More on NPCA; and, what are we doing to the horse as a symbol?

[Susie Wimberly <suzieqc1cr@yahoo.com>]

Okay, thanks Connie!!!!

Since Syria VA is under a flood warning today, I spent just a little
more time visiting the NPCA website.  If you go to their website at 

http://www.npca.org

and if you use their search engine searching for the word "horse",
eventually you might come to NPCA's 1996 position statement entitled:

"S. 796 Ozark Wild Horse Protection Bill
Written Statement of The National Parks and Conservation Association
On S. 796 Before the U.S. Senate Subcommittee on Parks, Historic
Preservation and Recreation March 7, 1996"

They talk about horses here. Not very nicely, either.

Any way, this environmental op-ed piece got me to thinking about what
our nation is doing (through combative techniques such as this piece)
to the image of the horse in American history and culture.

IMHO, the horse broke and trained this country. The first colonists
were on foot unless they mounted a HORSE (they didnt ride oxen or
cattle, did they??)

George Washington, our former (way former) president, and former real
estate surveyor, did his HISTORICALLY significant business on a...
(you guessed it, he WAS NOT riding an ox or a cow).

Let's face it folks. This country was built on the horse.  Even at the
point where people traversed the nation on the IRON HORSE (a speck of
horse irony here), when they dismounted the choo-choo train, they got
into buggies pulled by....YES, YOU ARE WITH ME....HORSES!!!

Revere the horse as a symbole of productivity.
Worship the horse as an icon of cultural significance.
Love the horse as an image of beauty.

In my opinion, we should replace the American bald eagle as our
national symbol with THE GREAT AMERICAN WORK HORSE!!!

So, right now, before I finish this box of Triscuit crackers, I am
going out to my back yard to revere, worship, and love the muddy,
hairy horse beast who lives with me. Feed him a carrot. Pat his nose.
And thank him for being there for me and with me.

So, go get 'em Connie. I already sent my post in to Brian O'Neil.

Susie in Syria, Virginia under the Blue Ridge
Reilly O'Dog (faithful sidekick)
EA Tezzeray who should model for the National Sybol Contest


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