Re: Drugs and Modern Sports (610 Views)
Posted by:
TGJB (IP Logged)
Date: September 21, 2006 01:40PM
Tony-- too busy to get into a long conversation about this, but you raise a crucial question.: who runs the racing industry. The answer is, the tail wags the dog.
The breeding industry is in actuality a seperate industry. The better they do (higher prices), the worse for those in the industry (higher cost of doing business). Yet, take a look at the make-up of the NTRA/Breeder's Cup/TOBA, the closest things we have to national organizations with any clout. They are extremely loaded with Kentuckians, either breeders or those closely aligned with them (grew up with, went to school with them).
Then there's the issue of oversight jobs, licenses, etc., being given out on a patronage basis, not on merit, by the states.
What drives decisions in this business are things that have nothing to do with the success of the business itself or the welfare of those involved in it. Which is why the business has gone in the crapper.
I'm a Libertarian. But if there was ever an industry that cried out for Federal oversight it's this one-- to protect the interests of the bettors in the same way the government protects stockholders.
Alternatively, there is this, which I brought up 15 years ago-- a national organization representing bettors. Several here have mentioned how a short boycott a few years ago changed things-- imagine what an organized effort could accomplish.