’s testimony played a strong role in the convictions of two
former state legislators accused of bribery, and he was the government’s chief
witness against Stevens. Lawyers for Stevens argued that Allen had an
incentive to lie in his testimony to ensure the government would keep the bargain
and not charge Mark.
Veco Corp. itself has also not been charged, though Allen said he was told
by prosecutors that such a charge remains an option. Allen and his three
grown children, owners of most of Veco stock, sold the company to the
international engineering firm CH2M Hill in 2007. According to sales documents,
Mark Allen’s share, before taxes, was about $30 million.
The Anchorage Daily News reported last summer that Mark Allen went on a
horse-buying spree starting in 2007. He spent nearly $726,000 for eight horses
at the Ruidoso Select Quarter Horse sale in New Mexico that August, one of
the breed’s premiere events. His Double Eagle Ranch paid the highest price
for any horse at that sale — $460,000 for a colt.
Bill Allen has testified that although he tried to interest his son in
Veco, it didn’t work out.
"He didn’t like it," Allen said in the Stevens trial. "He wanted to get
back with his horses."
The family had a horse ranch in Grand Junction, Colo., then Mark bought a
place in Roswell which he owned with his wife, Peggy. The couple is
divorcing.
An older half-brother of Mine That Bird, So Long Birdie, initially belonged
to a partnership that included Mark and Bill Allen, Stevens, Double Musky
restaurant owner Bob Persons and other prominent Alaskans. Persons said
last year that the Allens had bought So Long Birdie from the partnership. The
horse stands at stud at Blach’s Buena Suerte Equine Clinic, near the Double
Eagle Ranch.
In an interview in July, Blach, who shared the winner’s circle with Allen
Saturday, claimed to not be very familiar with Mark Allen.
"I see him once in a while," Blach said then. "I just don’t know too much
about him, to tell the truth about it." (Blach told reporters on Saturday
that he and Mark Allen have "been friends for years.")
Chip Woolley, Mine That Bird’s trainer from Farmington, N.M., was also
reluctant to speak about Mark Allen when contacted in July.
"If you got questions about him, you need to call him," Woolley said. "If
you want to ask questions about Mark’s horses, call him. You don’t even
know me or nothing about me, so, well I don’t know you or nothing about you."
Mine That Bird indirectly figured into one of the strangest events in the
Stevens trial. After the jurors began deliberating, one of them, Marian
Hinnant, suddenly skipped town. Initially she told the judge her father had
died, but then admitted she had a ticket to see the Breeders Cup, a major
thoroughbred stakes race Santa Anita Park near Los Angeles.
Mine That Bird, recently purchased by Allen and Blach, ran in the Breeders
Cup Juvenile as two-year-old. In that race, Mine That Bird was true to form
— he was a 30-to-1 long shot and came in 12th.
Hinnant was replaced by an alternate, who later blogged about her
experiences. Before the Stevens case was thrown out for prosecutorial errors,
Stevens’ defense cited Hinnant and the blogger as reasons a new trial was
warranted.
http://greedybastardsclub.blogspot.com/
Posted on Sun, May. 03, 2009
Richard Mauer | Anchorage Daily News
last updated: May 03, 2009 09:10:55 AM
ANCHORAGE — If it weren't for the plea deal that his dad, former Veco chief
executive Bill Allen, made with federal prosecutors, Mark Allen might not
have been in the winner's circle Saturday at the Kentucky Derby,
celebrating the victory of his thoroughbred Mine That Bird and a $2 million purse.
Bill Allen, in pleading guilty in 2007 to three counts related to his
central role in the Alaska public corruption scandal, won immunity from federal
criminal charges for Mark Allen.
Mine That Bird, a 50-to-1 long-shot, stunned the racing world when he came
from behind and won the Derby, America's premier thoroughbred event. Mark
Allen's Double Eagle Ranch of Roswell, N.M., along with a neighbor, Leonard
Blach, purchased the gelding last year. The racing Web site BloodHorse.com
said they paid $400,000 after the horse had initially sold for $9,500 as a
yearling.
While prosecutors haven't said whether they could have charged Mark Allen,
Bill Allen himself has testified that his son paid off a state legislator.
A felony conviction against Mark Allen would have led to revocation of his
license as a racehorse owner in New Mexico, racing officials there said.
Under Bill Allen's plea deal with the Justice Department, he was required
to cooperate fully with the government and provide "substantial assistance
to the ongoing investigation." In return, the government agreed to "not
charge Allen's son, Mark Allen, or other family members of Allen with any
criminal offenses arising out the government's investigation that have been
disclosed to the government."
Bill Allen's testimony about his son’s payoff to a legislator came in
October during the trial of former U.S. Sen. Ted Stevens. While Allen was under
orders by the judge in the case to not name any legislators who received
Veco or Allen money &mash; one would have been former state Sen. Ben Stevens,
Ted's son, and the judge wanted to avoid prejudicing the jury — Allen used
the pronoun "her" to describe the legislator paid by Mark.
In March, former Rep. Bev Masek pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit
bribery for accepting at least $4,000 from Allen. Among the overt acts listed
in the conspiracy charge was that a "relative" of Bill Allen — the name
wasn't given — gave her "several" thousand dollars in cash at a restaurant in
South Anchorage on April 18, 2003, after she complained to Allen that she
was broke.
"Masek accepted this money knowing that Veco and its (oil-company) clients
had matters pending before the Alaska State Legislature that were important
to Allen and Veco's business interests," the charge against Masek said.
Two weeks later, Bill Allen himself bribed her with $2,000 to spike a bill
that would have raised oil taxes, according to her plea.
Bill Allen’s testimony played a strong role in the convictions of two
former state legislators accused of bribery, and he was the government’s chief
witness against Stevens. Lawyers for Stevens argued that Allen had an
incentive to lie in his testimony to ensure the government would keep the bargain
and not charge Mark.
Veco Corp. itself has also not been charged, though Allen said he was told
by prosecutors that such a charge remains an option. Allen and his three
grown children, owners of most of Veco stock, sold the company to the
international engineering firm CH2M Hill in 2007. According to sales documents,
Mark Allen’s share, before taxes, was about $30 million.
The Anchorage Daily News reported last summer that Mark Allen went on a
horse-buying spree starting in 2007. He spent nearly $726,000 for eight horses
at the Ruidoso Select Quarter Horse sale in New Mexico that August, one of
the breed’s premiere events. His Double Eagle Ranch paid the highest price
for any horse at that sale — $460,000 for a colt.
Bill Allen has testified that although he tried to interest his son in
Veco, it didn’t work out.
"He didn’t like it," Allen said in the Stevens trial. "He wanted to get
back with his horses."
The family had a horse ranch in Grand Junction, Colo., then Mark bought a
place in Roswell which he owned with his wife, Peggy. The couple is
divorcing.
An older half-brother of Mine That Bird, So Long Birdie, initially belonged
to a partnership that included Mark and Bill Allen, Stevens, Double Musky
restaurant owner Bob Persons and other prominent Alaskans. Persons said
last year that the Allens had bought So Long Birdie from the partnership. The
horse stands at stud at Blach’s Buena Suerte Equine Clinic, near the Double
Eagle Ranch.
In an interview in July, Blach, who shared the winner’s circle with Allen
Saturday, claimed to not be very familiar with Mark Allen.
"I see him once in a while," Blach said then. "I just don’t know too much
about him, to tell the truth about it." (Blach told reporters on Saturday
that he and Mark Allen have "been friends for years.")
Chip Woolley, Mine That Bird’s trainer from Farmington, N.M., was also
reluctant to speak about Mark Allen when contacted in July.
"If you got questions about him, you need to call him," Woolley said. "If
you want to ask questions about Mark’s horses, call him. You don’t even
know me or nothing about me, so, well I don’t know you or nothing about you."
Mine That Bird indirectly figured into one of the strangest events in the
Stevens trial. After the jurors began deliberating, one of them, Marian
Hinnant, suddenly skipped town. Initially she told the judge her father had
died, but then admitted she had a ticket to see the Breeders Cup, a major
thoroughbred stakes race Santa Anita Park near Los Angeles.
Mine That Bird, recently purchased by Allen and Blach, ran in the Breeders
Cup Juvenile as two-year-old. In that race, Mine That Bird was true to form
— he was a 30-to-1 long shot and came in 12th.
Hinnant was replaced by an alternate, who later blogged about her
experiences. Before the Stevens case was thrown out for prosecutorial errors,
Stevens’ defense cited Hinnant and the blogger as reasons a new trial was
warranted.
http://greedybastardsclub.blogspot.com/
Program would send TB horses to prison
April 29, 2009
A Southern Illinois horse lover wants to use retired racehorses to train prison inmates to become Thoroughbred groomers.
Lanny Brooks, head of the Illinois Horsemen's Benevolent and Protective Association, says establishing a grooming instruction program at the Vandalia Correctional Center would benefit prisoners and give retired race horses a new lease on life, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported Wednesday.
Brooks says his organization would foot the bills for the program so it won't cost Illinois a dime.
"The grooming of Thoroughbred horses is a skill that can be taught to inmates and can lead them to a productive life after prison," says a resolution introduced into the Illinois House by state Rep. Ron Stephens of Highland.
Brooks says eight other states have similar programs and all have proved successful.
Once his program is in place, Brooks says any trainer caught sending horses for slaughter would lose his stalls at the racetrack.
A Southern Illinois horse lover wants to use retired racehorses to train prison inmates to become Thoroughbred groomers.
Lanny Brooks, head of the Illinois Horsemen's Benevolent and Protective Association, says establishing a grooming instruction program at the Vandalia Correctional Center would benefit prisoners and give retired race horses a new lease on life, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported Wednesday.
Brooks says his organization would foot the bills for the program so it won't cost Illinois a dime.
"The grooming of Thoroughbred horses is a skill that can be taught to inmates and can lead them to a productive life after prison," says a resolution introduced into the Illinois House by state Rep. Ron Stephens of Highland.
Brooks says eight other states have similar programs and all have proved successful.
Once his program is in place, Brooks says any trainer caught sending horses for slaughter would lose his stalls at the racetrack.
Sunday, May 3, 2009
Horse-racing will eventually break-down
So it's safe to watch on Saturday. Death can't happen so soon again. Can it?
It can't. The odds are against it, and supporters of horseracing are all about the odds. They can live with the number of horses dying -- with the freaking odds -- so we'll assume they're right. Death can't happen again this soon. So if you have even a shred of curiosity about horse racing in general or about the Derby itself, you might want to watch this weekend. Because the sport won't be around forever.
For full article, click on title above;
http://www.cbssports.com/columns/story/11696235
Statistics
for horse deaths at the track don't even include Barbaro, who was
euthanized at an animal hospital. (AP)
It can't. The odds are against it, and supporters of horseracing are all about the odds. They can live with the number of horses dying -- with the freaking odds -- so we'll assume they're right. Death can't happen again this soon. So if you have even a shred of curiosity about horse racing in general or about the Derby itself, you might want to watch this weekend. Because the sport won't be around forever.
For full article, click on title above;
http://www.cbssports.com/columns/story/11696235
Statistics
for horse deaths at the track don't even include Barbaro, who was
euthanized at an animal hospital. (AP)
Friday, May 1, 2009
Take the derby Challange & Save a Racehorse from Slaughter
On May 2nd, many of the world's fastest thoroughbreds will compete
in the 135th running of the Kentucky Derby. The racetrack success of
these equine stars was once supposed to guarantee them a safe and
long retirement. But according to Melodee Shelley-Bolmgren, founder
of Chez Chevaux, a Washington-based nonprofit thoroughbred rescue
organization, times have never been tougher for these magnificent
creatures.
It's possible — even likely — that one of the horses running in
Saturday's race will end up on a dinner plate somewhere overseas.
This was, in fact, the fate of Ferdinand who won the 1986 Kentucky
Derby and 1987 Breeders' Cup Classic. He was voted the 1987 Eclipse
Award for Horse of the Year, but later proved unsuccessful as a
stallion and his economic value dwindled to the price of the meat on
his bones. In 2002, 16 years after he won the Kentucky Derby,
Ferdinand was shipped off to a slaughterhouse in Japan with little
fanfare. His death served as the catalyst for the Ferdinand Fee, a
donation program to help keep old racehorses alive.
Exceller, the only horse ever to beat two Triple Crown winners,
which he did in the 1978 Jockey Club Gold Cup, died in a Swedish
slaughterhouse in 1997. Phantom on Tour, who ran sixth in the 1997
Kentucky Derby, might have met a similar fate if rescue groups
hadn't intervened before it was too late.
In part due to the poor economy, donations to rescue organizations
are reported to have reached record lows and thoroughbreds, some of
whom have earned hundreds of thousands of dollars for their previous
owners, are being shipped to Canada and Mexico for slaughter.
Without sufficient funds, nonprofits are unable to save these ex-
racers.
"What makes this situation even more tragic is that we see so many
healthy, young thoroughbreds shipped abroad to be slaughtered," says
Shelley-Bolmgren.
To help save the lives of thoroughbreds and retrain them for second
careers as pleasure or show horses, Chez Chevaux has issued a Derby
Day Dollar Challenge. The nonprofit organization hopes to raise
$135,000 in recognition of this year's 135th Derby. Shelley-Bolmgren
says she already has an email box overflowing with requests to help
horses that are in dire need.
According to the Humane Society, the United States sent 98,363
horses to Canada and Mexico for slaughter last year. As of March 28,
2009 17,758 horses had been sent to those two countries for
slaughter. Polls have historically shown that the vast majority of
Americans are against the slaughtering of horses. In Texas (formerly
home to two of this country's equine slaughterhouses), 72 percent of
those polled in 2006 said they were opposed to the slaughtering of
horses for human consumption. That sentiment is shared by most
members of Congress.
But unfortunately the people's voice isn't always heard or honored
in Congress. In September 2006, the United States House of
Representatives approved H.R. 503, the American Horse Slaughter
Prevention Act, which would ban the slaughter of horses in the
United States. However, the bill never made it out of committee in
the Senate. For a multitude of reasons, cattlemen's groups, the
American Quarter Horse Association and the American Association of
Equine Practitioners have gone on the record as "pro-slaughter" and
have found ways to keep this practice alive.
The recent rise in the number of unwanted and neglected horses in
Kentucky has renewed the debate over whether reopening
slaughterhouses in the United States (the last ones closed in 2007)
would help address the problem.
To take the Derby Day Dollar Challenge, please visit Chez Chevaux to
make an online tax-deductible donation. No amount is too small. "If
enough people contributed even a single dollar to horse charities
that would help us save so many animals from certain deaths,"
Shelley-Bolmgren says.
Facts about horse slaughter:
During the last few decades, millions of horses have been
slaughtered in the U.S. and Canada and their meat exported to Europe
and Japan for human consumption.
It is estimated that a third of all slaughter-bound horses in the
U.S. were bred for racing.
Thoroughbreds and other horses are often shipped up to 30 hours
without food or water. When they reach the slaughterhouse, they are
driven into a killing factory and bludgeoned with a four-inch bolt
gun which drives a spike into their skulls. Their throats are then
slit, often while they are still conscious.
Most horses sold at auction are bought by middlemen for slaughter
plants; the horses often go straight to slaughter without disclosure
to the original sellers.
Very little horse meat is used in dog food; some cuts sell for over
$20 per pound for human consumption.
Do you plan to watch the Kentucky Derby this weekend? I encourage
all horse enthusiasts to place your bets on Chez Chevaux or another
horse rescue organization for a guaranteed return on your investment.
Click on title to read more, see video and leave comments;
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/pets/detail?entry_id=39238
in the 135th running of the Kentucky Derby. The racetrack success of
these equine stars was once supposed to guarantee them a safe and
long retirement. But according to Melodee Shelley-Bolmgren, founder
of Chez Chevaux, a Washington-based nonprofit thoroughbred rescue
organization, times have never been tougher for these magnificent
creatures.
It's possible — even likely — that one of the horses running in
Saturday's race will end up on a dinner plate somewhere overseas.
This was, in fact, the fate of Ferdinand who won the 1986 Kentucky
Derby and 1987 Breeders' Cup Classic. He was voted the 1987 Eclipse
Award for Horse of the Year, but later proved unsuccessful as a
stallion and his economic value dwindled to the price of the meat on
his bones. In 2002, 16 years after he won the Kentucky Derby,
Ferdinand was shipped off to a slaughterhouse in Japan with little
fanfare. His death served as the catalyst for the Ferdinand Fee, a
donation program to help keep old racehorses alive.
Exceller, the only horse ever to beat two Triple Crown winners,
which he did in the 1978 Jockey Club Gold Cup, died in a Swedish
slaughterhouse in 1997. Phantom on Tour, who ran sixth in the 1997
Kentucky Derby, might have met a similar fate if rescue groups
hadn't intervened before it was too late.
In part due to the poor economy, donations to rescue organizations
are reported to have reached record lows and thoroughbreds, some of
whom have earned hundreds of thousands of dollars for their previous
owners, are being shipped to Canada and Mexico for slaughter.
Without sufficient funds, nonprofits are unable to save these ex-
racers.
"What makes this situation even more tragic is that we see so many
healthy, young thoroughbreds shipped abroad to be slaughtered," says
Shelley-Bolmgren.
To help save the lives of thoroughbreds and retrain them for second
careers as pleasure or show horses, Chez Chevaux has issued a Derby
Day Dollar Challenge. The nonprofit organization hopes to raise
$135,000 in recognition of this year's 135th Derby. Shelley-Bolmgren
says she already has an email box overflowing with requests to help
horses that are in dire need.
According to the Humane Society, the United States sent 98,363
horses to Canada and Mexico for slaughter last year. As of March 28,
2009 17,758 horses had been sent to those two countries for
slaughter. Polls have historically shown that the vast majority of
Americans are against the slaughtering of horses. In Texas (formerly
home to two of this country's equine slaughterhouses), 72 percent of
those polled in 2006 said they were opposed to the slaughtering of
horses for human consumption. That sentiment is shared by most
members of Congress.
But unfortunately the people's voice isn't always heard or honored
in Congress. In September 2006, the United States House of
Representatives approved H.R. 503, the American Horse Slaughter
Prevention Act, which would ban the slaughter of horses in the
United States. However, the bill never made it out of committee in
the Senate. For a multitude of reasons, cattlemen's groups, the
American Quarter Horse Association and the American Association of
Equine Practitioners have gone on the record as "pro-slaughter" and
have found ways to keep this practice alive.
The recent rise in the number of unwanted and neglected horses in
Kentucky has renewed the debate over whether reopening
slaughterhouses in the United States (the last ones closed in 2007)
would help address the problem.
To take the Derby Day Dollar Challenge, please visit Chez Chevaux to
make an online tax-deductible donation. No amount is too small. "If
enough people contributed even a single dollar to horse charities
that would help us save so many animals from certain deaths,"
Shelley-Bolmgren says.
Facts about horse slaughter:
During the last few decades, millions of horses have been
slaughtered in the U.S. and Canada and their meat exported to Europe
and Japan for human consumption.
It is estimated that a third of all slaughter-bound horses in the
U.S. were bred for racing.
Thoroughbreds and other horses are often shipped up to 30 hours
without food or water. When they reach the slaughterhouse, they are
driven into a killing factory and bludgeoned with a four-inch bolt
gun which drives a spike into their skulls. Their throats are then
slit, often while they are still conscious.
Most horses sold at auction are bought by middlemen for slaughter
plants; the horses often go straight to slaughter without disclosure
to the original sellers.
Very little horse meat is used in dog food; some cuts sell for over
$20 per pound for human consumption.
Do you plan to watch the Kentucky Derby this weekend? I encourage
all horse enthusiasts to place your bets on Chez Chevaux or another
horse rescue organization for a guaranteed return on your investment.
Click on title to read more, see video and leave comments;
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/pets/detail?entry_id=39238
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