Have you ever had the feeling that someone up there doesn’t like us very much? All the horses, all over the world… But really it doesn’t make any difference, however you do explain the tragedy of Medina Spirit (Protonico). The net result, for our community, is the same – whether you think the whole drama is unfolding, completely and by chance, at random; or somehow determined by our own reprehensible behaviors. Whoever was writing these scripts, we were playing the same role. We are being tested. And if we don’t get our lines right, we shouldn’t be surprised if they turn off the lights and go to the theater.
It is a test that requires courage. That is not the same as fearlessness. Without fear, in fact, there can be no courage. And we should certainly be scared. With so many enemies out there, getting bigger and better at resources, this looks more and more like an existential crisis. That makes the hysteria hard to resist, whether it comes in the form of confrontation or surrender. But the kind of bravery we require now is to stay calm, think clearly, and ultimately do the right thing.
There is no easy answer. However, I instinctively feel that our twin imperatives are on the one hand not to yield to mob rule; meanwhile, once, not just around our wagons.
The challenges we face reflect two endemic evils of social networks: conspiracy and confinement. Conspiracy theories frenzy against rational participation: every sheep is treated like a slave wolf under its bloody stolen fleece. The habit of narrating unrelated matters should not be extravagant, just lazy and distrustful. However, both harbor jarring and anger – the main political and cultural currency of the internet age.
The conspiracy describes our entire industry that is engaged in satanic mining. But confusion, whether from impatience or intelligence, cannot be bothered by nuance; can’t help but be bothered with the idea that all of our different walks should be judged on their individual merits. Any walk of life, say confession with a shrug, can introduce us to so many creepy stories, one after another, just too disgusting to be read. permission to continue. Unfortunately, the Medina Spirit disaster made that scene more famous than ever, and right in the middle of Main Street.
So how does conscience respond? On one level, it seems pretty simple. Just as no rational person, shunned by cruel extremes, wants society to be run by ignorance, prejudice and ideologies, so we must be able to completely reject these poisons. targeted at the community that we know, in most cases, for the horse. Those who cared for Medina Spirit so lovingly, it must have been hard when their grief over that empty reins was compounded by the impulse of some who claimed to be sympathetic to the cause. Animals will never measure from afar the arduous and reverent services they provide daily to the Purebred.
The point is that perceptions, shared widely enough, end up having the political power of reality. If the social media wildfires end with millions claiming our industry is the moral equivalent of cockfighting or bear fighting, then it seems likely that there will be limits to persuading a minority. reasonable that they should not lump the charges against Navarro and Servis with the facts. that a foal could break a limb while moving carelessly in a paddock. Even if collectively we can achieve the kind of self-improvement that is clearly needed, we may never regain our “social license” if enough people have taken a position that logically, will end up with a handful of horses preserved in safari parks.
Our opinion that horses will never make good house pets feel like a pet is informed. But let’s say we accept and strive to meet much more precise terms about the conscious use of horses for any kind of sport. In the meantime, do we have to go out and meet people we see as completely wrong? Do we, out of sheer pragmatism, give up other precious precepts, simply to be allowed to continue doing business?
That could be an interesting question. But isn’t that where we find ourselves with Bob Baffert? Because if we expect a fair hearing, as an industry, we certainly have to be careful about applying the same standards. But displeasing Baffert’s mass provocations, we couldn’t just say: “Look, we don’t care if you just had great bad luck, or extreme inattention, or what something worse. Now you have become too tired and you simply have to go away. “
If jurisdiction can be established and due process followed, there is no doubt that Baffert will pay a commensurate price for the actual cumulative and personal infractions. But you can’t respond to the puzzling criticism of the Medina Spirit story by trading fairness principles for lynch-mob standards of evidence.
In such hatred, it takes a degree of courage to continue to weigh probabilities fairly, to keep an eye on science. But it also exactly takes guts and guts to tackle anyone whose idea of equality is all about backing up their best friend Bob, simply because he may have favored them. love them with his strength, his charm, above all his professional success.
As we know, some very strong patrons have taken the view that Baffert is responsible for enough damage to the sport that they feel obligated to take their business elsewhere. . However, innocence in the Medina Spirit cases has been added to the list of not only the Baffert violation, but now also the Baffert death case, which can sort out the odds that by itself don’t support an order A regulatory ban is sufficient for the market to adopt a less precise standard of evidence.
Would that be a form of crowd rule? Or does it not really represent an informed judgment? Not necessarily that of an individual rider, but the extremely critical situation in which all riders find themselves. Now, we need the courage most to admit that some of the more general accusations against our entire community are actually quite fair. Because anyone who remains in denial about the continued failures of our sport has to take some responsibility for them. And, to that extent, it’s by no means unfair even to those who are “ignorant” of what we do that combining all these different titles has caused us so much damage. damage in the past two or three years. Why shouldn’t outsiders make such angry inferences, when they see those of us who “really understand” the business?
Baffert’s suspected more serious offenses were still forgiven. We found programs that clearly could not be explained coherently, other than blatant fraud; and we don’t necessarily mean just “juicy” improvements in certain blue-collar claims on certain blue-collar circuits.
Meanwhile, we see non-racing nations cynically exploiting to protect horsemen’s constitutional right to carry syringes. And of course, we see hundreds of mares bred to stallions with the most flimsy credentials, while others that can reproduce sounds and structures are left out because how it’s “non-commercial”.
Undoubtedly, some who profit from dubious training programs will only discover the possibility of inactivity to moral outrage if the stallions graduate from any barn. began to be questioned by breeders. Keep in mind that all that glitter may not be genetic gold. But that would be the right thing to do for the wrong reason. In other words, cowardly. And now, as we said, it’s time to show some moral courage. It’s time to be fair to everyone – including our critics.
