I will never say that I have been a fan of horse racing, but usually I find myself watching the Kentucky Derby.  This year, however, I was lucky enough to have been busy on that day.  There is little worse in life than watching an animal completely break down, as Derby runner-up Eight Belles did last weekend.  Everyone knows that when a horse’s leg breaks, it’s usually glue factory time, and it was no different for Eight Belles as he was euthanized on the track shortly after breaking both front ankles.  

Think about how it would be to see a football player get euthanized on field after tearing an ACL.  Either way, sports is a consumption industry, when an athlete can benefit the industry they are allowed to stay, but when the athlete (whether human or a horse) is no longer able to serve their purpose, they are cast aside like a sack of moldy tangerines.  Eight Belles and Barbaro died for their sport in the last three years, countless humans have taken performance-enhancing substances to get to or stay at the top for decades (see: Lyle Alzado, Ken Caminiti, and many other athletes who have died from the roids)