Future of Manhattan's Carriage Horses

http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/03/12/carriage-horses-have-their-day-at-city-hall/

It seems like I go through this once a month, but here I go again.

Manhattan’s carriage horses may soon get an annual five-week vacation and safer working conditions, while their drivers receive a 47 percent pay raise – their first increase in more than 20 years.

Okay, that sounds like a good idea. Not sure who's going to pay for the horse and the owner's expenses during their vacation, but I'll take it.

Members of the Teamsters Union Local 553, which represents carriage drivers, and animal rights groups traded jabs with council members and one another during hours of testimony. Some speakers urged council members to protect the jobs of the carriage industry’s several hundred drivers and stable hands; others said the horses’ welfare should be a priority.

It's called a 'compromise.' How about, you know, BOTH?

Most of the council members at the hearing indicated that they supported an industry-backed bill that would require better working and living conditions for the horses and would increase the rate a horse carriage driver could charge to $50 for a half-hour ride, from $34.

*looks around* Basic rule of economics here. Price goes up. Less people are willing to pay the higher price.

Councilwoman Melissa Mark-Viverito countered: “I don’t think it’s the only reason why people come to New York -– to ride in a horse carriage.”

The only reason people come to Michigan isn't to see Lake Huron, does that mean we should get rid of it? The only reason people come to Mackinaw Island isn't to eat fudge or ride a horse all over the island (unless you're me, in which case that IS why you visit Mackinaw), but that doesn't mean we should get rid of them either. People don't visit Washington D.C. just to see the White House, but I don't think that's going anywhere either.

Ms. Mark-Viverito introduced a bill of her own. It seeks to phase out horse-drawn carriages by April 2012 and replace them with a fleet of zero-emission show cars designed to look like antique automobiles.

Ms. Mark-Viverito said that the cars would make New York a leader in eco-tourism and that they could be operated by the drivers who currently handle the horses’ reins.

“It would be a win-win-win,” said John Phillips of the League of Humane Voters. “The horses, the carriage industry and the city would all benefit.”

1. I ride in horse drawn carriages because I love horses. Why would I ride in a show car designed to look like antique automobiles? I can drive my own car all over for FREE.

2. I'm failing to see how the horses benefit here. No carriages = no job for the horses = either the owner is going to have to make enough money to sustain their upkeep OR they're going to sell them. Now, this is a recession. How many people have enough money to care for their own horse? Now how many people are looking to buy their own horse? Now how many people are able and willing to keep with the needs of a draft horse?