I can only imagine the number of bizarre things that U.S. Customs & Border Protection agents come across. However, they’ve come across something so strange that they’ve put out a press release about it. Two women arrived at Washington Dulles Airport from Mongolia on January 29, 2017, with some crazy stuff in their bags, including horse genitals, apparently for “medicinal purposes.” Per the press release:
After they deplaned, CBP officers referred the women for a routine agriculture examination. There, CBP agriculture specialists discovered a combined 42 pounds of meat described as horsemeat and other ruminant meat, including 13 pounds of horse genitals, and three liters of yak milk.
Interestingly neither woman was criminally charged, and they were both released. I do wonder what sort of “medicinal purposes” they were planning on using the horse genitals for. At first 13 pounds of horse genitals sounded like a lot, but based on Googling (I did it so you guys don’t have to), that may only be a portion of a single horse genital.
The press release also lists some of the other crazy things that CBP agents have found, including:
From charred full monkeys, to voodoo ceremony tools, to cocaine concealed inside the cavity of fully cooked chickens, to live sea horses and giant African land snails. So it seems that after a while, the oddity is not so odd anymore.
Goodness!
@David - Totally agree, but the western world is no different. European and American Dairy Farm giants are busting their butts to eradicate native cattle breeds in India so that they can sell the far inferior genes of their genetically modified cattle purely developed for farming.
Not to mention the junk food giants McDonald's, KFC lobbying to expand massively in China/India with foods prepared from unethical chicken farming methods that were previously done in...
@David - Totally agree, but the western world is no different. European and American Dairy Farm giants are busting their butts to eradicate native cattle breeds in India so that they can sell the far inferior genes of their genetically modified cattle purely developed for farming.
Not to mention the junk food giants McDonald's, KFC lobbying to expand massively in China/India with foods prepared from unethical chicken farming methods that were previously done in the USA until regulations put a stop to it there.
You may argue this comparison is not correct since its corporations vs Asian people , but at the end of the day it comes down to different people, different thinking and different cultures bit we are all alike and as credit said - Evil species called Humans.
Amazing how Asians are now able to travel the world as fully cashed up members of the global middle class and yet persist in their neanderthal treatment of animals, whether it's the trafficking of endangered species or the absolutely ridiculous transportation of horse genitals for use in Chinese medicine. Seriously, when are these cultures going to get the memo that they're not more important than animals and their ignorance is destroying entire ecosystems? It makes...
Amazing how Asians are now able to travel the world as fully cashed up members of the global middle class and yet persist in their neanderthal treatment of animals, whether it's the trafficking of endangered species or the absolutely ridiculous transportation of horse genitals for use in Chinese medicine. Seriously, when are these cultures going to get the memo that they're not more important than animals and their ignorance is destroying entire ecosystems? It makes me sick.
If you visit Mongolia, horses are considered extremely valuable and are central to their beliefs and religion. I'm sure it seems normal to them to bring "pieces" for varility or some reason. I've had yak milk in Mongolia, so that's not weird, and many cultures eat horse meat. I guess I don't understand why this story is so shocking.
https://youtu.be/P8biXv_sqLI
A Canadian travel show - this episode is on Mongolia. I think it's hard to pass judgment without fully understanding the context. 15:35
"WTF" has become standard English vernacular, and was recently added to the OED. Many animals do have feelings, and we could debate the ethics of how we treat them, but maybe a travel blog is not the appropriate venue? Personally, I find comparing the treatment of animals by humans to the treatment of Africans by Whites offensive, and dangerously close to how whites have historically dehumanized darker-skinned peoples by comparing them to animals (monkeys, dogs,...
"WTF" has become standard English vernacular, and was recently added to the OED. Many animals do have feelings, and we could debate the ethics of how we treat them, but maybe a travel blog is not the appropriate venue? Personally, I find comparing the treatment of animals by humans to the treatment of Africans by Whites offensive, and dangerously close to how whites have historically dehumanized darker-skinned peoples by comparing them to animals (monkeys, dogs, black women compared to cattle, etc.). But again, this is a travel blog. There are other places to have that debate.
Also, as others have mentioned, horse genitals and other bizarre animal parts are commonly used in Traditional Chinese Medicine. I love my acupuncturist, though I've never been convinced that horse genitals are gonna cure me. But who knows? :)
Damn David... what the fuck...
Well said, Caleb.
I wonder how many children are on this blog looking up ways to maximize their credit card usage..holy hell get off your ridiculous high horse. I mean What The Fuck.
"WTF" not family friendly...there's something special going on today...
Calm down.
I actually have to agree with Credit on this one.
Humans are the only evil species, as only we can fathom it.
@credit
Nice sarcasm mr. vegan
Lucky: I like your blog, but phrases like "WTF" are not family friendly and add nothing in the way of information for your loyal readers. Please would you reconsider? There is really no need to swear on your blog.
@Credit
But the smell of bacon is just heavenly. Clearly eating meat is next to cleanliness. Or Godliness. Or something.
"You mmmm, pork chop."
Just call me Homer
Have you ever heard of Chinese Medicine???
Animals are sentient creatures with feelings and emotions and humans have delegitimised their life to conveniently slaughter them for meat. Just as whites delegitimised the humanness of blacks to own them as property. In both cases the perpetrators knew their arguments were wrong, but they were convenient to keep the racket going. Humans are the most evil species that ever walked on this planet.