You applaud Bo Derek and others that campaigned against horse slaughter- but those of you that supported closing slaughter plants did nothing to see that the unwanted horses would be taken care of any other way. I hold you and others that think like you directly responsible for the rise in abused and neglected horses. The added suffering is on your heads and will be until you come up with a solution to care for about 80,000 unwanted horses per year. This is what happens when people jump up for a cause without thinking it through. No real solutions, just more problems.
Then you must be some kind of ideologue. For otherwise, why would you suppose that I would personally turn a blind eye to the problem of the abuse and neglect of horses? Indeed, if I personally knew of any such circumstance, I'd jump in and do all I could do to help, including financial support or (better, with the right horse, provided I could manage it — and with the right horse, I'd find the means) outright adoption.
I just do not accept that the only solution to the problem of abuse and neglect of horses is to turn them into horsemeat.
I love these animals too much. I regard them as my "little sisters and brothers," fellow biological beings caught in the same net of space and time as I am. They are the nobility of the animal kingdom, IMHO. They gladly work with us humans for our human purposes, learning and executing their jobs as intelligent and able beings. Without the horse (and the Winchester), the great Western Expansion of what was to become the United States of America would not have taken place. They are beloved to me, and I imagine, also to God.
So, do you have any better ideas?