People to Strike-off your Christmas List; When Will People Learn?

If you believe the Meadowlands should ultimately have casino gambling, you probably will be interested in voting against the resolution to authorize a referendum on allowing two casinos in Northern New Jersey so you can 'thank' them the next time they are up for election.  How do you find out who voted against the resolution?  Fortunately, John Brennan of The Record and NorthJersey.com has done the work for you.  Feel free to see who the naysayers were and if so inclined, put them on a checklist so when they come up for re-election or seek another office, you can attempt to send them packing out of Trenton.

Of course, if you are so inclined, you can let them know how displeased you are now in the hopes when time for the enacting legislation, assuming the referendum passes, they may look more favorably upon racing.


Another barn fire and twelve horses are gone, having to suffer a horrifying death.  If public training facilities are not going to put in fire detection and suppression systems, appropriate for their climate, or at a minimum offer wooden barns and stalls, when are horsemen going to say, "Thank you, I think I will set up shop somewhere else"?  As an added incentive, maybe carriers who insure horses need to raise rates and offer nice discounts on those who stable at facilities which have upgraded their fire protection capabilities.

Yes, there are costs involved in making changes to making stables safer, but how much does it cost when you get wiped out in a fire?  I don't know, while it is nice to know the industry responds by having fundraisers and GoFundMe sites,in some ways it is counterproductive if you believe if you are a victim of fire, your compatriots are going to help at least part of the way to dig you out of the mess.  Maybe if horsemen knew if they don't properly insure their horses and business from fire, they would be left hanging out to dry, they might start looking at things differently.

When enough business leaves these facilities, these training centers will have to upgrade or go out of business.  Personally, I think private facilities need to be upgraded as well, but at least there, if tragedy strikes you only hurt your owners and yourself (and of course the horses).