Kudos to Mayor DeBlasio for his intent to ban horse-drawn carriages from NYC.
God, in Genesis 9:2-3, gave us dominion over all animals that we might survive. He did not include the right to torment or torture His creatures for our personal gratification. Proponents of the horse-drawn carriages claim that the animals donít suffer. I ask the pro-NYC-carriage people, how they might feel about standing mutely for hours (or even 30 minutes) in filthy, traffic-congested streets, day after day, in frigid cold or sweltering heat while breathing the noxious fumes of vehicle exhausts, hearing the unceasing cacophony of horns, sirens and blaring music while having no hope of receiving an aspirin or Xanax ó because some tourists wanted to ride in a rickshaw! A bleak picture indeed. Yes? Likewise, no justification exists for committing horses to a life of such misery.
I understand that horses fall into the category of beasts of burden, capable of performing work we cannot do ourselves. Could we not construct stables within the park itself? An initial expense, but at what cost cruelty to these animals? If you want to ride through Central Park, use motorized transport to get there. Set stricter limitations to the weather conditions in which the horses should work. Clearly, I donít expect livery horses to be provided the life of a Derby-winning stud, but humane treatment ó a fair trade for the pleasure these noble creatures provide.