09/04/06 Horse slaughter ban slippery slope?

American Rancher September 4, 2006 One piece of legislation congress will be dealing with when it returns from its August recess is The American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act, H.R. 503. While agriculture groups cite many practical reasons to oppose a ban on horse slaughter, their major concern is the precedent such an action would set, as Terry Stokes of the National Cattlemen's Beef Association explains. Stokes: "We find the banning of horse slaughter to be a very slippery slope which is being proposed simply because of the strong emotions the issue stirs up with some people. Horse slaughter is regulated under the Humane Slaughter Act just like beef, pork and poultry. So the only reason a ban is being proposed is because some people are uncomfortable with the practice and find it distasteful. If we allow our agricultural policy to be driven by activist groups, what's next? Do we ban cattle and hog slaughter in order to accommodate their feelings? I don't think so." Stokes points out that H.R. 503 has 203 co-sponsors in the House of Representatives and it only needs 218 votes to pass. Stokes; "This bill is a very serious threat to animal agriculture. It not only limit's the management options of dealing with unusable horses, it attacks the very nature of the livestock business." I'm Bob Hoff.