We felt it was poignant to post this installment of the Horse Wars blog on the 4th of July. Our founding fathers risked everything they had including their lives to declare our separation from a government that had lost touch with its citizens and patronized the wealthy and influential. The United States was founded on the premise that our government was to remain accountable to the people and that the people were to hold their government to account. It is not unpatriotic to criticize our government as some officials would now claim, and it is not only our right as citizens to hold our public officials into account, our Founding Fathers would say it was our obligation.

So it comes to pass that another one of our government bureaucracies that has institutionally failed to heed the will of Congress and the American People finds itself in a financial pickle. So we will digress from the Virginia Range horse issue in today's report and focus on the Bureau of Land Management (BLM,) the federal agency that oversees most of America's wild horses. (Please click the banner to go to the BLM euthanasia story.)

Blog Editor Willis Lamm and Natalie, a Virginia Range horse, entertain youngsters at Virginia City's July 4th Parade.

The horses were part of a parade entry by the Alliance of Wild Horse Advocates, bringing attention to the plight of America's wild horses. Natalie is one of several horses that one of the horse groups, LRTC, is holding for adoption.

Historic Virginia City, NV is considered by many to be "Wild Horse Central." Therefore it was fitting for the Alliance of Wild Horse Advocates to come out in support of America's wild horses at Virginia City's Independence Day Parade. The advocates received a very warm reception from the crowd and even some of the other equestrian groups in the parade carried signs and banners in support of America's wild horses and burros, and/or rode adopted wild horses and burros. The Wild Horse Preservation League handed out over 600 flyers to interested spectators. It was a great day in wild horse country.

A report on the foal and her integration into domestic life will follow.