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Gail Vacca letter to the Editor:
Dear Editor,
In response to the article "Sweeney-Spratt amendment could end horse slaughtering" published
June 29, 2005 I would first like to thank Diane Strand and the Midweek News for bringing attention
to the landslide victory (269-158) in favor of our countries horses last month, when congress was
finally able to hear the facts of this most important issue and vote the will of their respective
constituencies.
The Sweeney/Spratt amendment will prohibit the federal government from using federal funds to inspect
horsemeat and/or live horses for slaughter, both domestically and for export.
I would also like to thank the Illinois congressional delegation, for boldly representing the will
of Illinoisans by voting overwhelmingly in favor of the Sweeney/Spratt amendment (14-3 with 2 not
voting). Clearly our Illlinois delegates have listened well to Illinois voters and we were well
represented when this issue came to the floor for a vote. I am very proud of our delegation for
cutting through the lies and propaganda of horse slaughter proponents and concluding as do most
Americans, that this industry of cruelty has no place in our country.
I would also like to address the comments made by James Tucker (Cavel plant manager) who stated that
the passing of this amendment was "an attack on the meat industry", and that of State Rep, Bob Pritchard
(R-Hinckley), who said that this "would set a dangerous precedent". Let us not forget that horses, in the
United States are not a part of the "meat" industry at all. We do not raise, breed or medicate horses
for meat in this country, and more importantly we do not eat them. To equate the ending of horse slaughter
with an attack on the "meat industry" is ridiculous. This is just more propaganda, designed to "rally" other
meat industry groups around a non-existant slippery slope! This amendment is strictly about horses, a
non-food animal, it has nothing to do with cows, pigs or any other animals.
In fact, American consumers and legitimate US meat industry groups will be all the better for the
passing of this amendment, as the taxpayer dollars and resources once wasted by the United States
Department of Agriculture (USDA) inspecting horsemeat that Americans do not consume (nor profit from),
can now go toward providing increased inspections and safeguards with regard to meat and food products
that Americans do consume! Given the ever increasing threat of potential terrorist attacks on our
countries food supply as well as other food safety concerns, I'm sure that most American consumers
will be grateful that these once wasted dollars can now be diverted to better ensuring the safety of
our own food products.
Our congressional representatives did the math, and saw that our taxpayer dollars were being wasted
in these three foreign owned horse slaughter plants who export all their product and profit overseas
and they did the right thing..they put an end to the waste. Furthermore, the strong support of this
amendment by congress proves that they too, recognize that horses are not "meat" animals, and that
the time stop this egregious cruelty and exploitation of America's horses is now!
The Sweeney/Spratt amendment will now move to a vote in the Senate. We strongly urge Senators Dick
Durbin and Barrack Obama to stand with their colleagues in the House and vote "YES" on this important
legislation.
For more information on this legislation and horse slaughter please visit us on the web at
www.horse-protection.org
Gail Vacca
Illinois Coordinator
National Horse Protection Coalition
Dekalb, IL 60115
Phone: 815-761-4937
Fax: 815-787-4957
www.horse-protection.org
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