So, fox hunting is coming back...

[Master Ray]

So, looks like the whole 'rich people torturing animals for fun' thing is coming back...

Jeez, Cnuteron might as well have been pictured waving his arse on the steps of Westminster with a bottle of Bollinger in one hand and a dead animal in the other.

What a sly little ****-you aimed at the masses.  Any right-minded person hates fox-hunting.  Yet his FIRST announcement is not about what 'good' he might do for the people of the country  , nope, just a little wink to the rich pals he has that says 'Hey, we bought and paid for the election, look what we can do now!'

What an utterly loathsome c-word. He's just.. well, words fail.  And I know a lot of rude words.

Five years of this prick?  This country is officially fucked.

[Amandistan]

I hope not. They are beautiful animals. Human beings are the most destructive of all animals.

[Pol]

Fox hunting has never stopped its just not allowed with dogs. As a ex townie who now lives in a fairly country area without defending hunting in any way. I'm gonna put this thought out there what has the most right to life chickens, lambs or foxes if you keep the first two and a fox kills them do you have the right to kill it
debatable n happy to hear opinions

[Master Ray]

Mate, I do appreciate that foxes are nasty, horrible animals that would tear apart your family pet, given half a chance.  they are the **** of the urban / country world...

The point was that people are upset by it and Cameron is throwing it in peoples faces...

[Pol]

I disagree with any form of hunting some times its a necessary evil and i can see the need but yes it should never be never be done for fun Yes i hate the hooray henry posh boys as much as anybody

[Spudthemariner]

I would suggest that the point is, that there is a vast difference between 'pest control' and 'sport'. I personally have no issue with farmers shooting a predator, the traditional and actually largely inneffective method however...

[Tony S]

Fox hunting has never stopped its just not allowed with dogs. As a ex townie who now lives in a fairly country area without defending hunting in any way. I'm gonna put this thought out there what has the most right to life chickens, lambs or foxes if you keep the first two and a fox kills them do you have the right to kill it
debatable n happy to hear opinions

Well, this is an interesting moral question. What has the most right to life? The chickens and lambs that we raise, for our own purposes, or the wild predator that has to kill to survive (and I don't accept the 'foxes kill multiple hens for the fun of it' argument one iota) ?   I'm not sure I can give a definitive answer. My heart tells me it's the wild animal.  However, from a practical point of view, I fully understand the conflict between domestic animals and wild animals, and the need to protect the domestic ones. Shooting foxes is allowed as you say, where they are causing a problem, and I would argue this is more humane than the old method of chasing for miles and miles with a pack of dogs, followed by a bunch of humans on horses, enjoying the thrill of the chase, and glorifying in the kill at the end of it. In my opinion that is barbaric, and should never be brought back. Let's not forget the Act of 2004 was not just about foxes. It also banned the hunting of deer with dogs, and Hare Coursing too.  Here are a couple of petitions, if anyone wants to sign; 

http://www.change.org/p/david-cameron-mp-keep-the-ban-on-fox-hunting-2

http://www.thepetitionsite.com/108/153/934/david-cameron-wants-repeal-of-hunting-ban-over-everything-elsewhat/

I've signed both. I will be horrified if this Act ever gets repealed.

[Tony S]

Mate, I do appreciate that foxes are nasty, horrible animals that would tear apart your family pet, given half a chance.  they are the **** of the urban / country world...

Disagree on this Master Ray. No foxes aren't cute, fluffy wuffy, innocent little things, but neither are they nasty, horrible animals. They are predators, pure and simple, and rather beautiful ones at that in my opinion. As for family pets, depends what sort we are talking about. The average dog or cat could easily defend itself against a fox if it had to I think, but on the whole urban foxes don't go for cats I think. They can co-exist. There's too much risk of injury for the fox to tackle a cat to make it worth its while, unless it was absolutely desperate. Rural cats are maybe even more savvy, and capable than urban cats. Ironically, packs of fox hounds sometimes ripped apart people's pets when the hunts lost control of them through villages !

[Tony S]

This article seriously angered me.

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/david-cameron-says-he-wants-to-repeal-the-fox-hunting-ban-10091571.html?fb_action_ids=1442196466081145&fb_action_types=og.shares

In it, David Cameron appears to suggest that it would only be "born and bred Londoners" that "struggle to understand a rural way of life", who would be against fox hunting. How arrogant and misinformed he is ! 

[Amandistan]

I don't think they are horrible at all. They do not exist where I am from. The first I ever saw was in Ireland about  a month ago.
I thought they were beautiful.  The Japanese keep them as pets.
the animals that eat pests where I live are called alligators. Think 10 time bigger, fast in water and land and mean.
Foxes are majestic and beautiful.  No animal is evil or a pest. They just want to survive.
The most harmful animal is a mammal called the homosapien also known as human.

[Master Ray]

Mate, I do appreciate that foxes are nasty, horrible animals that would tear apart your family pet, given half a chance.  they are the **** of the urban / country world...

Disagree on this Master Ray. No foxes aren't cute, fluffy wuffy, innocent little things, but neither are they nasty, horrible animals. They are predators, pure and simple, and rather beautiful ones at that in my opinion. As for family pets, depends what sort we are talking about. The average dog or cat could easily defend itself against a fox if it had to I think, but on the whole urban foxes don't go for cats I think. They can co-exist. There's too much risk of injury for the fox to tackle a cat to make it worth its while, unless it was absolutely desperate. Rural cats are maybe even more savvy, and capable than urban cats. Ironically, packs of fox hounds sometimes ripped apart people's pets when the hunts lost control of them through villages !

Taken on board, sir.  Went a bit overboard there, I think.  Remembered a rather horrible incident involving a friend of mine and a fox...

 

[ldopas]

D'ya know, I tend to agree with Tony S. What this is about is that posh people like to do it for a sport, and that I'm not in favour of.

But if we strip it out, perhaps there is some need to control fox numbers. We are hypocrites when it comes to animals sometime. But this man said it better than me:

"Don't eat tunafish!" 'Why not?' "Dolphins get stuck in the nets!!" 'What about the tunafish?' '"F*ck them, they taste great!" - Denis Leary

[Anna Woman von NRW]

Does it surprise anyone that this coming back is on the cards?

In certain situations and places controlling fox populations is needed. And killing a fox is ultimately no different to putting a bolt through the head of a cow so that we can eat that gorgeous bit of sirloin steak for dinner. It's called being the apex of the food chain. Foxes eating your chickens? Then kill the fox and protect your dinner.

But fox "hunting" isn't about that. It's a throwback to "Lord Of the Manor" times and those who have literally riding roughshod over those who don't have.  As a highly effective and potent visceral statement of intent. It couldn't be clearer.