More on Board Duties....

Now for more on the duties of the Board of Directors, as previously defined.

Ensure adequate financial resources. One of the board's foremost responsibilities is to secure adequate resources for the organization to fulfill its mission.

Well, they do have this down to a science!  Maybe that's why they are kept around...  They know how to squeeze money out of people!

Grey2K through the years has taken in more than $2,000,000 in donations...  donations which are not tax deductible... Donations which would have been better spent by adoption groups rather than by these lobbyists.

Protect assets and provide proper financial oversight. The board must assist in developing the annual budget and ensuring that proper financial controls are in place.

Hard to say how they are at performing this function since, as far as this poor author knows, Grey2K has never published a budget.  If Grey2K does have a budget, it appears to be neither published for nor access provided to the public for review.

Build a competent board. All boards have a responsibility to articulate prerequisites for candidates, orient new members, and periodically and comprehensively evaluate their own performance.

In the profile for the (up until very recently) Grey2K Director & Treasurer, Michael Trombley, Grey2K USA states, "Mike Trombley is a former Deputy Director of the New Hampshire Pari-Mutuel Commission. As an insider of the greyhound industry he witnessed the cruelty of dog racing and the lax oversight that helps sustain this dying industry. Since resigning from the commission, Mike has been involved in greyhound advocacy primarily on the legislative and regulatory fronts."

Mr. Trombley was a "racing insider" in the broadest description of the phrase.  He was actually an employee of the state...  a state that had the dubious distinction of being the home of  the worst run track in the northeast.

A blurb about Mr. Trombley appeared in the Concord Monitor in 2007.

"Mike Trombley, former Deputy Director of the Pari-Mutuel Commission, is an accountant by trade who spent most of his time in the commission office.  He said he was stunned to see conditions at the Belmont track - then under different ownership and known as Lakes Region Greyhound - when he filled in for two weeks in 1998 as a paddock inspector.  One night, he watched a 2-year-old female named Fiery suffer a broken leg in just her sixth race.Trombley had to help a 19-year-old trainer euthanize the dog after the owner decided treatment would make her too expensive to save."

As a member of the pari-mutuel commission, it was part of Mr. Trombley's job to "protect the wagering public and ensure the integrity of Racing..."1

As the Deputy Director, the following employees reported directly to him: Veterinarians, Chief Inspectors and Judges.  Reporting to the Chief Inspectors were the Paddock Inspectors, Calculators, and the Counter Clerks.  The Racing Inspectors reported to the Paddock Inspectors.  As the Deputy Director, he was the top of the food chain.

Knowing he was at the top of the chain of command for the dog tracks, I have to wonder why, if Mr. Trombley was so disturbed by the conditions there, why did he not do something about it?  He was there for two weeks....  14 days....  During that time, did someone force him to wear blinders on the job?  Force him to not see?  He was the person, as the Deputy Director to effect needed changes.

Why didn't he make them do it correctly?

That was in 1998.  In April 2005, New Hampshire Gaming, Inc d/b/a Lakes Greyhound Track surrendered its operating license to the NH Pari-Mutuel Commission as a result of a hearing conducted by the Commission to revoke the license due to Federal charges surrounding management of the track.

Thank God it's gone!  

You see, racing people considered the track a black eye....  a blight on greyhound racing and were very  happy to see the place shut down. No decent, reputable greyhound trainer would work there.

So if the racing people were so happy to see the demise of the track, why didn't Mike Trombley take appropriate action to fix the situation rather than stand by bemoaning the conditions?  Again, I ask....

Why didn't he make them do it correctly????

It makes one wonder about his suitability to serve on the Grey2K  Board of Directors.


Yours in greyhounds...

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1. Mission Statement, NH Pari-Mutuel Commission, 2005. http://www.racing.nh.gov/documents/PMC-MasterAnnualReport2005.pdf

Grey2K and Estrous Supression

By Dennis McKeon

With all the controversy of reproductive rights and other women's issues, once again we might look to our good friends at Grey2k for guidance. They are either a lobbying group working to outlaw greyhound racing, a lobbying group working to outlaw gambling, a charity working to "protect" racing greyhounds, or an advocacy group for greyhound adoption. Shucks, they are, it seems, as it suits them, all things to all people who hate greyhound racing, and by extension, those who participate in it.

Be that as it may, as we look to dim-witted and disconnected bureaucrats to tell us how we may live our lives, Grey2k wishes to tell all greyhound owners how they may care for their greyhounds, and how they should live their lives. This, despite having absolutely ZERO experience in caring for or managing large colonies of greyhounds. Somehow, they always seem to know better than professionals who have, cumulatively, thousands of years experience in doing so.

Cheque Drops = mibolerone* = birth control for dogs

One of the hot button issues that they have percolated on their message boards and via their Internet Infantry of keyboard-friendly droids, is the use of estrus suppressants on female greyhounds. This is done, according to Grey2k, so that racing greyhound owners can maximize their return on investment, without having to spell females once or twice a year while they cycle through their season. The drugs that are used by some in racing are anabolic steroids, and Grey2k seems to think that the small doses females receive of these drugs somehow enhance performance. Were that the case, then females would win a disproportionate number of races, which they don't. At the highest levels of competition, as a matter of fact, in "stakes" level races, males enjoy a significant advantage over females in qualifying for and winning the finals of these important events. That might not be the case, were Grey2k to get its way and have females routinely come into season while in the company of males in the racing kennel. Moreover, it would place the males under undue and irresistible stress, at times incapacitating stress, and undoubtedly cause dangerous fights to break out, no matter what caretakers might to to prevent them. But then, as we have noted, Grey2k knows nothing of managing a large colony of greyhounds, and they continue to amaze those of us who do with their ignorance, arrogance and complete lack of intuition or basic greyhound "smarts".

Nevertheless, Grey2k tells us that we are compromising the reproductive capacities of the females in question, as well as setting them up for serious reproductive dysfunction, as well as infection and disease, by administering estrus suppressants to female greyhounds. This is quite a quandary, inasmuch as they have always and continue to accuse the greyhound breeding fraternity in the US of "overbreeding" the racing greyhound. As if greyhounds raised themselves and did not cost thousands of dollars each to bring to the stage of racing readiness, we now are led to believe that this rampant "overbreeding" has taken place, yearly, within a population of females whose reproductive systems and general reproductive well being have been ravaged by harmful drugs.

So, as the battle rages on the national stage, over who has the right to determine whose reproductive destinies, a similar battle rages within the realm of greyhound racing. Unfortunately, in each case, there is no shortage of fools on faraway hills, who think they know better in their utter disconnection.

---

*Notation by Administrator...

Mibolerone is an anabolic steroid that is sold either in tablet or liquid form that is intended for use in dogs to suppress estrus. It is not an illegal substance if used properly.  In one study involving the use of 96 females, which were bred on their first estrus after discontinuation of mibolerone treatment, showed that all 96 had normal pregnancies, normal deliveries and normal puppies.  No increase in reproductive diseases such as pyometra were noted.

Even though some opine that these drugs enhance performance, there are no studies that link improved performance to the proper use of the drugs.

Any such statement is an uninformed opinion.

A Matter of Deception...

Everything is a matter of perception, how one sees things.  Views always look different from different angles, from up close or at a distance, from the right or from the left...  It all depends and, not too long ago, when I was discussing animal rights activities with a political candidate, he thanked me for reminding him that one's view depends upon that to which they are exposed.

Deception, on the other hand, employs beguilement, deceit, bluff, mystification, bad faith, and subterfuge to propagate beliefs that are not true, or not the whole truth (as in half-truths or omission). Deception can involve dissimulation, propaganda, and sleight of hand, and well as distraction, camouflage or concealment." This is how Grey2k USA plays their game.

Jean Krupa in Kennel Crate

What Grey2k USA says: "While at the racetrack, dogs are confined in small cages barely large enough for them to stand up or turn around".

Really?  Well, they say that a picture is worth a thousand words.  So, please look at the picture of Jean Krupa in her kennel crate.

Hopefully, after seeing this and other similar pictures of different dogs, you will realize that Grey2k USA uses the term "tiny cages", for maximum, negative connotation. Now then, ask yourself, WHY do they want to keep the truth from their followers?

To me, it certainly looks like they have room to "turn around". Also, please notice the carpeting in the crate. Grey2k USA likes to call these "carpet remnants".  Again, "remnants" implies discarded trash which it is not. These "remnants" are purchased and cut to size for the crates. They are not plucked out of some dumpster.

Sarah Kettlewell & Racing Fool aka "Foo Foo"

The way that I look at is if you have a 3' x 4' piece of carpet in a 3' x 4' room it becomes "wall to wall" carpeting.  The dogs' crates are 3' x 4' rooms for them.

Anyway, who cares if it's a remnant.  What is important is that the dogs have a softer surface to lay upon, a surface that protects their skin & coat.  I am wondering though, if the "remnant" would be more acceptable if it was edged & finished like a 3x4 area rug?  If so, who knew that fabric edging would make such a difference!  Especially since area rugs are remnants that have a finished edge!

Grey2K also uses photographs with their incendiary verbage to deceive the public.  Here's a for instance...

Missy - photo courtesy of Vicky Gates

Above is a picture of a black greyhound behind bars.  It's obvious that the dog is in a crate.

One can see metal bars, the head leaning on a metal background and some kind of bedding, probably a carpet remnant, underneath the dog.  Obviously, the crate is much too small.  After all, if it wasn't too small, the dog would not be forced to rest its head on the cold, metal crate wall.

And the eyes....  The dog's eyes have such a pitiful look to them...  a pleading, haunting look...  One can feel the misery of its existence... forced to lay in a too small cage, behind metal bars, like an animal in a Victorian zoo.   Oh that poor, put upon, ABUSED greyhound!

Below, is a different picture of the same dog in the same crate....  See what I mean?  In the first picture, the subject filled the lens as it had been zoomed in on.  In the 2nd picture, the zoom feature was not applied, giving one the overall, true perspective of the crate size in comparison to the dog. Big difference, huh?

Missy - photo courtesy of Vicky Gates

Its all about perception.  The two photos above exhibit dichotomy, for all intents and purposes, they are contradictory!  We have found that with dogs, but especially greyhounds, you can have a happy look one minute, and a forlorn one the next minute.  Grey2K USA loves to grab onto a "sad look" and then package that as how the dog is 24 hrs a day, 7 days a week.  Yet, we all know that, if you were to take another picture a minute later, you would have had a happy-smiley face, licking their nose and tail wagging.   It's sad but true, people "fall" for the sad look all the time.

Those of us who really know greyhounds call the look in the first picture, the professionally pathetic look.  Greyhounds can turn that look on and off like a light switch, especially if they think they can get what they want with it.   As Joan Belle Isle has stated, "It takes a while before WE figure out
Grey2K is very good at using peoples' perception to promote their deception!


Yours in greyhounds....

Grey2K Lies About Rhode Island Racing

Back to the duties of a non-profit Board...

Next on the list after the evaluation of the leadership would be to "Monitor & strengthen programs and services... to determine which programs are consistent with the organization's mission and to monitor their effectiveness."

Well, Grey2K has been in existence for 11 years now and in that time, they have been unsuccessful at banning the act of greyhound racing in any state in which it is / was held.  That is pretty darned ineffective!  However, to hide that lack of success, they are quick to grasp at straws and CLAIM success, even when a track has closed through no efforts of Grey2K.  Really?

A perfect example of the Grey2K tendency to exaggerate and stretch the truth.  What is the truth?  The truth is that Grey2K is NOT responsible for greyhound racing shutting down in Rhode Island at the former Lincoln Greyhound Park aka Twin Rivers.  The truth is that greyhound racing in Rhode Island shut down for financial reasons.

"Twin River’s owner, UTGR Inc., filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection last month, unable to repay more than a half-billion dollars in debt taken on during massive renovations."  (Boston.com, R.I. Legislators, Governor tangle over greyhound racing by Eric Turner AP, July 13, 2009)

And, 

"Twin River filed for bankruptcy protection in June and is seeking to permanently end greyhound racing. But Rhode Island lawmakers are fighting to run 200 days of live racing at the track even though current law requires only 125.

Governor Don Carcieri vetoed the legislation that would extend the live racing days, but lawmakers in the Democratic-majority General Assembly have said they expect to override it when they return in September.

 Carcieri has supported ending greyhound racing because it doesn’t make financial sense, said Amy Kempe, administration spokeswoman. “It’s certainly not the only thing that caused the financial problems at Twin River, but it certainly didn’t help,’’ Kempe said." (Boston.com, AP, August 9, 2009)

So, with the help of the Governor, the casino bought out the kennels and discontinued live racing.  They still offer simulcasting.  And what happened to the dogs?  They went elsewhere to race while cash strapped Rhode Island lost jobs.  Doesn't sound like a Grey2K victory to me...  sounds like they are taking credit for something over which they had no control.  Typical...


Yours in greyhounds....

Concerned about Greyhound Welfare – Really?

By Dick Ciampa

Over the years Grey2K has put out much misinformation about greyhounds. They have campaigned with simple messages, repeated over and over, to paint a picture of abuse and mistreatment calculated to make caring, trusting people believe theirs is the whole and true story.

Grey2K has, for example, taken an extreme and isolated case like Ronnie Williams and portrayed it as the norm in order to reinforce their carefully crafted fundraising objectives.

Stepping back for a moment, consider the consequences if every kennel treated their dogs like that. Would there be any dogs left to race? Would there be any dogs to adopt?

Many people have adopted greyhounds to “rescue” them from the conditions described by Grey2K, conditions alleged to include routine abuse, poor diet, and tens of thousands of dogs killed each year.  And yet, just about everyone who adopts a greyhound tells you how wonderful they are, and how great their disposition is.

Remarkable isn’t it, how abused and mistreated hounds change in the blink of an eye into tail-wagging, happy, loving pets. The real explanation is that their wonderful dispositions are the result of their upbringing. They are great and loving pets because of the care they received from the farm to the kennels.

Consider for a moment the amount of rehabilitation needed by abused dogs. It is simply not credible that dogs said to have left the track abused and mistreated could be transformed overnight.

Consider also that Grey2K doesn’t turn the kennels into animal control agencies in spite of all the abuse they claim to have observed. Wouldn’t that be the immediate reaction of most people?

As to the much-maligned greyhound diet, since the beginning of racing greyhounds have received food that they thrive on, typically raw ground beef (4D meat) mixed with many other health-promoting ingredients. Grey2K likes to make 4D meat sound bad by saying it is marked “Not for Human Consumption” and they are right. It isn’t for human consumption. This overlooks one basic, obvious fact: greyhounds are not human, and time has proven that it is perfectly fit and safe for their consumption.

When has a greyhound died from consuming this meat? That information is nowhere to be found in Grey2K campaign literature. Could that be because it has never happened?

Grey2K and allied organizations like GPL, PETA and ALF claim, variously, that 10, 15, 20 thousand greyhounds are killed every year. That is a very interesting claim considering the facts:

In 2011, 11,759 pups were born
In 2010, there were 12,801
In 2009, there were 15,584
In 2008, there were 20,365
In 2007, there were 20,227

Greyhound racing breeders are required to report every pup born in the litter including stillborn pups. Some of the surviving pups may, contrary to Grey2K claims, be lost before 3 months of age - the runt doesn’t make it, the mother accidentally smothers one, some get sick and die, it happens to every species and greyhounds are no exception.  Even ignoring those details, based on the number of deaths claimed by Grey2K, how can there be any greyhounds left?

Grey2K loves to take credit for things they didn’t do. They like to point out that when they started there were over 50 tracks and now only are 23 left, implying they were responsible for all those closures. They then ask for donations to help close the remaining tracks.

The truth is, every track outside of Massachusetts closed for reasons that had nothing to do with Grey2K. The economy closed some. The Kansas tracks closed because they didn’t like their cut of the slot money. If they get a better percentage of the slot money they will re-open.

Victoryland’s owner closed the track when he was accused of wrongdoing unrelated to greyhound racing. He has since been found not guilty and has plans to re-open.

Grey2K says greyhound racing is legal in 7 states; however, it is, in fact, legal in 49 states. In some states wagering on greyhounds is illegal, but races can still be run in those states and they can simulcast their signal if they want to.

Grey2K claims to be all about the dogs, but they make no attempt to ban non-betting greyhound races. They have no concern about lure coursing or flyball, yet greyhounds and other breeds get hurt in those sports too.

One can only conclude that while Grey2K isn’t billed as anti-gambling their board members are. Carey Theil, board member and co-founder of Grey2K, sits on the board of directors of the anti-gambling group Stop Predatory Gambling.

Rev. Tom Gray, board member of Grey2K, is Field Director and spokesperson for Stop Predatory Gambling.

The great illusionist David Copperfield makes you think he can walk through The Great Wall of China.   David Copperfield has nothing on Grey2K.

If you want to help greyhounds, please support your local greyhound adoption group. Visit http://www.adopt-a-greyhound.org/directory/list.cfm for a comprehensive list of adoption groups in the US and elsewhere.

Where Is The Outrage?

I am truly bewildered by the devotees of Grey2K USA.  Perhaps repeated recitations by their beloved leader proclaiming her purported miraculous resurrection from the dead and subsequent realization of her true vocation to help save greyhounds has so awed these disciples that they are blind to the truth. Even when the truth smacks them upside the head, they refuse to accept or even acknowledge it. Why is it so much easier to believe that an outdated photograph or graphic video clip implying nefarious abuse represents the norm in greyhound racing today?  How is it that hundreds of current images, videos and testimonials posted daily, showing the loving care bestowed upon these canine athletes, are dismissed as hogwash?  Yet every day, these self-righteous Branch Dorchakians, most of whom have no direct experience with greyhound farms or racing, continue to empty their wallets believing they are somehow helping a worthy cause. But, do these SHEEPLE really know where their hard earned dollars are being spent?

Recently compiled data gives credence to what has been long suspected regarding Grey2K's financial activities. While it has been suggested that they do not give a dime to help greyhound adoption, it appears that they have indeed contributed a portion of their ill gotten gains over the years - an infinitesimal portion. Unfortunately, there is no information on the reports regarding the recipients of these contributions - maybe their cohorts at PeTA or HSUS?

For the six year period, 2006 to 2011, Grey2K USA's publicly available IRS Forms 990 reveal revenue from donations of approximately $2,220,l00.  Over this same period, expenses exceeded $2,201,000. What, pray tell, did they spend this money on? Here's the breakdown.

$599,402 (27.2%) for Salaries and Payroll Related Expenses (primarily Dorchak & Theil)

$585,866 (26.6%) for Lobbying

$379,652 (17.2%) for Printing & Postage

Another 27.6% of the total was allocated to office related expenses, advertising and marketing, insurance, travel, and professional fees for service.

Where are the contributions, you ask? Over this SIX YEAR period, reported contributions were $31,451- an average of $5,242 per year or......  a whopping 1.4%!

Over TWO MILLION DOLLARS was collected and a miserly 1.4% given in contributions. This is helping to save greyhounds HOW? While all volunteer adoption groups survive on cookie jar donations...

HOW many greyhounds slated for adoption could have been spayed or neutered, had a dental or had a blood test with $2 MILLION?

HOW many injured greyhound legs could have been repaired with $2 MILLION?

HOW many hauls to adoption groups could have been made with $2 MILLION?

HOW many greyhounds could have been temporarily housed, fed, and cared for in adoption kennels while waiting for available homes with $2 MILLION?

HOW many greyhounds, deplorably abused and abandoned by derelict adopters, and taken back with open arms by adoption groups could have been rehabilitated with $2 MILLION?

The list is endless. I'm not one to tell people how to spend their money, but if I were a Grey2K donor, I WOULD BE OUTRAGED!



Yours in greyhounds....

Hatred...

Recently, I was sent a link to another blog, The Naughty Tobiano. It's an interesting read about the fight against the "Anti's" in which horsemen and and livestock owners are engaged.  What is the difference between their battle & ours... not much...  Their anti's or EZ's (equine zealots), as the author calls them seem to look at horses as pets rather than livestock. (I'd like to see them keep a horse in their house!)  They want to prevent horses from being sold for slaughter, to ban horse racing, ban horse in rodeos, etc.  They want to stop everything that people do with their horses... no eventing... no dressage... no trail rides... no stadium jumping.. no cross country...  no nothing!

The EZ's are raising the cry, "Too much breeding!  Overpopulation!"

The EZ's are hollering, "Too many are killed and injured while racing!"

The EZ's are yammering, "They are kept in corrals too small!  They are kept in stalls that don't allow them to lay down!"

Does this sound familiar greyhound lovers???

It seems to me that regardless of species, animal owners are under attack and all the attackers use the same language. That includes the same hate language.

Grey2K USA's Vice President, Eric Jackson, complains about all the "hate", most especially the "hate" spewing from the racing folks towards those poor, put upon, individuals at Grey2K.

"There's been a lot of talk about "hate" recently. Eight mentions have been from pro-racing fanatics Robert Gross and Jimmy McClellan. The other three references have been in direct response to their comments. Yet they are the ones accusing others of being "hate mongers" and belonging to "hate groups." I think we can see where the hate is originating. 

Robert Gross commented in reply, "Because Grey2k USA and GCNM (Greyhound Companion of New Mexico) need to be called out for what they are. When groups like these spew lies and misrepresentations at another group, that's hate. When a group like Grey2k USA condones racially insensitive and anti-Semitic comments posted on their Facebook pages, that's hate. Eric, you may not like this talk of hate, but it is what it is. Sorry if the truth hurts, son. (snipped for brevity) The documents on Grey2k Lies are full of quotes from Eric Jackson calling people assholes, morons, making inappropriate comments about illegal immigrants, insulting people because of their grammar, insulting people because they may not have a college degree. The list goes on and on. I'm sure there are people at the UNM psychology department you can speak to about getting some help. I worry about you."

Here is just a sampling of those comments to which Robert Gross refers.

Eric Jackson - Naples News - January 18th, 2012: comparing slavery and wife beating to Greyhound Racing

"We legislate others behavior all the time. It used be lawful to own slaves. It was lawful to sell patent medicines that were at best useless, at worst deadly. It used to be perfectly acceptable to beat your wife. We as a society have decided that such activities are not consistent with our morals. The same applies to greyhound racing, a cruel and inhumane "sport" that the public is increasingly unwilling to allow."

Eric Jackson - Skechers Fan Page: - Going all "bad ass" on some poor poster, Rich Bogardus - a salesman at Frito Lay:

"No, Rich, I'm referring to a petition. Don't try to join conversations that are over your intelligence level or you look like a moron (in the historical sense)."

"No, Rich, you still sound like an idiot. And can you even define "lavish"? I'm not interested in debating how much, or how little, the staff at GREY2K USA get paid. If you're concerned, then don't donate to them. Meanwhile, I'll continue to support them with time, effort, and money because the dogs deserve better than racing."

Betty Z. pours her heart out in one post, and what does Eric Jackson have to say?

"Betty, if you keep "losing everything" to do your job, don't you think it's time to get a new job? I mean, if you failed once..."

Eric Jackson, yet again - I Made Him Sick

"Robert Gross, this is the most ridiculous thing I've read from you. Greyhound adoption programs exist because the public learned what was happening behind the closed doors of greyhound facilities and they were appalled! Groups started taking the dogs so they wouldn't be killed. Many of the greyhound adoption groups in this country get not a thin dime from your industry. They exist on donations alone. For most of these groups the costs associated with taking a racing dog from the track and getting it vetted so it can go to a home far exceed the adoption fees/donations they request. The only support we get from your industry is the dogs themselves, because if we didn't take them, you assholes would kill them, just as your industry for many years. You make me sick, Robert, absolutely sick.

More Insults from Eric Jackson...

"If you look at Jimmy's profile, you can see where all of his education came from - a greyhound placement group. Most people get their education from schools and colleges, but not Jimmy."

Jackson, again - Whining Because He Got Booted From AG:

"Yep, Craig, because I wouldn't toe the line with your pro-racing BS, Martin took it upon himself to block my IP. Of course, that was after several of your "friends" violated your own terms of service, made overt threats, etc."

Jackson, this time going After Illegal Immigrants:

"Hey, Philip - maybe next year Skechers can do a commercial with illegal immigrants running from the Border Patrol. Or drug dealers outrunning cops while wearing their new GoRun shoes. Even better, Skechers could put their shoes on the bulls in Pamplona and see how many more people get trampled. It's an offensive slippery slope Skechers is building with this commercial featuring an exploited dog breed."

Paula P. comments that she has seen first-hand how well the dogs are treated. Eric Jackson's reply...

"Apparently Paula gets locked in a cage when she's not on the clock. She gets fed raw, 4D meat. And instead of getting fired, she'll be killed if she doesn't do her job well. Paula, I think you should look for a new job."

Jackson again lashing out at some poor sole who disagrees with him (AZ Republic - July 2012)

"What are you, 12? I think you've proven your lack of maturity once again, FiveGens. You talked about feeding starving children, I responded in the same vein. Then you respond with insults. I guess I shouldn't have expected anything better from you, given your history of posting insults in response to thoughtful commentary here."

"Another disjointed post. Do you understand the term "precision"? Clearly you don't understand the concept of "natural selection." Perhaps, or should I say, "mayhaps," you can manage to explain yourself more precisely. Right now, you look like a moron, tossing in insults to distract from the lack of actual material in your posts. As I said in another post, are you 12, or do you just act like a juvenile? Reading your posts I'm reminded of Eric Cartman from South Park."

Yes...  I think we can see where all the hate is coming from.  I pity the greyhounds in these homes, being exposed to all the negativity generated by such hate.  

By the by....  Did I happen to mention that this same Eric Jackson, hate monger, is a lecturer at the University of New Mexico?  He works in the psychology department! This semester, which begins Oct 2012, he's teaching a course on Psychopharmacology of Drug Abuse and Pharmacotherapies. What's wrong with this picture?  The man sounds like he needs some good drugs, based upon the level of hostility he displays.

Yours in greyhounds....

Support, Evaluate & Ensure

In this post, we shall examine the effectiveness of the Grey2K BOD & Executive Members in several more points which have been previously mentioned.

Item #3 - A non-profit Board of Directors needs to "Support and evaluate the chief executive. The board should ensure that the chief executive has the moral and professional support he or she needs to further the goals of the organization."

Well, the Grey2K USA Board of Directors does support the leadership, the husband & wife team of Theil & Dorchak. I'm guessing that they better support them or be kicked out of their honorary positions! There is every indication that Christine Dorchak holds the Sword of Damocles over her Board of Directors. Either that or she's maintaining a vise like grip on their cojones.

Behind Bars....

As to whether the BOD actually evaluates the leadership of Dorchak & Theil...  it's doubtful...  If a good board was to evaluate the leadership, I'm wondering what they would say about the organization's President doing jail time back in her PeTA days... Yes...  I did not stutter... Christine Dorchak did jail time.

By now, people should know that Christine Dorchak was one of the PeTA protesters at the New England Aquarium, protesting the fact that the Aquarium had fish on their menu.  However, I'm guessing most people do NOT know that Dorchak was arrested for protesting at the Macy's at Downtown Crossing in Boston.

Here's part of an article from 1998 about an arrest that was only 4 years after a certain individual's battle back from the brink of death and a 2 year struggle to regain health.

Five fur protesters in chains arrested at Macy's
Boston Globe, City Edition - Boston, Mass.
Author: Daniel Vasquez, Globe Staff
Date: Dec 21, 1998

"Every Sunday, a small group of protesters exercise their First Amendment rights and gather in front of Macy's at Downtown Crossing. Their mission: to dissuade shoppers from buying mink coats and fox hides. But yesterday, members of the group allegedly lay down and blocked the store's doors, and five protesters were arrested... Steven William Baer, of Northborough, Heather Joy Lacapria and Chris Michael Devoncourt, both of East Boston, and Christine Anne Dorchak and Sandi Beth Okun, both of Boston, were charged with blocking a public entrance and disturbing the peace, according to police..."

Then, there is item #4...  The non-profit Board of Directors is supposed to "Ensure effective planning. Boards must actively participate in an overall planning process and assist in implementing and monitoring the plan's goals."

Monitor, and strengthen programs and services. The board's responsibility is to determine which programs are consistent with the organization's mission and monitor their effectiveness.

Let's revisit the mission statement of Grey2K, which was somewhat recently changed.

"GREY2K USA is the largest greyhound protection organization in the United States. As a non-profit 501(c)4 organization, we work to pass stronger greyhound protection laws and to end the cruelty of dog racing on both national and international levels. We also promote the rescue, rehoming and adoption of greyhounds across the globe." 

So now, they pay lip service to adoption. Yep... that's the section that has been somewhat recently added, :promote the rescue, rehoming and adoption of greyhounds..."  If their behavior in Massachusetts was any such example of "rescue, rehome, and adoption of greyhounds", they are in desperate need of education! Their plan in MA was not a good example of "effective planning".  In fact, it was the worst planning possible.

According to the Patriot Ledger, it was estimated that nearly 1,000 greyhounds were in need of a place to go when the MA ban on wagering took effect. (Contrary to what is stated by Grey2K, it is still LEGAL to race in Massachusetts.  The end result of the Question 3 ballot measure was to ban WAGERING, not dog racing.) Grey2K did not help those displaced dogs.  It was only through the efforts of the late greyhound advocate, Linda Jensen, that all the dogs found places to go. Linda was devoted to the care and welfare of retired Greyhounds and was recognized as the 2010 Greyhound Adoption person of the year by the American Greyhound Council. She was the driving force behind Racing Owners Assisting Racers, Inc. (ROAR) which served as a safety net to assure that every dog gets into a retirement (pet) home.  Linda Jensen was one of those vile & evil greyhound racing folks.  She had been involved in greyhound racing for 25 years or so at the time of her unexpected passing.

Even staunch Grey2K supporters like Louise Coleman, have questioned the planning behind the MA effort. In an article in the Revere Journal, Coleman said that the measure might not have had a lot of foresight – especially when it came to providing for the consequences of removing a long-time industry from the state.

“The whole question seemed to me to be, when the referendum was passed, it wasn’t brought to peoples’ attention that just because you stop racing doesn’t mean you don’t have more dogs,” she said. “There was no provision for the care of the dogs that are left afterward…In the abstract, people think there’s no more racing, but in reality there’s all these dogs and whose going to take care of them? It’s especially hard for us.”

Coleman also has concerns about the fate of the breed,

“The adoption movement has created a real demand for these dogs and people want them. The worst-case scenario is that the puppy mills would take them over. Maybe it’s just me, but it doesn’t seem like there’s a lot of planning in this process.”

With all of this lack of planning, it does not seem like the Grey2K Board of Directors is doing its job - ensuring effective planning.

Anyway, with regard to the Grey2K efforts on rehoming hounds.  It sounds like a conflict of interest to me...end dog racing, and you essentially end retired greyhound adoption. You hand the breed over to AKC hobby breeders and, perhaps, to large scale commercial breeders. It is more of the Grey2K's and PeTA's advocacy by extinction as espoused by Dorchak's mentor - Ingrid Newkirk. Such compassion.

Hmmm....  I just thought of something...  I wonder if Grey2K's opposition to crating dogs ("confined to cages for 20+ hours a day") is a direct result of Ms. Dorchak's jail time?

Anthropomorphism at its finest?


Yours in greyhounds....

Much Ado About Nothing...

I have always enjoyed the Bard...  Shakespeare.  He had people watching down to a science and his plays showed that many times over. One of my favorite Shakespeare comedies is Much Ado About Nothing. A brief synopsis of the story is that Don Pedro, Prince of Aragon, defeated his half-brother, the bastard Don John, in a military engagement. Appearing to be reconciled, they return to Messina, Sicily as guests of the Governor, Leonato. There Count Claudio, a nobleman serving in Don Pedro's army, falls in love with Hero, Leonato's daughter. Don Pedro woos her on Claudio's behalf. Now, however, the plot thickens... Don John, who is still angry about his defeat, maliciously deceives Claudio into believing that Hero has taken a lover on the eve of her marriage, causing Claudio to reject her publicly, at the altar, destroying Hero's good name and all her prospects.

Well, the tactics employed by Don John are the same tactics that Grey2K USA and its "leadership" employ - malicious rumor mongering and deceptions, character assassination.

For instance, several months back, Grey2K was attempting to win a grant to put up billboards in Florida with their logo. The billboards were supposedly to promote greyhound adoption, however, all the links on the billboards went back to Grey2K USA, the 501(c) 4 organization...  the lobbying organization.  None of the links, as presented, went to any kind of adoption group or greyhound charity.  When the adoption community discovered what Grey2K was up to, which was shameless money grubbing while posting it was "for the dogs", the community responded. And, par for the course, the insults flying out of the Grey2K camp were rampant.

For instance,

You are incredibly arrogant to keep assailing the protectors of Greyhounds in an attempt to continue the destructive industry of Grey racing. Stay on topic, or go home to your miserable cruelty.

by JoeyTWunderhundt

 4 months ago

and

You never stop do you "NotGrey2K" ???? Coments like "You only make referrals to a small group of groups who drink your Koolade!" - that only show everyone else on this discussion board that you are incapable of carrying on a adult conversation, you always have to go back to your childish behavior or your temper tantrums to get your messages across. But by doing that you only sound totally out of touch with reality!!!!! Close the fanasty world you are living in about the racing industry and come back to the real world of the living where sometimes it is dark and ugly just like greyhound racing is or if you are unable to do that PLEASE stay alone or with your other track supporters in that fanasty world of yours and keep quiet. My mind is spinning thinking about the crap you believe, I am sure in some way you are a good and decent person but on this issue you have no idea what the Hell you are talking about and that is what scares me. Your bullshit is only going to cause more harm to our greyhounds.

by couchracers

 4 months ago

and then, when all else fails, the intimidation or bullying starts....  In this example, CTheil accuses an AKC greyhound breeder of intentionally defaming them...This is just one example of his stating that she's "defaming" them.  There were at least 3 instances.

Where to begin? GREY2K USA is not an anti-gambling organization. Elaine knows this, but doesn't care that her statement is not true. Further, she knows very well that it would be impossible to have an effective national, non-profit organization without a full-time staff. I earn less than the average American salary, do not own a house and do not own a car. I earn less than half than what the Executive for the National Greyhound Association, who represents greyhound breeders, makes on an annual basis. Elaine knows this too, but again she doesn't care about the truth because her goal here is to defame our organization.

by CTheil

 4 months ago | Reply

But, that is the norm. It is a proven fact that people who support groups like Grey2K, HSUS, PeTA, et al, always revert to name calling and bullying when they cannot argue a point logically.

What I find interesting is that for all the faults they find with the greyhound racing community, they never address the Grey2K failings such as their association with the Animal Liberation Front (ALF) or Christine Dorchak's close relationship with People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals aka PeTA.  Why?  The condemn owners who responsibly put down dogs that they feel will have no quality of life or that they may not be suitable for adoption due to temperament issues, but they are silent on the close association of Christine Dorchak, the saviour of greyhounds, with the killer of PeTA, Ingrid Newkirk.

Screen Shot of Christine Dorchak's FaceBook friends

In 2003, it was discovered that Ingrid Newkirk - a supposedly tireless defender of animals - has another face. We found out that during the 1970's, her chosen profession was "dog catcher."  Newkirk describes her zeal for killing in her own words: "I'd go to work early, before anyone got there, and I would just kill the animals myself...I must have killed a thousand of them, sometimes dozens every day." She was so good at it she rose through the ranks to become director of District of Columbia's high-kill pound where she reigned for some years. There, under her rule, thousands more died.  Yes, this is the same Ingrid Newkirk who appears on Christine Dorchak's "friends" list.  The same Newkirk for whom Christine Dorchak spent some time in jail while participating in a PeTA protest, charged with "blocking a public entrance and disturbing the peace" in 1998.

No wonder Grey2K doesn't care about the greyhounds... With Newkirk as a mentor, we should be happy that Zoe is still alive.  However, I'm guessing that once she outlives her usefulness as a money making prop, she'll be gone.

Yours in greyhounds....

A Vendetta Reaches Its Climax

by Dennis McKeon

I confess. I actually felt sorry for Christine Dorchak. Christine is the chief cook and bottle washer at the Somerville Massachusetts Kool-Aid and Arsenic Emporium, also known as Grey2k. She suffered and survived a near fatal accident as a young woman, and personally, I find nothing gratifying about that.

Grey2k has worked relentlessly, for over a decade, to stereotype greyhound racing professionals as exploiters, abusers and murderers of racing greyhounds. They are very good at what they do. What they did, in the case of Massachusetts, is to propagandize skillfully enough to have outlawed state-sanctioned, pari-mutuel wagering on greyhound races, essentially shutting down a network of businesses, and disenfranchising hundreds of families who relied on racing and the racetracks for their livelihoods. With that a fait accompli, when it came time to find homes for all the greyhounds who suddenly had nowhere to go, Grey2k simply scratched gravel, and essentially told the greyhounds, “see ya, wouldn’t wanna be ya”.

Noted greyhound adoption advocate and one of the founders of The Greyhound Project, Joan Belle Isle, had something to say about it. When asked on a message board, whether Grey2k and specifically, Christine Dorchak, had stuck around to help in re-homing the greyhounds who found themselves, overnight, in need of a place to go, as Grey2k had assured the voting public they would, Ms. Belle Isle responded:

"With respect to Raynham, the answer to your question is NO. But that didn't stop her from taking the credit for the work of the dogmen and adoption volunteers, led by Linda Jensen, that got every dog with no other place to go into an adoption program."

Grey2k is a registered non-profit organization, and they rely on public donations to fund their slash-and-burn brand of political activism. They claim that they “help the greyhounds”, but they have never been, nor are they now an adoption group or a hands on provider of greyhound welfare services. Grey2k is a political action group with strong ties to an anti-gambling activist organization called Stop Predatory Gambling.

A long-running vendetta waged by anti-racing activists to personally destroy a member of the Arizona Racing Commission, one Rory Goree, has currently taken center stage in the Grey2k Travelling Kabuki Theatre.

Goree recently made some flippant and insensitive remarks about Christine Dorchak’s aforementioned unfortunate accident, when as a young woman, she was struck by a Boston rail trolley. She suffered very serious injury, and worked her way through what one can only imagine must have been extremely grueling and trying rehabilitation. Mr. Goree’s comments were ill-advised and crass, and I can’t blame Carey Theil, Ms. Dorchak’s husband and cohort at Grey2k, for taking exception to them, as much as I loathe the unethical and destructive antics of Grey2k.

Rory Goree, prior to his appointment as a member of the Arizona Racing Commission, had worked for 17 years in greyhound adoption. He, like Grey2k, was very good at what he did. Good enough to have been made President of Greyhound Pets of America, the largest greyhound adoption network in the world. Under Goree’s stewardship, unprecedented realms of cooperation between racing and adoption were realized. Thousands of greyhounds were given a chance to find adoptive homes, so much so that they have become a virtual phenomenon in the canine world. Thanks in no small part to Rory Goree, adoption has become the final chapter in nearly every racing greyhound’s career. The racing greyhound has never---ever---had a better or more accomplished advocate than Rory Goree.

Rather than working to demonize racing professionals, to abolish racing, and to therefore turn the racing greyhound into a fringe breed, Goree reached out to racing and the powers that be, and treated them like responsible owners and breeders. He raised the bar and challenged them to make that jump. He took away most excuses that racing might make about being unable to work with an antagonistic adoption community, by making peace among various factions within the racing and adoption communities. The greyhounds all won.

Ironically, this worked against the slash-and-burn activists at Grey2k, whose donations rise and fall, proportionally, according to the amount of friction and enmity that exists between adoption and racing, among other forms of discord and controversy.

This is evidenced by the letter Grey2k sent out to its supporters and enablers during Goree’s tenure as GPA President, which read:

"Greyhound Pets of America is an arm of the racing industry and representatives of the group come out to testify against our bills in every state. Please, please refrain from interacting with them and/or including them in your Yahoo group discussions and announcements."

Now there’s some real advocacy for you. Refrain from interacting with the largest network of greyhound adoption groups in the world. Why on earth, one might ask? Well, dear reader, the answer is quite simple--because GPA and Rory Goree are actually succeeding in getting racing to cooperate with adoption, and vice versa, and our pockets aren’t exactly jingling as a result.

So that’s how one “helps the greyhounds”—we simply thrill in awe at such soul-purifying compassion.

Fortuitously, for Grey2k, a latent psychopath named Ronnie Williams burst a gasket, and was found to have starved and abandoned 37 greyhounds in a Florida kennel. This afforded them the opportunity to formulate and promote the deliberate “Ronnie Williams-ing” of each and every person who had ever been associated with greyhounds in racing, and must have set the Grey2k cash registers to singing Jingle Bells until the one-horse open sleigh wore out its runner blades.

Grey2k continued to “help the greyhounds” by tarring and feathering the entire greyhound racing working class with the reprehensible and truly deranged misdeeds of Williams, while feathering its own nest with donations from an ever gullible public.

Goree had previously helped facilitate the release of 126 greyhounds who had been sent to Juarez, Mexico to race. They were allowed to go to Juarez under an agreement stating that when the season ended, they would be returned to the US. When that guarantee proved to be a bit less than ironclad, GPA group leaders and Goree made sure the agreement was lived up to, at their own personal expense, rescuing the dogs in question.

Ever laying in wait for a bonanza like the one Ronnie Williams would soon gift to them, Grey2k apparently couldn’t be bothered to help, or even offer moral support.

So as payback for all his unprecedented work in adoption, Goree, whose appointment to the Racing Commission was applauded by real greyhound welfare providers as an unprecedented positive step for greyhound protection and adoption, now finds himself on tenterhooks of his own making. For statements that are unworthy of him or his brilliant career as a true greyhound benefactor—and despite Grey2k’s own history of promoting hurtful, negative stereotypes of racing professionals, of adoption people who cooperate with them, and of willful and ruthless job destruction.

Grey2k is now waging a campaign to have one of the great advocates and facilitators of greyhound adoption removed from the Arizona Racing Commission, because of his remarks concerning the devastating accident that befell Christine Dorchak. I can’t see how that is going to “help the greyhounds” one little bit, but I can understand a husband’s indignation. Goree’s peace-making and adoption triumphs, additionally, were and still are an anathema to the Grey2k agenda and pocketbook.

Nevertheless, for a moment there, I felt that I could actually relate to Carey and Christine on a basic, human level. Then, all at once, in my very own Saint Paul moment, suddenly I saw the clouds part and the lightning flash.

Reverting to form, Grey2k has now begun---shamelessly and with an audacity of which only the truly depraved are capable---are you ready for this?… the “Rory Truth Fund”.

No-they-di-int…

Oh yes they did!!

Nothing soothes hurt feelings like cold, hard cash.

Copyright, 2012

More Copyright Infringement & Mental Illness

It seems that it never ends...  Today, Grey2K lifted pictures off of a Twitter account... Pictures they have no right to post and share as they did not get the photographer's permission...

That is COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT!

It is THEFT! It is STEALING!

You would think that an attorney, which is what Christine Dorchak claims to be, would know that it is ILLEGAL to take and use photographs without the photographers' permission!

I really have to wonder what the Massachusetts Bar thinks about one of its members participating in illegal activities...  But, then again, we are talking Massachusetts....  Home to some rather crooked politicians throughout the years.

The photographs which they are illegally using for their purposes belong to a racing owner & breeder, Buddy Scitern. These photos have already been "shared" more than 70 times without having permission from the photo's owner: Buddy Scitern.  Buddy runs a tight ship at his place, which is clean & orderly.  All of his dogs receive the best in care.  I've been to his place and it is one where I'd send any dog to live. Heck, I'd not mind living there!

These people, and I use that term loosely, have absolutely no morals...  no sense of right and wrong... to them, the ends do justify the means, even if those means are illegal and immoral!  And they have a tax exemption?

Copyright Infringment is THEFT!  It is STEALING!

At least, at this time, they are not calling for Buddy Scitern to die, as they are Rory Goree.  Even so, he has been called by one, Maria Angulo,  a "heartless bastard" while another, Brenda Fosella, is calling him an "abuser" because his dogs in training are kept in such a spotless kennel in appropriately sized crates.  They are idiots!

Earlier today, I received a suggestion to look at a webpage, Animal Rights: The Abolitionist Approach. After reading that page, there is no way you will ever convince me that the AR's do not suffer from some form of mental illness.  Really...  I mean that... these people are sick...  very sick.  They need to be incarcerated for their own good as well as for the safety of those around them.  - especially for the sake & safety of animals.

Read this and let me know if I'm wrong...

We cannot justify such an institution, even if it looked very different from the situation that now exists. My partner and I live with five rescued dogs, including dogs who had health problems when we adopted them. We love them very much and try very hard to provide them the best of care and treatment. (And before anyone asks, all seven of us are vegans!) You would probably not find two people on the planet who enjoy living with dogs more than we do.

But if there were two dogs left in the universe and it were up to us as to whether they were allowed to breed so that we could continue to live with dogs, and even if we could guarantee that all dogs would have homes as loving as the one that we provide, we would not hesitate for a second to bring the whole institution of “pet” ownership to an end.

There you have it folks! Someone that is telling the world what the true goal of the AR's is... the extinction of pets. They are willing to allow animals to become extinct because they believe that domestic animals do not belong in this world.

We regard the dogs who live with us as refugees of sorts, and although we enjoy caring for them, it is clear that humans have no business continuing to bring these creatures into a world in which they simply do not fit.

REMEMBER ----

CHRISTINE DORCHAK IS A CARD CARRYING MEMBER OF PETA. THIS IS WHAT SHE BELIEVES. THIS IS WHAT SHE WANTS TO ACCOMPLISH - A WORLD WITHOUT DOGS... A WORLD WITHOUT GREYHOUNDS... AND, A WORLD WITHOUT GAMBLING.

Yours in greyhounds....