Catalonia, Spain bans bullfighting

[united]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100728/...llfighting_ban

Lawmakers in Catalonia outlawed bullfighting Wednesday, making it Spain's first major region to ban the deadly, centuries-old ballet between matador and beast after heated debate that pitted animal rights against a pillar of traditional culture.

Still, bullfighting buffs and Spanish conservatives have taken the drama very seriously, seeing a stinging anti-Spanish rebuke in the grass roots, anti-bullfighting drive which started in the region last year.

[CaptainCrunch]

Bout time, even though I think they should have continued the bullfighting but armed the Bull with autocannons.

[afc wimbledon]

If I'm a bull I'd rather go out in a bull ring than at western meat packers!

[Phanuthier]

Maybe they should have removed the legs off the bull, and replaced them with remote control wheels instead.

[Bertuzzied]

Great news. It should have been called bull slaughtering instead of bull fighting to begin with.

My inlaws were in Spain a few months back and they said that they used horses to run the bulls around the ring for hours before the "fight". That is really pathetic.

[blankall]

Originally Posted by Bertuzzied

Great news. It should have been called bull slaughtering instead of bull fighting to begin with.

My inlaws were in Spain a few months back and they said that they used horses to run the bulls around the ring for hours before the "fight". That is really pathetic.

Not only that, but you can see from the picture, that they stab the bull with those polls hanging from it to make it bleed. It's severely weakened by blood loss by the time it gets anywhere near a matador.

One of my greatest regrets is having payed to watch one of these in Spain as a teenager. I did it for the culture, but pretty quickly realized I was helping line some @#$@#$ pockets while an animal was tortured.

[HPLovecraft]

It's like the matador is Commodus and the bull is Maximus.

[Nage Waza]

I think they injure the bulls neck before they get into the ring which prevents the bull from moving their head around too much, I think they actually cut some tendons...

From what I have seen, the matador then 'fights' the bull and stabs them with spears and then a sword.

Pretty brutal, I doubt that matador would willingly fight the type of bull we see at our stampede. Major size difference.

[pylon]

Not going to quote the pic in the threadstarter. But the sad look that bull has on its face says "Put me out of my misery."

This is a good step towards the permanent riddance of an unnecessary and barbaric tradition.

[Regulator75]

If only the rest of the country would follow suit.

[jammies]

They should just move the bullfighting to China, thereby making it automatically racism to complain about it.

[pylon]

Originally Posted by jammies

They should just move the bullfighting to China, thereby making it automatically racism to complain about it.

I don't know if that was a shot at me about the Rhino horn thread or not, but I pulled the chute on that thread when people connected the dots from China's animal part black market + barbaric inhumane treatment of animals + un founded mystical healing qualities = I am a racist.

However, obviously I hate all Spaniards because of this practice.

[Suzles]

That photograph is just horrific. And I believe it was a major up by the matador as it looks as though the short blade they use to deliver the coup de grace has missed its mark and is just embedded in the bull missing the spinal cord. So glad Catalonia has seen sense at last. Just need the rest of Spain, France, Portugal and Mexico to follow suit - anyone I missed?

And for Jammies, they have been talking about starting bull fighting in China for a while and have been trying to get Spanish bulls exported there.

[jammies]

Originally Posted by pylon

I don't know if that was a shot at me about the Rhino horn thread or not.

No, I was shooting more at the people who see racism and cultural insensitivity everywhere when it concerns their own race and culture, but are nowhere to be seen when it's another culture's traditions being criticized.

[Russic]

Originally Posted by afc wimbledon

If I'm a bull I'd rather go out in a bull ring than at western meat packers!

There are few places worse than a meat packing plant ... the bull ring may just be one of them. At least the terrifying experience in a meat packing plant ends relatively quickly.

Great to hear this news ... hope it spreads.

[kirant]

Originally Posted by Nage Waza

I think they injure the bulls neck before they get into the ring which prevents the bull from moving their head around too much, I think they actually cut some tendons...

I think you're right. If memory serves, they starve, bleed, then cut the bull's neck tendons so it's slow, weak, and probably not able to do much damage to the bull fighter if it even gets him.

Glad it's finally getting removed from the area though. Hopefully this starts getting it out of the country as a whole.