Today the British Parliament bans hunting with dogs

deer me

I saw footage of the demonstration on the evening news tonight. I'm quite perplexed about why the demonstrators are so passionate about losing their fox hunting "rights". I really don't get it.
Personally, I find the idea of fox hunting quite abhorrent & cruel. I can't understand how civilized people could consider this "sport" & gain pleasure from it.

The invasion of the House of Commons has caused quite a stirr. (Last time something similiar happened was in the days of Charles I, c. 1640).

Ok they were only angry young men in t shirts but people are rightly asking what if...

It looks like they had inside help from someone who works in the Palace of Westminster.

I agree with you Olga that hunting, and particularly hunting a wild animal with dogs, is disgusting. And the people who do it are disgusting people. But unfortunately this country seems to have a sizable minority which historically has been well connected through farming and landowners etc. who indulge in it, see nothing wrong with it, and feel that it is part of their heritage.

There is a minority rights issue here, but I don't believe a minority activity necessarily has to be safeguarded where the majority finds it offensive.

Believe it or not, the hunting ban is the only decent thing to have come out of the Iraq war. Labour have promised to tackle hunting since 1997 but always found some reason to bottle out of actually banning it. But Blair has so infuriated his own party with his deceit over Iraq, that he hopes banning fox hunting might win him back some credibility. (Even so he abstained in the vote last night)

I was just amazed to see on tv defiant middle class people getting their heads broken by police truncheons. Such stuff is usually reserved for working class miners or students.

I think you refer to the Long Parliament and the "Five Members," who were to have been arrested on the orders of Charles I in 1642--but a major difference is that the London mob invaded the Houses of Parliament, and carried off the five members as though in triumph, and with no objection from most of the MP's. The King then retired with family and supporters to Hampton Courts, and then left for Oxford, where he raised the royal standard, and the first civil war began.

Will there be any shooting, Boss? Do you have a video cam to catch the action?

I'm sure, civilized people agree here, even in the UK :wink:

YESSSS! at last they keep their election promise.

it is barbaric and on a level with dog fighting and bear baiting

If they try to argue that hunting is pest control - then why the expensive horses, 'pink' hunting jackets etc? in hunting areas copses of trees to ensure a supply of foxes to hunt are protected - how hypocritical can you get?

The fox population will be controlled by the food supply

they block up the earths so the fox has nowhere to run to and foxes are often caught and released to be chased - illegal but it happens.

Peoples cats and small dogs are frequently killed by the hounds

This barbarity and cruelty is the beginning of a very slippery slope that leads to other barbarity

the trouble is they'll make a song and dance putting down packs of hounds and blaming it on the bill - they could muzzle them and go drag hunting ( an aniseed trail is left for the unt to follow) if they just enjoy the ride across country, i can't imagine they'd ever be suitable for house dogs

OK Steve. At least you have some very admirable supporters. I might suggest that you turn on your "Ruffian Filter" even if it catches yours truly.

Hunting? In England? What do they use, sticks?

Foxes, as the name says, roger.

(Besides, of course they hunt with rifles as well, totally legal, e.g. bunnies.)

Dont be silly. We dont have video camera thingys yet in olde Englande. We haven't invented them yet.

Silly me . . .

You have, however, public QVC, HOT etc., called CCTV.

Sorry Walter, those acronyms are way out in front. We're still trying to get to terms with Mr John Logie Baird's electrical picture machine here.

saw the whole spectacle taking place in the house of commons in tonight's BBC-TV news. so there must have been either fixed cameras or reporters with video-cameras in the house. CBC broadcasts a condensed version of the BBC news (BBC-america , i believe) every night for thirty minutes. it's a news report that we hardly ever miss; first-class reporting. hbg

btw. , plenty of hunting of all kinds going on in canada. hardly anyone protests against it, but some hunters protest because bear-baiting is no longer permitted during the spring hunting season. hbg

The Unspeakable in pursuit of the uneatable . . .

Yes Oscar Wilde was pretty good with the odd acidic comment.

The hunters do have point though. If they want to dress up and chase after foxes then it doesnt actually infringe my rights.

And if they would just be honest and say they do it because they enjoy it, and dont pretend it has anything to do with pest control, I could almost let them get on with it.

But not quite. Its cruel. Its not just tearing the fox apart, its the running it to ground, exhausting the animal so it cannot escape.

And there's all sorts of strange rituals associated with it..children at their first hunt are often "blooded" with the blood of the fox on their face.

And there's the hypocracy of effectively breeding foxes, pretending they're vermin then killing them. For fun.

Plus the injuries to dogs and horses (the faithful hound gets a bullet rather than vet bills), the accidental damage to property, killing of pet cats etc etc. Plus the alarm caused to ordinary pedestrians. I remember going for a walk in Cheshire (near to houses) to be surrounded by dogs and horses all over the place. Some of these horses can be quite big, especially if you're not expecting one charging round the corner. Mrs Steve does NOT like dogs.

So my considered opinion is that people involved with this barbaric activity should be hung drawn and quartered and their heads stuck on a spike, as a warning.

A compassionate and thoroughly commendable attitude . . .

Hamburger

You reminded me of my visit to a friends house in Revelstoke BC.

The place full of dead stuff staring at me. Was told this joke.

Man goes hunting for a bear. Large bang, lots of smoke, bear says "you missed"

now its my turn. take your pants down and bend over that log....

Next week man buys bigger hunting gun and finds the same bear ....bigger bang...more smoke...

Bear says Missed again. You know the drill, there's the log..


Following week hes back having bought the biggest hunting gun in town.

BANG.
SMOKE

Bear says you missed again.

"You're not really in this for the hunting are you"

Spineless MP's and foxhunting.
I don't think I have ever seen our members of parliament behave in such a spineless manner. If they find hunting with hounds so despicable, morally wrong and abhorrent.. why did they want to wait 18 months for the ban to come into place?

Seems their principled stand is dependant on some members realizing that they might lose a seat in the next election.

Also good to see that the Countryside Alliance and its members have some backbone and are willing to make a stand against this spiteful law, even if for some it might mean giving up their liberty and not just a cushy job in parliament.

(A-ha that should reignite the debate lol)