At her Courier-Journal blog, turf writer Jennie Rees takes a line from NPR’s story this week about the Kentucky breeding industry and combines it with the fallout over the failed expanded gambling bill to discuss the economic realities of the Thoroughbred business:

“There’s a major perception problem facing the racing and breeding industries. Take the debate whether racetracks should get preferential treatment in getting slots, should it ever come to Kentucky, which seems increasingly doubtful. Some people are outraged at the idea that racing and breeding could be a beneficiary. But I really doubt those same people would have as harsh an opinion if it was, say, means used to protect the auto industry in the state. Or farmers with crops other than horses. The tone would be, ‘You know, that’s a lot of jobs we need to work to preserve.’

“Too many people – including apparently many of our state legislatures – think racing is the Sport of Kings. That might be true to some extent in other countries, but not the U.S. Too many people think racing and breeding is all rich people looking for tax breaks who own horses. Ask anyone who pays the bills on a racehorse what kind of significant tax breaks they’re receiving. And the racing industry has done a poor job over the years telling its story of all the real-world people, as I call them, who make their living in the business and/or who own a racehorse or – as is increasingly the case – part of a racehorse. We’re talking middle class, lower middle-class and blue-collar population.”