Sent: Friday, October 31, 2003 9:35 PM
Subject: [againstslaughter] PLEASE hear HB 3845
Dear Speaker Madigan and his
honorable staff,
Thank you for taking a moment to
read my email, as I have been unable to reach your staff or a voicemail system
via telephone all day.
I am writing to ask that you
please place HB3845, Rep Molaro's anti-horse-slaughter bill, on the short veto
session agenda for a hearing this week.
I, and literally thousands of
Illinois residents, feel VERY strongly about this issue, and about bringing
slaughter to an end in Illinois BEFORE the DeKalb Cavel plant can be reopened.
I am sure you are already well aware of the issues, so I will try to be brief.
1) Cavel is internationally
owned, and PAYS NO TARIFF ON HORSEMEAT.
2) Americans do not eat
horsemeat, and it is already illegal to possess for human consumption in the
US.
3) Slaughter plants DO NOT
provide a service to America's horsemen; horses are purchased from
unsuspecting sellers, families, farmers all over the country, often outbidding
families and others who wish to own these still bright, young, perfectly
healthy horses, transported often for days without food or water or rest in
substandard conditions that often result in horrendous injuries and even death
before reaching the plants, let alone the inhumane process of slaughter which
does not take into account the intelligence and acute senses of the horse.
4) Cavel is currently closed, so
no current jobs in Illinois would be lost.
5) Federal Bill HB 857 will very
likely end slaughter in the US completely in the near future, closing Cavel
regardless; however, passing HB3845 NOW will keep Cavel from ever opening,
from creating jobs that are then lost, from placing that stigma upon Illinois.
6) The EU has already banned
American beef, and all imports of all meats from Japan due to health concerns.
American horses are fed carcinogenic chemicals every day as a part of their
health care, with no intent of them ever being used for human consumption.
PLEASE, take this matter
seriously, and tackle it now, BEFORE Cavel goes any farther.
Thank you for your time.
Sincerely,