I love animals! My dog has seen more of the country than most people I know, my parrot has traveled just as much, the feral cats who make my yard their home and the raccoon and opossum who both hang out with the cats should all be enough to prove how much I love animals.

Apparently, Governor Phil Murphy shares my love of animals, so much so that he signed “Nosey’s Law” last week, banning the use of wild and exotic animals in “traveling animal acts.”

I’m not a big fan of the circus, so I really paid no attention to “Nosey’s Law” as it worked its way through the legislature.

What I do care about is Murphy’s statement following his signing of the law. One line in that statement jumped out at me. Murphy said, “I am proud to sign ‘Nosey’s Law’ and ensure that New Jersey will not allow wild and exotic animals to be exploited and cruelly treated within our state.”

Seriously? Based on the treatment of the women on the soccer team he owns, Murphy has less of a problem with the exploitation and cruel treatment of professional women soccer players.

One could argue many of the women on the soccer team Murphy co-owns have been “cruelly treated within our state.” Given that some were paid less than $15 per hour prior to the 2018 soccer season one could even argue some women were exploited within our state.

The cruel treatment of the women on Murphy’s soccer team is well documented by this blog and others. Whether forcing women to live in substandard housing, with “one of the houses that players had to live in just should have been knocked down. Plastic bags for windows, sheets of cardboard for windows, comforters stuck in holes in the wall.” And let’s not forget the “unluckiest, though, were forced to ‘live with an elderly man who repeatedly made inappropriate comments to the players and made them feel uncomfortable.’”

Less than three weeks ago it was reported that Cloud 9, the official supporters group of Murphy’s soccer team, is still protesting the treatment of the players. In fact, Cloud 9 said the team “hasn’t officially addressed the issue.”

It was on July 20 that Murphy was quoted by NJ.com:

"At the end of the day, the buck stops with me and my fellow owner," said Murphy, who co-owns the team with Steven Temares, the CEO of Bed, Bath & Beyond.

"We take this very seriously. It's not tolerable. It will not go on."

Well, here’s the thing. The buck may stop with him, but it doesn’t change the fact that according to his soccer team’s official supporters group the problems still haven’t been addressed. It’s obvious Murphy cares more about circus animal than he does women professional soccer players.

The only question left is how long will New Jerseyans allow Mr. Murphy to continue mistreating women?