By John Holland ~ President of the Equine Welfare Alliance
“Sue is a compulsive fact creator…”
“Slaughterhouse” $ue Wallis
Hi, my name is John Holland, and I am a data-holic. I usually spend my day furtively downloading statistics and information; analyzing it, graphing it, correlating it and trying to glean insights into the true workings of the horse world.
But today is different. Today, I was inspired to opine by a thing of great rarity in our struggle; a well researched article. It appeared in the Saint Louis Post Dispatch titled Horse slaughterhouse plans stalled in Missouri and it convinced me we are winning this struggle, at least for the moment.
No, the article did not contain a new revelation about the outcome of a court case, or the result of a vote. It contained something even more telling: It documented Sue Wallis slipping beyond the gravitational pull of reality and into an alternate universe of anti-logic, where up is down and dark is light.
Sue begins the interview with her now familiar claim that she chose Missouri because, “If you draw a 500-mile circle from western Missouri you encapsulate 30 percent of the horse herd in the U.S.” After musing over the concept of the US horse population constituting a single “herd”, I began wondered where she got this statistic.
You see, Sue and I share different forms of compulsion. I am a compulsive fact checker while Sue is a compulsive fact creator. So I ran the numbers and the result I got was 23.6% of the US horse population being within 500 miles (as the crow flies) of western Missouri.
This means Sue’s exaggeration coefficient for this statement is 27%[i]. This modest exaggeration would prove to be her perigee with reality before she would slingshot past it and off into the abyss of deep space.
After describing the law suit that had resulted in the Cole County judge’s directive to the Department of Natural Resources to hold off on issuing Rains the discharge permit, the story returned to the interview with Sue.
“The horse industry has been decimated,” Wallis said. “We have worthless horses being turned out and abandoned.”
Wyoming’s “$laughterhou$e” $ue Walli$ ~ photo by Pam Nickoles
As I read this, I again felt compelled to calibrate Wallis’ definition of decimation. The original term came from quaint custom of the Roman army by which they would execute every tenth soldier of a disgraced unit so as to improve morale. Was every tenth horse in America being abandoned?
The only state I could find that keeps abandonment data is New Mexico. During my research, they provided me with a very detailed list of all the estray horses they had picked up since 2006. Last year they picked up exactly 124 horses.
Given the estimated 147,181 horses in New Mexico, this means that the abandonment rate is 0.06% or one horse in every 1,186. Since decimation would be one in ten (10%), Sue’s exaggeration coefficient had suddenly rocketed from 27% to 16,666%.
Parroting the discredited 2011 GAO report, Wallis went on to say “People take care of animals that have value. It’s when they don’t that they neglect them.”
This was the conjecture used to excuse why the GAO studied horse prices instead of actually studying neglect as it had been assigned to do. It is, of course, utter nonsense. Few household pets have any monetary value, yet most people take good care of them.
It gets better. “Every breed registry is down 70 percent since 2007. Fewer colts are being born,” Wallis said.
Apparently Wallis has data I have not seen; data showing among other things that only the birth rate of colts is in decline. Is there some strange gender asymmetry going on here? Or is it possible that the Executive Director of the International Equine Business Association, the expert of CNN interviews and countless articles does not know that colts are males and the proper term would have been foals?
As for “every breed registry being off 70% since 2007”, Sue’s exaggeration coefficient is pretty substantial. According to the Jockey Club, thoroughbred foal registrations are off 34.5%, not 70%. Some breeds appear to have been almost unaffected, but the AQHA’s annual report does show about a 49% reduction in foal registrations from its peak in 2007.
The pattern with Quarter Horses is a familiar one for those of us who have been around the horse world for a few decades. Breeds come into favor, resulting in indiscriminant breeding spurred on by the greed of their breed registry. Then the bubble bursts. Just before the decline began, the then executive vice president of the AQHA, Bill Brewer, gave an impassioned speech at their annual convention urging more breeding so there would be “enough good horses in the future”.
“Slaughterhouse” $ue Wallis ~ Horse guts and blood are what drives this political nut-job
A great breed has been degraded in the process. Quarter Horses now commonly suffer from a wide range of maladies such as GBED, HERDA, HYPP, and Navicular. The most common complaint of owners is that they “bred the feet off them.” This could explain why AQHA membership is down 18.6% since 2007. I wondered to myself, would Sue suggest killing off a bunch of their remaining members as a solution to the decline?
Sue continues, “That’s 70 percent less feed being sold, 70 percent fewer jobs, 70 percent fewer veterinarians.”
Apparently Sue believes that a short term drop in foal (excuse me colt) births means that the whole horse population suddenly drops by the same percentage. Despite Sue’s best efforts, horses do often live well into their 20s and beyond, meaning that recent foal crops would represent only a few percent of the population.
With a nearly 50% decrease in foals, the population of registered quarter horses dropped from 3,218,113 in 2007 to 2,978,776 in 2012 according to the AQHA annual reports, a decline of just 7.4%. Here Sue gets an exaggeration coefficient of 945%.
But at this point her thinking turns to what I will call anti-logic, because if it came into contact with rational thought the two would annihilate each other with a thunderous clap, probably decapitating their host. She is proclaiming that all of this devastation is because we have too few horses as a direct result of not killing enough of them! This would be laughable if 2012 had not seen more US horses slaughtered than any year since 1994!
One survival strategy of prey animals is to synchronize their birthing so as to overwhelm their predators. Sue has adopted this strategy with her spontaneously created facts. She spews so many at one time that at least a few have a good chance to get past us unchallenged.
At this point in the interview, Sue seems to sense her interviewer is not buying her nonsense. So she throws her hyperbole engine into warp drive, saying “This has wrecked communities — all because of the elitist snooty arrogance of this bunch of people telling us what’s culturally acceptable to eat.”
The community of Boggy Bottom, the neighborhood behind the Dallas Crown slaughter house, was truly devastated by the pollution, stench and crime caused by the plant. I witnessed it firsthand. But where is Sue’s example of a community devastated by a lack of slaughter? Apparently with anti-logic you automatically get an anti-logic twin to Boggy Bottom, at least in the brain of Sue Wallis.
It is impossible for me to calculate the exaggeration factor for this statement because, since there is no truth at all to be exaggerated, it would require dividing by zero. I think I now fully understand Einstein’s quote about only the universe and human stupidity being infinite.
Yet the second half of the outburst is the most interesting of all.
Sue had apparently learned that the influential Busch brothers (former owners of Budweiser and Anheuser-Busch) had thrown their considerable weight into the battle on the side of the horses. Victoria McCullough had sent them a link to our report How the GAO deceived Congress, and Victoria said she thinks the outrage at this government deceit had caused them to weigh in.
Lately there has been an avalanche of high profile support for ending horse slaughter completely. In the government sector; President Obama, Vice President Biden, and Secretary Vilsack have all come out against horse slaughter. At the state level, New Mexico’s Governor Susana Martinez, former governor Bill Richardson, Attorney General Gary King and others have spoken up for the horses. Celebrities such as the incredibly influential Robert Redford and Steven Spielberg have also taken a stand.
But most aggravating of all for Sue are the “snooty, arrogant billionaires”. This is because Sue knows that the money from big agriculture was the only advantage she had in this battle. Internationally known equestrian Victoria McCullough and her “snooty arrogant” friends, are serving to balance the scales by using their resources to multiply the impact of the tireless grass roots work of thousands of horse lovers and animal welfare organizations. This combination may well bring Slaughterhouse Sue crashing back to reality.
[i] How does a 6.4% error become an exaggeration factor of 27%?
Use this formula ((30-23.6)*100)/23.6), or ask your friendly local nerd.
Categories: Horse News, Horse Slaughter, The Force of the Horse
Straight from the Horse's Heart 
I throughly enjoyed your article. thank God there are smart people like you out there to be able to decipher the continuous babble from politicians….and expose the lies they speak with such authority. Thank you!
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Reading this the way you have laid it all out makes you wonder how ANYONE could fall for this plain and simple BABBLE, I mean I know a lot are in it just for the money, but some regular if you will folks ACTUALLY fall for this, WOW, scary isn’t it???? We have a force for tomorrow and the day after and day after to call the Chair holders of the Committee’s that Safe Act 1094 and S.541 sit’s in, we all will PUSH hard and keep pushing till these Bills are OUT of that committee, so if anyone else wants to help Please go to NM Against Horse Slaughter facebook they have the names of these yahoo’s and numbers, Suey will not be winning this battle any time soon, we all are the Horse Warrior’s ready to fight as long as it takes…….
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Yes, it is frightening that anyone can fall for such babble. But I heard a quotation recently that really explains it. Mark Twain said, ““It’s easier to fool people than to convince them that they have been fooled.” That is as profoundly true as it is sad.
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So no matter how you slice it Sue’s brain is full of the stuff most of us flush down the toilet. Amazing that she has actually had anyone take her seriously at any time in her horse eating career.
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Thank heavens for some humor today, combined with truth and math. What a novelty! Thank you, John Holland.
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It is kind of sad that Sue has gone so far to the extreme with her opinions…she picked the wrong team. She could have found a cause worth the fight and so rewarding to have the respect of her piers and the animals .instead of doing the dirty work for the gutless, who will use her and then put her out to be slaughtered….learn the lesson…stay with what your gut tells you is right Sue…you look very lonely to me….find something to help save and preserve life…that is what we are here to do..it is our way of showing our appreciation for our time here on earth..leave no footprints
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Thank you John! Forever wise…& witty:) Yes, Sue Wallis spews her “word salad,” as so many do who are bona fide, “certified,” i.e., fruitcake, aka, kook ~ ~
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Thank you for your post. I live in the state of New Mexico and slaughterhouse Sue needs to be the one to back off.
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Thank you John for all this research. In any debate or open forum where people could ask her questions about her “facts”, it would seem that she would lose any credibility in short order if these facts are presented. Is there any way your facts can get to the media who report on her so they can get some balance to their stories? Great job..
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Got to say I don’t mine being a Boggy Bottom for not wanting horse slaughter right in my back yard. I still want to know how opening up horse slaughter plants in the USA is going to make a difference when the SLAUGHTER OF AMREICAN BRED HORSES HAVE NOT STOPPED a single day since the USDA was ban from inspecting horse meat in American slaughter houses. I meant our horses still went to slaughter are still going to slaughter. They were and are still processed for meat still controlling the over breeding problem and still cleaning out the fields for the next years foals colts and fillies. Only the location had change. There is something else going on for Sue Wallis and so many pro-slaughter big wheels to want horse slaughter back inside the USA. A lot more. Makes me wonder if they know the EU is getting ready to close the door to both Canada and Mexico and they will no longer have a trash can anywhere for their unwanted horses. Poor old Sue’s family own auction house would go under. EX-PMU farms would stop breeding everything on 4 legs and had a mane and tail. These so call horse lovers who are thinking of the welfare of the horses would have to start taking responsible for their own mess. I also wonder if Japan and Asia will want US bred horses if the EU will not take it.
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That is why it is so important to talk YOUR Congressperson into supporting the SAFE Act, which bans horse slaughter and export of our equines for slaughter. Write and call now.
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Sorry just tossing in a few of my own feeling and question… I just feel something is going down that has not hit yet. Something behind close doors that the American people does not know about yet.
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This really goes to show you the mentality of pro-slaughter advocates. We experience this kind of irrational gobble-dee-gook every time we comment; especially when it’s biased against us! They often can’t help stating, “it’s tasty and so good for you!” What’s not so funny, however, is that we are dealing with the inadequate and sick minds of humans against being humane. The very narcissistic, utilitarian attitude of the corrupt and inept. What it all boils down to is that there are people in this world that are so criminal and cold that they really don’t care what they do and what or who it hurts. This, to me, is the real fear factor in this world and what we are fighting in our efforts to ban atrocities like horse slaughter, the very essence of good vs. evil!
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What a great article and thank you so much John, for truly laying the facts out, with lots of humor, I might add ….you do it so naturally. (-: I really appreciate your hard work, compassion and dedication in providing the truth to a very serious issue, horse slaughter. Making Sue Wallis look like the fool she is, was a real bonus! (-:
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Thank you! I laughed myself off my chair! I have been pondering her crazy for awhile, even my horses can spout better facts with their manure counting and farts! I am sorry but this lady IS the essence of crazy! I feel better now, I thought when I read her facts the other day, surely OTHER people are noticing the crazy! I mean seriously, Victoria and Robert Redford elitists, I am so honored these people are so humble to help the horse industry! This is really a fight! But every word you wrote got me closer to falling off the chair! I agree wholeheartedly! Now I already asked RT, please to John Holland as well, the wells are contaminated on the reservation with uranium, ecoli, and arsenic, this batty woman is rallying people to want to kill the horses on the reservation. This cant get off the reservation-it will kill someone certainly! I loved the article though! Was the best portrait of crazy EVER painted in history! And she cant keep the facts straight even if they were on a post it note on her inside her glasses! Means we are doing our jobs right! Every person who gets under her skin, is getting the evidence out of her, and evidence that proves she’s nuts!
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Slaughter Sue is the Demon Spawn of the devil! She really has no idea what is going on but will do anything and make up anything to further her agenda! I wonder how she has stayed on office in Wyoming for so long…but then there is no real honesty in politics! She is a filthy excuse for a woman!
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Well said!!!
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That was Awesome!!! Can we get a Forensic Psychologist to do a Profile on her Psychopathology & send this info to her “constituents” back home”?? I predict she won’t win the next election!!
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This woman needs to have a court ordered evaluation done….she seriously isn’t right in the head. Which one is it Suey? Either the ‘herds’ have been ‘decimated’, which would leave one to believe that we don’t have enough horses. Or, we have too many horses, and they’re being abandoned and starved by the thousands daily?
So, let me ‘try’ to understand this womans ‘logic’. She really thinks that killing and slaughtering the remaining horses of the ‘decimated’ herd in the midwest area will increase their value? Will decrease the numbers being starved or abandoned?? And, bring an upswing in the number of ‘colts’ (foals) born???
I’ll have to come back and give more of a response to this one later on. I’m having hysterical fits of laughter right now that are making it very difficult to type.
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Everything that comes out of that womans mouth is utter BS!
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“The difference between stupidity and genius is that genius has its limits.” – Albert Einstein
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Well done Mr. Holland. I can only hope the people who can’t see the truth will read this article and have an epiphany! I also hope Fat Sue reads this and implodes. Literally.
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Sue says these horses are WORTHLESS…..then why does she want them sent to slaughter? For the money…so they are not WORTHLESS…so sad that she cannot see that her energies could be directed into other directions to try to eliminate the mythical unwanted, worthless horse by finding homes ect. Time is money in people like Sue,s world so making money from slaughter is the quickest, cheapest way to dispose & make that almighty $$$$$. She should be called LAZY Slaughterhouse Sue!
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Slaughterhouse” $ue Wallis ~ Horse guts and blood are what drives this political nut-job, how does anyone get this kind of power to make decisions that are wrong on so many levels??
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I applaud your insightful information. I have been and remain a member of the National Wildhorse and Burro association. It sickens me to be back fighting to keep slaughter plants from re-opening. There was/is a reason that the Nation wanted the slaughter of horses to be stopped in 2007. I know it’s all about money. I am truly afraid for all the horses that the BLM has stockpiled. I know they are up to something..and it certainly won’t be for the benefit of the horses. I live in Nevada, and constantly hear of yet another “emergency roundup” to remove hundreds of horses off the range.( funny how herds of cattle that replace the Mustangs can survive on “no water or vegetation”) I read that the US horse meat is not acceptable to foreign markets because it could be tainted from drugs etc… but think of all the 50,000 Mustangs the BLM is holding.. pipeline to slaughter market perhaps? We need to fight this …I thank all of you that are here for the horses.
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Thank you for writing this article. Sue Wallis is finally getting the exposure she deserves 🙂
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Mr. Holland thank you for an insightful numerical explanation with a twist of comic relief. I always knew Sue Wallis was a MOron who lacks one shred of intellectual curiosity. You’re right on with Twain’s quote but no matter how you say it, like attracts like, so all all the nimrods she hangs with or preaches to…. enough said 😉
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John you are right on target. Thank you for your insight and analysis of data which you have such a gift for. I am amazed at the lack of compassion Slaughter Sue has for the beautiful horses we cherish. This makes my blood boil and creates so much tension in the horse world. I will never allow slaughter, never, never, never. I will fight for our horses lives to be free to roam and be horses they have been destined to be. You all have my blessing and I pray for the protection of all horses in the world. No animal should ever be abused and killed ever. End this horror of horse slaughter now, forever. NO to horse round ups, NO to horse transport, NO to horse slaughter, forever.
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I love math. Thank you Mr. Holland. Guess old Sue didn’t have to take statistics or do actual research with her educational upbringing. All the more reason to mock her.
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Excellent, John – as usual.
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