BULL FIGHTS and more

A friend mentioned bull-fights in Spain and it took me down the memory lane when I worked with the Government of India as an Animal Welfare Trainer. Having come across numerous cruelties towards animals, I had become slightly thick skinned ( read more practical than emotional) in my approach. I mean just when you think you’ve seen it all, you come across yet another act of cruelty that leaves you stunned. Who says Man has evolved? He remains a beast. At times, worse….

Once one of my trainees had asked me- what can we do to stop the brutal Bull- Fights in Spain. Most often we are aware and interested in the bigger issues rather than the ones that immediately affect us. This was a classic case. Instead of barking about stray dogs, or lamenting on the condition of animals in the Byculla Zoo, this trainee was interested in Whaling and Bull Fights. Well, nothing wrong with that. As long as you want to contribute and make a difference, it doesn’t matter what cause you choose. So, I thought for a while wondering what could we do to stop something so popular. And then I remembered a signature campaign that was done across the world in this connection. Banning Bull Fights would be possible only if the Spanish government could be persuaded to do so. And one of the ways of doing this was creating public opinion with the tourists refusing to visit this otherwise beautiful country unless they put an end to this gruesome sport.

I was in Spain not long ago, and was pleasantly surprised that the district that we were in (the region of Catalonia) had banned this bloody sport. Finally there was a beginning. However it takes a lot of effort to make these kind of changes happen. Animals among other things are a source of entertainment. Whether it’s the Rooster fights in India where equipped with sharp blades on their legs one Rooster kills the other, or in circuses where the king of the jungle meekly sits on a stool, or the mighty elephant plays football or a lovely exotic parrot dances to some Bollywood song, even a lion enjoying his afternoon siesta in a cage is expected to wake up and do monkey tricks for the visitors. I’d rather see these creatures in the wild. I’d prefer the posh ladies with their lovely trimmed hats and the immaculately dressed men run at the Derby than the horses themselves. I'd encourage a parent to buy an X-box than a pet which may become a victim of gross negligence. I think it’s high time we stop feeling amused and entertained at the expense of animals, who are forced to be a means of our entertainment.

When you are on the brink of boredom, you want to do something interesting to keep yourself occupied. It may be something that you’ve wanted to do for a long time. Maybe pursue a hobby or try out something entirely new, creative and engaging. With the evolution of mankind, the things that he does to keep him entertained have evolved too. I need not highlight here the various things that we do or could do to keep ourselves creatively or mechanically occupied. Our options today are unlimited, ranging from constructive and responsible ones to more pervert and sadistic ones.

What we choose to do is entirely up to us.