Is this just tradition or just sick? You featuring:
Poke Me Mon
Spirit possession, body piercing, and fire walking are all rituals that take place on the island of Phuket, Thailand each year to honor the Chinese Gods during the annual Vegetarian festival. http://current.com/items/88901914_poke-me-mon.htm
Female Genital Cutting
Mariana van Zeller takes a look at the tradition of female circumcision in Africa. She travels to rural villages in Sierra Leone with an activist who faces a tough battle to put an end to the practice. http://current.com/items/76362762_female-genital-cutting.htm
Let me say this plainly: I like bullfighting. Five years ago, feeling fairly conflicted about the slaughter I had paid money to witness, I attended my first corrida in Seville, Spain.
Getting naked to draw attention to your cause isn't a novel idea. PETA seems to hold stripped down demonstrations pretty regularly, and over the weekend an anti-bull fighting group in Madrid dressed themselves up in fake blood and not much else in an effort to raise awareness of animal cruelty involved in bullfighting. Theirs is a noble cause, but I'm wondering if their message would be the same if they protested in more than their underpants. What say you, dear readers? Does protesting au naturel help or hurt your cause?Getting naked to draw attention to your cause isn't a novel idea. PETA seems to hold... more
Animal rights activists stripped naked and covered themselves with blood in a protest over bullfightsAnimal rights activists stripped naked and covered themselves with blood in a protest... more
A woman was trampled by a bull which escaped from a bullfight in western Mexico and ran into a car park.A woman was trampled by a bull which escaped from a bullfight in western Mexico and... more
Recently, an 11-year-old Mexican "bullfighter," goaded on by parents who make Brooke Shields' mom look overprotective, tried to establish a Guinness world record by killing six bull calves in one day in Merida, Mexico—despite attempts by the courts and animal protection groups to cancel the event.
Bullfighting is always cruel—the bulls are often beaten in the kidneys, have Vaseline smeared into their eyes, and are given laxatives to slow them down before they are released into the ring to be stabbed to death—but this was calf-killing. Like the child "bullfighter," Michelito Lagravere Peniche, these animals were still youngsters, but, unlike him, they didn't choose to be there and they didn't want to hurt anyone. They just wanted to prance and play. To make matters worse, hundreds of other kids were brought by their parents to watch the carnage and be encouraged to emulate the little matador (literally, "murderer").
The good news is that Guinness World Records takes animal abuse seriously and has refused to publish this new "record," saying, "We do not accept records based on the killing or harming of animals." Olé to Guinness!
An 11-year-old Mexican boy has killed six young bulls in a single fight, apparently becoming the world's youngest matador to achieve the feat.An 11-year-old Mexican boy has killed six young bulls in a single fight, apparently... more
MERIDA, Mexico (AFP) - Child protection and anti-bullfighting campaigners managed Thursday to suspend a battle between a Franco-Mexican child bullfighter and six young bulls due this weekend in southeast Mexico.
The city hall in Merida announced the suspension of the bullfight by Michelito, an 11-year-old bullfighting star, against six calves aged from one to two years, or "becerros."
The state human rights commission was studying the case following complaints from animal rights groups and child protection officials as well as an appeal for the fight to go on from the bullfighter's father, said Manuel Ibarra, a city hall official.
Several bullfights by Michelito were banned in France last summer after protests from anti-bullfighting associations.
Michelito's father, former French bullfighter Michel Lagravere, told AFP he hoped Saturday's bullfight would still go ahead.
"It's not a ban but a suspension," Lagravere said, adding that prosecutors would make a final decision late Friday.
Michelito has killed dozens of bulls in Mexico since he was six years old. The anti-bullfighting alliance in France said it had targeted him over other becerrada participants because "he fights in corridas aiming to kill."
Six animals belonging to the Domecq family died after petrol bombs were put in their horseboxes. Six others took years to recover from serious burns.
But they were not the intended target, prosecutors said. The hitmen were meant to kill those of another man.
Police said the crime was unprecedented in the history of mounted bullfighting.
The Domecq family has reportedly requested a sentence of three years in jail for those responsible, plus compensation for the loss of the six horses.Six animals belonging to the Domecq family died after petrol bombs were put in their... more
Ernest Hemingway called it "Death in the Afternoon," and for Cayetano Ordonez, one of Spain's top bullfighters, it was almost just that when a 1,300 lb. bull critically injured him during videotaping of a 60 Minutes segment. Ernest Hemingway called it "Death in the Afternoon," and for Cayetano Ordonez, one of... more
Frank Evans known as El Ingles has defied doctors' orders and stepped out of retirement and into the bullring just months after a quadruple heart bypass operation and knee replacement surgery.
He says he can resist the allure of the fight no more and will make a return to bullfighting after three years of retirement.
Comparing the sport to an "old girlfriend", he said: "She is more beautiful than she was before. Irresistible."
He is the only Briton to have reached Matador status, the profession's top level, and he has killed hundreds of bulls, some weighing up to 700 kilos.
He said: "I am just delighted to be back. I just want to be back doing what I do and that's living the life of a bullfighter."
Frank Evans known as El Ingles has defied doctors' orders and stepped out of... more
Italian designer Giorgio Armani has designed a glittering costume for 31-year-old Spanish bullfighter Cayetano Rivera.
Rivera will wear the satin "suit of lights" when he takes part in the "Corrida Goyesca" bullfight in Ronda, Andalusia on September 6. The suit is made in Armani's hallmark shade of greyish beige embroidered with sequins, crystals and silver thread.
Rivera comes from a family of famous bullfighters; it was Pablo Picasso himself who designed the suit of lights costume for Cayetano's grandfather Antonio Ordonez for the same event around 50 years ago.
Italian designer Giorgio Armani has designed a glittering costume for 31-year-old... more
Local authorities in southern France have banned two non-lethal bullfights involving a child matador said to have killed 60 young bulls in Mexico, the BBC reports.
The matador known as Michelito, aged 10 and fighting since the age of six, had been due to face calves that are not put to death in Fontvieille and Arles.
However, the shows were stopped for security reasons.
Anti-bullfighting campaigners said the boy risked injury. They also cited laws limiting the work of children.
Michelito, whose full name is Michel Lagravere Peniche, said he was disappointed by the bans.
Michelito's father, Michel Lagravere, accused the anti-bullfighting group of picking on his son because he was "in the media spotlight".
"It's like if someone asks a kid who plays football not to play," the boy told French news agency AFP.
Um, is it really? Is kicking a football around the same as chasing a terrified animal around and stabbing it until it dies? Really? Local authorities in southern France have banned two non-lethal bullfights involving a... more
The annual running of the bulls begins in Pamplona today and animal protesters have invaded Spanish bullrings.
Campaigners claim that this truculent and sanguinary sport is no longer followed by the general public (a recent poll found that 72 per cent of Spaniards have no interest in bullfights).
PETA and other groups hope to mobilise their compatriots and obtain the abolition of tauromachy.
The annual running of the bulls begins in Pamplona today and animal protesters have... more
Spanish pop star Alaska has launched a campaign with AnimaNaturalis and Britain's People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) to protest bullfighting. Alaska in her poster poses nude with three spears in her back (the spears are fake :)
Alaska said at the presentation of her campaign: "We need to stick some little banderillas (spears used in bullfighting) in the backs of those who think that the bull does not suffer... The Naked Truth: Bullfighting is Cruel."
Spanish bullfighters are planning an exhibition at the European Parliament to persuade lawmakers that bullfighting is still valid. Spanish pop star Alaska has launched a campaign with AnimaNaturalis and Britain's... more
Here's another thought provoking upload left for "The Bullfight" that aired during 2008's Pod Madness tournament. Thanks to kevung for this one! You can check out the pod here: Here's another thought provoking upload left for "The Bullfight" that aired during... more
"The Bullfight" got a couple great responses that aired during 2008's Pod Madness tournament, one from TaniaZapata. Check out what she had to say about this controversial tradition then watch the pod: http://current.com/items/88835899_the_bullfight"The Bullfight" got a couple great responses that aired during 2008's Pod Madness... more
In Okinawa, there is bullfighting, but there is no Matador. It involves two bulls battling head-to-head in a contest of strength.
Visit my travel video web site - StrayCompass.com and my own personal web site AgileH.com for more great videos.In Okinawa, there is bullfighting, but there is no Matador. It involves two bulls... more
Go inside the top bullfighting school in Spain and hear from those who are against this tradition.Go inside the top bullfighting school in Spain and hear from those who are against... more
