Congress to Investigate Horse Racing Industry

After witnessing one of the most disappointing and puzzling losses in the history of American thoroughbred horse racing, the United States Congress will begin hearings on the ethics of this $40 billion US industry. It seems the tragic death of Eight Belles at the Kentucky Derby, followed by the poor running of Big Brown at the Belmont Stakes, was enough to raise more than a few eyebrows.

Every year some 5,000 horses die or are put down at the racetracks. It's gotten to the point where horse racing fans cringe at the start of each race, hoping that each horse makes it to the finish line without injury. The use of steroids also has many people questioning the need for horses to take performance enhancing drugs.

"When you talk about the Kentucky Derby, Belmont, Preakness, the whole country focuses on those, they attract stars from Hollywood, and it's all pretty romantic and wonderful," says US Rep. Ed Whitfield (R) of Kentucky, who holds hearings Thursday. "But in everyday racing, there are horses going down, and then the horses unable to fulfill their promise going to slaughter. The greed has trumped the concern for the horse, it's trumped the safety of the jockeys, and it's trumped the integrity of the sport."

Read more on what Congress intends to do about these and other issues facing the horse racing industry today. And drop me a line -- what do you make of the whole thing? Should we do away with horse racing entirely? Is it really that dangerous a sport?