mikey - //Why do all these "Country Sports" involve killing things ? I enjoy trips out to the country as often as I can, and I seem to manage without this lust for blood.
As Andy says, why don't these people just admit that they like killing things, rather than trying to pretend otherwise ? //
Thank you for the BA.
I understand that the attitude towards animals in the country is entirely different to that of 'city people' - and each claim that the other does not understand.
Most city peoples' concept of animals is as pets, which they anthropomorphosise to varying degrees - certainly hating the notion of what is perceived as cruelty and suffering.
Country people view animals differently. Most can be broadly catagorised as follows - they are either for production, work, or vermin - with foxes falling into the latter category.
Factor in the standard absence of sentimentality where animals are concerned - fox hounds are routinely shot when they are deemed unfit to hunt - and the enjoyment of hunting, I have to say more for the thrill of the chase than for the kill - and that demonstrates the differences between the two camps.
Neither will ever see the argument from the other's perspective, but I am firmly of the belief that if the majority of the electorate believe that hunting should be banned, then it should be banned.
That said, it is an unenforceable law, largely ignored by a section of society who believe in doing as their forefathers did.