Tom Guarriello reflects on why Barbaro's death from a broken foot at the Preakness moved so many people, even those who don't follow horse racing. He asks why we feel such intense compassion for a suffering animal, sometimes more than for human suffering, and invites viewers to share their own thoughts on the question.
Oh, hi, it's Tom Guarriello. I was just sitting here working and word just came over the wire that the thoroughbred Barbaro was just euthanized. And, you know, I just sat here and shook my head and thought, you know, it's been what, 7, 8 months since Barbaro broke his foot in the Preakness. And anyone who watches my videos knows that I really, really like, enjoy thoroughbred racing. And even people who had no interest at all in racing found the Barbaro story very compelling, and that was what I wanted to make a video about, just Just a quick one. What is it about animals, particularly large animals like a racehorse, that just captivates us? I think Barbaro's struggle to beat the odds and survive this horrible injury touched millions of people in ways that you know, we don't see in regard to human suffering. And so that's really the question that comes to my mind about this whole tragic situation with this horse is, what is it about animals and their suffering that brings out the kind of compassion and feeling that we've seen expressed over these months that we often don't see in regard to human suffering. I'd be interested in your thoughts about it. I've got some thoughts, but I'm much more interested in hearing yours than just spouting out mine. So If you have any thoughts about what it is that has such an impact on us about animals, in particular about the Barbaro situation, I'd really enjoy hearing about it. So thanks a lot. Bye-bye.
