NEWS: Bullfighter Makes Bloody Comeback

CULTURE: Bullfighter Makes Bloody Comeback

Bullfighting, that brutal spectacle of a matador taunting and torturing a maddened bull until finally killing it with a well-placed sword thrust is a fun-filled family event that has brought fans to stadiums in Spain for centuries. The blood-soaked ritual traces its roots back thousands of years to an ancient Greco/Roman religion that worshiped Mithras, a god that captured and killed a mighty bull whose spilled blood gave birth to all the creatures of the world, including humanity. These days, thanks in part to the efforts of animal rights groups, bullfighting has given way to soccer in terms of national popularity as Spaniards now show more interest in watching British superstar David Beckham kick a ball around than seeing a costumed man brutalize a magnificent creature.

But Beckham’s recent big game for Real Madrid against Barcelona was overshadowed by the comeback of one of Spain’s greatest matadors, Jose Tomas.

But the Barcelona crowd wasn’t completely made up of bloodthirsty pagans as protesters made their views known.

Bullfighting is illegal in most countries but there are exemptions. In France, fans of le Big Mac enjoy the course landaise style in which cows are used instead of bulls. Hemingway buffs out there who can’t afford a trip to Europe needn’t worry: you can fill your bloodlust down in Mexico. Its legal, way cheaper and the bullfights are sponsored by Dominos Pizza!

You know, I try to be tolerant of other peoples cultures and all, but this shit is fucked up. Not that I'm condoning them, but at least the animal abuse festivals over here (aka rodeos) have a basis in actual animal handling skills. How often would you have to torture a bull to death as opposed to, say rope a calf? I mean..how can you possibly defend this? Pull out the "cultural heritage" card? Is human sacrifice OK if it's part of someones "cultural heritage"? That's old and played, just because something was OK in the past does not mean it is appropriate now, otherwise slavery, indentured servitude and many other evils would still be in place.

I gotta agree with the PETA pansy on this one, bull fighting is inhumane, I admit it and I am completely anti green movement.

I can't stand PETA, love a big ass steak barely cooked and I spend 2/3 of my life with a jackhammer....
Pansy I ain't
I'm just not a sicko animal torturer.

you should go before you say too much guys.
especially if you eat meat...you should able to watch this..

it very hard to miss the grace, bravery and dignity with which a great fighter treats a bull even in its death. Hose Tomas is certainly a massive hero because he's so nuanced quite the opposite of the brutalism your guessing at.

whats more, its worth considering that this is the kind of thing which anti globalisation types hate, but is actually the kind of difference which prevents the world from becoming one big american mush of souless splurge.

no im not spanish and yes i was at this fight.

That's really to say "what I don't see, doesn't bother me". Stop for a moment and think about the life of the bull killed during corrida and the life of your steak? You think the bull was closed in a cage where it muscles degraded... that it was force-feed hormones and beef byproducts? Would it be still fit for a fight after the treatment we serve to our meat-cows?

As a human, which cow-life would you chose? Force feeding, or to die fighting?


IMO SICKO animal production beats corrida in terms of barbarity and inhumane treatment any day. It's not to defend corrida, which I find appalling as well... it's just to get our "sicko" ranking straight.

Next time you eat a steak, think about it - the animal probably suffered much worse of a torture than the bull at the corrida ring.

Yeah, I can see how stabbing the bull's shoulders with long spears to weaken him is graceful and full of dignity. How about if a bunch of guys riding on horseback stab YOU in the shoulders and drain your blood, then I'll come up and thrust a long sword between your shoulder blades into your heart. U fuck.

<double post>

Well, as long as someone gets a kick out if I'm down.

Depends if don king will manage me, the only way I know I'll get top card that night

Didn't you forget to rant more about all the other animals being tortured? or link a video from youtube about the chicken factorys where they beat them with pipes, or a veal factory... you get a c+ for effort

Yeah sure, King'll get you the fame, but he'll rob you blind while you're out there busting your butt.

but come on, I'll have my name in lights, gold plated, diamond studded handles on the swords, have entrance music, Michael Buffer introduce me.

That would fucking rule

Wait wait wait, you talking about being a Matador? I was talking 'bout being the bull. The grain, the cows, the glory. It's the life.

I could work out the contract to be the bull, have micheal buffer moo and shit for my introduction

Nah, I didn't. I'm revolting here against hypocrisy of people crying that bullfights are barbaric and inhumane, not against industrial meat production as it is.

yeah thats true, at rodeos they just hit a bull in the testical a bunch of times and see how long grown men and women can stay on it, thats humain..... wait a minute
id stay away from the prairie oistures too :S

The matadors are at great risk of death if fairness is at issue... To me its not. I wouldn't take pleasure in killing animals but bullfighting has a rich history and I can see why it doesn't appeal to many SG'ers. That said, some humans will always eat animals and the bulls in a bullfight are eaten afterward. It might not be the most humane but its certainly not the worse. To the squemish I suggest get over it and focus on getting rid of veal cultivation. That is what sickens me. I say hoorah for the dying breed of matadors. I'd much rather wear a sword and cape than a messenger bag and horn rim glasses. Glory be to the machismo matadors and boooo to liberal fucktards with their unhealthy vegan diets.

You're an idiot.

hahahaha fucking great +1 and the gold star for the day.

Portugal has bullfighting, but they're not killed at the end. They're treated more like gladiators I think; the most entertaining ones get to spend the rest of their lives in a field full of lady cows. As for Mithras, I vaguely recall reading about British freemason initiation rituals involving fucking a whore wearing a bull mask before slitting her throat... but maybe that was just fiction.

You can't assassinate an animal. The worst thing you can do is... hm. Butcher, slaughter... neither of those seem appropriate since we have butchers and slaughterhouses. Cows are knocked on the head, throats slit, and turned into that next burger or steak on your plate a whole lot more than bulls killed in the ring.

Killing animals for entertainment, be it hunting or in a ring, may be wrong; but I think people miss the point of bullfighting. The best bullfighters are the ones that stick the pointy sticks in just the right insensitive spot, and the best Spanish bullfighters are the ones whom deliver the cleanest kills.

As far as hunting goes... I know that where I live if hunters do not keep the deer population down to the very precisely calculated and observed number then they will be in roads killing people. That and they would also starve in the woods from over population. Areas that can promote deer populations must work very hard with hunters to control the population. Deer harvesting isn't rednecks killing simply for the thrill of ending bambie's life. It's a method of attaining food and an act of maintaining a balance that improves the lives of deer and humans.

who gives a shit?

Remember one is for food, the other is for human entertainment. Big difference.

ditto