Because people from the country are obviously stupid...

I live in rural Australia. I am not a real 'country' girl. I have only ridden a horse once when I was a little girl, and that was strictly in the sense of going round and round a fenced area at the show while my Mum smiled and watched. I have never worn an akubra in my life, or worn a pair of riding boots. My dad has worked as a farm manager, so I guess I have had more exposure than the average person. I've had pet lambs before, we called them Barbie and Ken and it took me a long time to eat sheep after having them. But, despite where I live, I am much more city chic, than cowgirl.

However,

The town where I live has a local festival every year, and as part of that there are goat races held. To be honest I am not a huge fan of the goat races. I don't think it's necessary or fun, I am not a fan of animal racing, and to be honest, it's just not something that appeals to me. But then this happened.

Small towns need support from businesses. Our town is the base for a lot of natural gas works. So at times, the local community and economy can suffer because of the fly-in-fly-out culture. The problem is, so much of the population does not actually call our town 'home' so at times the workers do not support the town in the the same way that the local people, who are invested in it's future, do.

First of all, let's briefly address what the Animal Liberation front is doing. They are petitioning big businesses to stop supporting the local event because of the goat racing, thereby making the event lose it's funding. But I call foul. Here is an excerpt from one of their petitions, (you can read the full thing here)

 Over the last few years, Animal Liberation investigators have witnessed one of the cruelest animal abusing ‘sports’ in Australia: wild goat racing.
Frightened goats are captured, auctioned, harassed and distressed, dragged across a raceway and harnessed to a cart. Children as young as 4 years old are encouraged to be ‘jockeys’ and sometimes heavy adults ride the goats creating a large weight disparity for the animal. The goats and riders are released, and chaos occurs.
Children are thrown off carts while frightened goats collapse onto the ground. Goats crash head first into fences, some goats bleed, some goats knocking themselves unconscious, while children lay on the ground in a foetal position attempting to tend to their injuries.

Bull. Here is a of clip of the alleged 'abuse'

I have no problem with the animal liberationists saying that they don't agree with the goat racing as it is unfair or demeaning to the animals. But many of the claims they are making are lies. Plain and simple. Furthermore, I have often watched the goat races, having lived as a local for over 20 years, and I have never seen any evidence of abuse to the animals. They are clean, well fed and do not seem to be hit, or hurt in any way. If it is abuse to force the goats to race, then so be it, and fight it while referring to that. Don't lie and make things seem worse than they are.

If you do not agree with the goat racing, petition for it to be stopped. Don't punish the whole and work to have us lose our funding for a whole event, which helps support local economy, because of one thing.

What irritates me further though, are the comments written on their petition.

 THESE PEOPLE SHOULD BE PUT OUT OF OUR MISERY!

 people are evil

When are people going to evolve. This practice is cruel, ignorant and backwards and gives Roma a shocking image.

 If that's Easter in the Country then we had all better stay in the City. No wonder there is the city/country divide with that sort of attitude. Long may it remain say I.


Seriously?

I think people who have so much of a problem with things, better be darn sure they have got their facts straight before they attack other people. I also think that people who have 'issues' with animal cruelty, should get out of their comfortable bubbles, where the closest they come to a real animal is when they are walking through a supermarket picking their steak for dinner, and maybe see what real life is like.

By all means disagree with animal cruelty if you deem it to be so. But make sure your facts are right. And stick to your convictions. It's a bit hard to take someone ranting about cruelty to animals while they are busy filling their mouth with sausage. Maybe if people understood what life is like in the country and strived for a little understanding and open-mindedness instead of being harsh and judgmental, the world would be a much better place.

I'm not saying all country people are kind and lovely to animals, bastards are bastards, whether they live in the city or the country. But many people treat animals with respect. It is possible to treat an animal with respect and still butcher and eat it. If there is a real problem, by all means fight it and deal with it. But make sure the problem exists.

One last thing, and I'll get off my soapbox. Maybe it would be a good idea to take a good hard look at the truth. Because it irritates me beyond belief when the people who are the first to cry foul at the (alleged) mistreatment of animals, can somehow be blind to their own treatment of humans.

But anyway. Lets keep the city country divide. Honestly when I see what often goes on among those who are prestigious and highly esteemed, a lot of the time I think I am happy to remain a stupid country yokel.