"The only thing that is necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing."

Edmund Burke

Montana House Approves Horse Slaughtering Bill

Yet another state has moved inexorably toward allowing foreign corporations to come back into the US and begin slaughtering our horses once again. As reported yesterday by the Associated Press, the Montana House of Representatives strongly endorsed a bill Feb. 24 that paves the way for construction of a horse slaughterhouse in Montana and aims to bring the industry back to the United States. (Emphasis supplied).

Putting an obvious white-wash to their intentions, the bill's sponsor, Republican Rep. Ed Butcher had the audacity to say "This bill is really providing a humane and regulated processing plant." There is nothing humane about the slaughter of horses, unless done by proper methods of euthanasia, deemed too slow, cumbersome, time consuming and -- most of all, costly. Reports from various sources who've witnessed slaughtering techniques in the Texas and Illinois plants (prior to being shuttered) indicate the manner of slaughter to be no better than what is currently being done in Mexico and Canada. USDA inspectors, required by law to be in attendance during slaughtering, are typically nowhere to be seen. See for yourself. Look at the videos on our website.

Once the bill passes a second vote (fully expected) it will go to Montana's upper house for a vote and, again, is expected to pass. However, most incredibly, so intent are Montana's legislators in bringing horse slaughter to their state, they have included a ban against ordinary citizens or horse advocates from filing lawsuits and seeking an injunction against construction until the courts can decide, and also requires any individuals or groups seeking to challenge building permits for the plants to post a bond equal to 20% of the estimated building costs! AND it contains a provision awarding costs and attorney's fees to the slaughter houses owners that prevail if it is decided the lawsuit lacks merit. Cavel International and Bel-Tex have done their job well. What about us?

Montana's proximity to the Canadian border makes the state an attractive site for Canadian plant operators looking to expand, Butcher said. Meat would be shipped directly from Montana international airports to offshore markets.
Last week members of North Dakota's House Agriculture Committee approved HB 1496, a bill authorizing a study to determine whether current North Dakota law supports processing plant development. The North Dakota House is set to vote on the measure this week.