I received this email Sunday and then asked to re-post it here. Thank you, Jason.
“Patrick, I started participating in horseracing betting around the time Forever Young won the Dubai Derby. I was mesmerized by the win and started to frequently bet on the TwinSpires app. I had, and have, never actually been to a track. I found these beautiful animals so interesting, and I loved the excitement of the sport.
“On Friday, I was watching the race at Saratoga where The Big Torpedo was coming down the stretch and just fell face forward, taking out another horse. This was the first time I had ever seen this happen. The announcer just paused and the cameraman kept moving the camera away from the incident. Nothing else was mentioned!! So I turned to X to find out what happened. Well these rich, greedy people killed him. I was sickened by this, and actually came to tears. The Big Torpedo was such a beautiful horse. I couldn’t believe that he was just euthanized. The track did its best to conceal what had happened.
“I will never again contribute a single penny to this cruel and inhumane sport. The Big Torpedo never asked to race that day. He just did what evil humans programed into his head. Knowing this can happen any time in horseracing, I can’t see why it continues! This is just gross. RIP The Big Torpedo, you were a beautiful boy.” – Jason Laveck
Horses change the course of countless lives. Even in death they teach us, if we listen. For me it was the death of Mommas Boy Otis. It made me rethink everything surrounding human/animal relationships. Go ahead and cry unashamed. I did. It means you’re still in touch with something righteous. If you come out of it a different person then Big Torpedo will not have died in vain.
Jason Laveck, your email to Patrick Battuello was just SO well-written and, in my opinion ~(I’m a retired Career R.N. who took care of lots of injured and/or assaulted bloodied patients)~ it takes courage ………… [i.e., actually a *g.r.e.a.t.* deal of courage!] ………… to even SAY that you were, “sickened by this, and actually came to tears.”
This horrifically and profoundly-inhumane ~CRUELTY~ called “horseracing” …………………… has. got. to. stop.
***Please tell all your family/friends —[and also ask them to tell all THEIR family/friends, as well!]— exactly what you so eloquently expressed to Patrick Butuello!!***
Points well made and thank you for your articulation of said points! I believe you are referring to Frank Stronach as the pervert king.
The industry has really hit the bottom of the cesspool. In the Paulick Report (September 4/24) the headline article concerns a partnership agreement between Churchill Downs the the Kentucky Derby Museum for an Education Initiative! Field trips for students which is supposed to offer them educational opportunities “standards-aligned content that spans history, science, math, cultural studies, social emotional learning and career studies!”
Point 1. Gambling is not an educational opportunity….just ask those who lost their families, careers, reputations because of recreational gambling! It ruins lives. Are they going to teach students that gambling, like drinking kills and destroys lives?
Point 2. Are they going to show them the reality of the game? Horses dying agonal deaths due to illegal administration of drugs, paralyzed riders confined to wheelchairs, are they going to show them how grooms are underpaid at the most famous breeding farms in Kentucky? The grooms rely on charitable donations of used clothes and food boxes that contain such nutritious foodstuffs such as Kraft Macaroni, Jell-o, and other assorted junk food that hinders good health and vitality.
Point 3. Are they going to tell girls if you want to be successful in this game, you cooperate! Sexual coercion is rampant at all racetracks in America. I refer to the recent arrest of one of the most prominent persons in racing….are they going to investigate the TRPB officials for their vicious history against men and women over the decades when this security organization was powerful? How about telling the kids full history of the Sport of Thieves and Horse Killers, and Perverts….Will they tell the kids the full history of the sport for example:
I have researched Dover Downs and in the 1960s this racing plant allowed “Spurs” to be used in the running of races along with the usual item of brutality whips. I still am amazed that the state of Delaware permitted such outrages on thoroughbreds, but skip ahead from 1969 to the present era where demon trainers like Bob Baffert are considered celebrities when in fact and evidence they are no better than the dross of hell.
Entice is the operative word. This industry is trying to do everything to keep people in this crummy business & retain workers. We know of many past workers who now work at casinos as they offer higher wages & better benefits. Of course many photos are placed online trying to have more participation. We walked away in 2004 & will never be involved again.
Perfectly said Joe!
Reaching former bettors like Jason and myself is the key to accelerate the demise of this cruel game. Like me, Jason has discovered the horrors that occur daily, and are inherent in this alleged ‘sport’. Keep in mind also, Jason, that cheating is quite rampant in this industry, and the trainers will do whatever it takes – legal or not- to eke out a win – bettors be damned.
The industry does its level best to keep the true nature of horse racing well hidden from the general public, but unfortunately [for THEM] it is becoming harder and harder to do so.
So, welcome, Jason, to the growing list of EX-bettors who refuse to gamble on enterprises involving unwilling sentient beings. As most readers of his site know, I stopped gambling on horse racing a couple of years ago, and although I was a very big bettor, I see absolutely nothing in the offering that would entice me to come back.
-Joe
Thank you, Jason. I hope you tell everyone you know how you feel.
From a recent study on online betting: “A new study from the University of Kansas reveals that every dollar spent on online sports betting translates into two dollars not invested in retirement savings.
The research, conducted by finance professors at the University of Kansas examined spending patterns of 230,000 households across all 50 states, comparing data from three years before and after the legalization of online sports betting. The study found that the impact of online sports betting is particularly severe for financially constrained individuals [resulting in bank account overdrafts and unpaid credit card charges].”
And this: “People often view the legalization of online sports betting as an endorsement, prompting individuals who previously avoided gambling to start participating.”
Good for you Jason! We as a small naturally light people loved to ride Thoroughbreds & were naturals for riding. When we saw a mare who we had galloped in the am break both front legs at the head of the stretch racing in pm, that`s when we begin to consider seriously why we participated in this “Crooked , Crummy, Gamboling game”. We never gamboled on the horses. We just loved to ride them & teach them to be ridden. To this day we would bet that we were the only ones who galloped a horse on the track with just a lead rope & halter. That`s until we were yelled at by the outrider! Any horse we took to the track was taught to be solid basic transportation 1st before bringing to the track. This was true no matter if the horse was from our farm or at we taught them to be ridden at another farm such as the 100 year old Pleasure Acres farm in Corvallis Oregon which was dismantled in 2012.
Horseracing is an industry built on exploitation, where horses are treated as commodities rather than sentient beings. They never consent to being ridden, trained, or raced, yet their bodies are pushed to the limit for human entertainment and profit. The stress, injuries, and deaths that these animals endure highlight the cruelty of this so-called sport. It’s a stark reminder that animals deserve respect and freedom, not a life of forced servitude for our amusement.
Well said, Jason.