3 and 30

I suppose the year 2009 wouldn't be complete without "Cup-O-Soup" Jim Gath of Tierra Madre adding to the already full sardine can of a Sanctuary he operates in Arizona. http://forums.prospero.com/alexbrown/messages?msg=37974.4182 Jim's got a way with words, and I suppose saying 3 and 30 sounds better than admitting that you've got 33 horses penned in on less than 3 acres of land. Like our friend Lin of EPONA, Jim is a first class hoarder who feels that only he can provide the love and care for these horses. Jim, however, is one up on Lin. He's cultivated a strong financial support base. Maybe it's because he's a guy, and ABR has quite a few lonely women members. Some of the same ones who fawn over every post King Alex Brown makes are enthralled with Jim. And why not? Jim knows just how to rope 'em in. He plays on their emotions, and uses the horses he's holding hostage to keep the donations coming in. Humanizing the horses is the trick he knows works best on the girls, and Jimbo works it for all it's worth. Lin doesn't have that advantage. Lin may have the drama, but Jim's got the thong club. But back to the 3 plus 30. Once again, Jim has convinced the enablers on ABR that the situation was dire, and the only solution was the Sardine Sanctuary. So, the money was raised, and three more unfortunate victims will now call Hotel Tierra Madre home. If you've ever gone to an auction, you've seen the metal pens they set up to hold horses temporarily until they are sold. That's kind of what Jim's place looks like. I wish we could get a scale illustration of what Jim's sanctuary looks like. People just can't imagine how cramped this place is if they don't own horses themselves. Jim describes it as if there's really lots of room, but we know Jim. This could just be another one of his Allegories, like the Cup-O-Soup tale.How many more horses will Jim take in? As many as he can. That's the problem with hoarders. They can't say no. They can't see past their own needs to understand what impact their actions have on the horses they take in. I have often wondered what Jim's vet thinks of all of this. Does he ever try to intervene? Do the volunteers? Not that it would make a difference. Jim will continue to collect horses as long as he can build pens to put them in. What will Jim's count be in 2010? And how high will his number of fatalities be? Time will tell. For those opposed to the pain and suffering of horses, lets hope that the Friends of Tierra Madre just say "NO" next time Jim says "Can we help another one?" Enough is enough, and 3 and 30 is really, really, too much.
BY RH2