I don't hate horses. My illegitimate son Hassim adores riding and eating them so how could I possibly hate them? From Mr. Ed to Secretariat to John Elway - they are all fine animals. But that is all they are - animals - and in this case future pet food.

When Uber Horse and 2006 Kentucky Derby champion Barbaro was injured and later died, my sports pages were filled with article after article about his greatness and sad ending. ESPN is now reporting his ashes will be interred at the famed Churchill Downs racetrack in Louisville. I even found this tribute to Barbaro on YouTube. Good lord.

James Brown dying - please, fill up every last page of my newspaper. Osama Bin Laden dies - of course we'll hear about for months and for good reason. 

But as for horses dying, I simply don't care! Horses are pets, we pet them on the head, they end up as pet food, my college friends set their paths on financial ruin by gambling obsessively on them, they defecate on streets during parades, they pull carriages, they don't know what we are thinking, we don't know what they are thinking ("Um, hey dude, get the hell off my back before I kill you!"), and lastly, it has never been reported that horses can grow mustaches.

What will it take to keep news about horses - other than racing results - out of our media? I'm not sure. If you have an answer, please let me know.