A lot of Irish go to Amsterdam to smoke weed as its illegal here … What would your problem with people coming from the UK to spend their money in our economy ?

Dave, Who says I have a problem I am stating a fact.

The stags of the ward union hunt are probably cared for better than and dog in the country !!! Ignorance of the reality will always blur this debate. Hunting in Ireland is not an elitist sport .. It is portrayed as one which helps fuel the anti-hunting lobby. By the way have you ever witnessed the actions of cruelty towards horses perpetrated by anti hunting groups …

A Senator that makes sense, now that’s freaky

Dave you first post side that this topic was best discussed by people who understand the sport but you haven’t shut up since!!!

Which is it?

Senator YOU and your fellow Senators and the Senad should be consinged to history,as the biggest waste of space,money and oxygen if this is all you can actually be bothered getting het up under the collar about!!

Forget about “vigourisouly opposing” the country being bankrupted,corrupt bankers and other” KClub criminals” walzing around the place,freely spending with your fellow politicans and telling us peasents to tighten our belts and pay up or Ye’ll be chucked out of your houses so our overlords in Frankfurt and Brussels can coin it in from the non saying treacherous Irish Dail and Senad and all you can do is be worried about a few Stags being chased about Meath???

You are an UTTER DISGRACE Sir!! Have you no SHAME to be worried about such a trivial matter when the nation is on its knees???You have just proven to me and hopefully the rest of this community that you and your likes are nothing more than an expensive dalliance of naive,wanna bes,has beens,also rans , ivory tower intellectuals,and Dail seat warmers that cost us millions and should be chuucked out onto Kildare street in the morning,while a demolition crew demolishes that wing of the Dail.

Mr abusive no name commenter – I for one will vote if a referendum takes place to abolish the Senate.

Until that happens this man has every right to have a strong opinion on this issue and is as entitled to voice his opinion and you, me and everyone else.

The economic situation is exceptionally bad here but surely someone as opinionated as yourself realises that other issues cannot be forgotten about?

Actually, they’ve come up with weaker arguments: They used to claim that the stags enjoyed the chase, just as coursing clubs swear that hares love being hounded by pairs of salivating dogs in a wired enclosure. After a lot of brandys or pints (respectively…the two “sports” have different fan bases) some of them perhaps believe that.

Gosh John
You know a Hell of alot about the habits of these people..You must hobnob with them to be THAT intimate with al their drink habits??Or is it just somthing you belive to be true like most of your sweeping statements???

And did the farmer make a complaint??as he should if such damage was caused!! I often hear about hunts causing damage to fencing and gates and disturbing livestock but see hardly any real complaints about it, it seems to be automatically presumed that when you see a hunt if is causing damage and disturbance yet the supposed victims of such ransacking never seem to complain about it

Maybe its for the same reason people don’t report other crime, they think it would be virtually impossible for the guards to find the person responsible and the whole thing would be a waste of their and the guards time.

If a hunt caused damage it would not be impossible to find a culprit, the hunt in general could be found responsible as opposed to a specific individual as the hunts have a duty of care and responsibility to the lands they use. Irregardless of people’s opinions on whether culprits for crime will ever be caught that should not be used as an excuse for not reporting something, failure to report a crime portrays an inaccurate picture of an area and leads to creating inaccurate projections on what policing is required in an area

The kids involved in this crap are not the type of kids you’ll find on street corners anyway so that’s a fairly dumb argument

Richie Richie Richie will you explain to me and the rest of us obvious dumb people how the Hunt can be found responsible for damage caused? What would any charge/ summons read?

Just curious

“Teaching the youth of today”… Huh? What have the youth of today got to do with any of this? Also, the object of the hunt isn’t to kill the animal and, save exceptional circumstances much the same as with horse racing, it rarely happens.

It’s perfectly acceptable to be against something, such as hunting, but please can people at least gain some knowledge of what it is they’re against.

Well Vinny firstly I don’t presume you to be dumb of anyone else, note that I said “could” be prosecuted, any case would be brought to the DPP for a decision, but for your information organisations and companies have been named on such documents you mention before so it is not a unique situation, as to how it would exactly read I do not know I have never seen such a document in the flesh. Hunts have had to compensate for damage caused before, I have given an opinion on what I know

An organisation called Farmers against Foxhunting is lobbying for a switch to drag hunting by all hunts as this would avoid damage to crops, fencing, and livestock…

Rural Ireland is that which has not been destroyed by greed and development, where the traditions and pastimes of years gone by still exist. Where your neighbour actually knows you and will actually open his or her mouth to say hello and ask how you are. Rural ireland is in areas of farmland, country lanes and cottages, small towns and villages away from the cities, motorways and housing estates and industrial parks many of which are now idle for so long (and some were never filled at all) that they await demolition. Rural Ireland isn’t a state of mind it’s very much a reality, and reality is something that this country needs to get back too very quickly

This is a good question. I live in Co Roscommon. The house is surrounded by fields, the broadband is crap. Can’t get much more rural Ireland that this. ;-)

Yet, there’s no hunting anywhere around here. And I’d guess you’ll have to drive a fair distance to even find someone who cares about hunting.

In the interest of accuracy, RISE should be renamed PRISE: “Parts of Rural Ireland say Enough” (whatever that means).

And there was me thinking isolation in rural Ireland was a serious problem, thanks for setting me right Richie. Not to nitpick, but you left out the part about the comely maidens dancing at the crossroads.

Rural Ireland – where you know your neighbours name but don’t care enough to insure your septic tank is working properly & not poluting their water, by just paying €5 to find out. Not caring enough to pay €100 household charge to insure that there are services there for your neighbours when they need them. Rural Ireland where they disregard anything from the government they don’t like and blame it on them “city folk” even though most of the govenrment are rural folk.

In rural Ireland your neighbours don’t get services and neither do you. You provide your own and you still pay the charges.

Well John McG I live in rural Ireland and my sewage is disposed of via a community scheme, I also have paid my household charge as have many of my neighbours and I seem to remember a lot of city dwellers rearing up on the introduction of certain bin charges, any more educated opinions to enlighten us with??

Possibly call it SUPRISE “Some Upperclass Parts of rural Ireland say enough”

Rural Ireland never use any services – schools, librarys, footpaths, road maintenance, street lightnig, sports pitches, playgrounds. They stay on their one of house plot, that was given to them by their parents & never leave.

All the people on the horses aren’t chasing the fox or stag.
The hounds chase the fox/stag and there’s usually just one guy (the guy with the horn) controlling the hounds.
Those on horses (obviously) have to keep well back from the hounds as otherwise they migth accidentally be trod upon.
So the people on horses are just tagging along…hunt followers on horseback really.
Which as I say, if you want to kill stuff, fox hunting is the worst blood sport to take up. Fishing and shooting otoh…

Then why not just go horse riding cross-country?

They do sometimes. Drag hunts follow a fake trail, and can be much faster.
With fox hunts though it can be less predictable (and in the case of the Ward Union it ended up several times being dangerously unpredictable), and sometimes much more boring as they wait around in the rain for a scent.
The chances of actually catching a fox is very low and the fox with go to ground and they’re not dug out so escape.
I suppose there’s also a lot of “dem der lads from duberlain won’t be telling us what to do” sort of thing to it too.

There is nothing dumb about a stag and particularly during a hunt. Invariably the pack don’t catch up and even when they do the dogs are obedient enough when called off to allow the animal be carefully restrained and returned to the herd.

I have family who hunt and most definitely don’t belong to anything remotely like an upper class thing. The vast majority who hunt are people who love their horses and use it as a form of winter exercise and fun. The so called upper class have been too busy in recent years with winters abroad in the sun and international property portfolios to be getting muddy on Sunday mornings in the freezing rain.

To say its a class thing is totally without foundation, people from all of the rungs of society’s ladder have hunted and do hunt. If you want to enter debate use factual statements instead of ones that suit your point of view

Say what you like about Lucille’s statement about class but you can’t deny that their right about the fact that they are hunting for sport rather then out of necessity and that if they were after the fox as a pest, they could kill it faster and more humanely with a gun then with dogs.

Hey Lucy did you ever see a fish that ended up on your plate gulping for oxygenated water before it died or a chicken electrocuted before it is mechanically defeathered and diced for Kentucky or a heifer sliced across the throat (by a Muslim priest in an Irish slaughterhouse) to bleed out before being hoisted by its hind legs and then butchered for your table. Dear Lady this happens millions of times a day all over the world and you have a problem with vermin being put down in rural Ireland. Dear me!

Number One: All of that goes to producing food, its not killing for the fun of it.
Number Two: If the fox is a varmint, then it can be more effectivly with a gun.
Number Three: Muslims do not have priests.

Exactly. Dog fighting is a cruel urban sport, and stag hunting is (was) a cruel rural practise. Where it happens is beside the point. It’s the deliberate cruely posing as sport that offends many people.

My sentiments exactly Dave!

Well said, a sensible comment indeed

Well said Dave.

What is there to understand. What is so sporting about chasing a creature that is outnumbered and defenceless?

“The only thing necessary for the triumph [of evil] is for good men to do nothing.”

Not really neutral Dave, after all you have family who hunt

That’s like saying that burglars should be left to debate the intricacies of housebreaking amongst themselves, as others are not informed enough…ridiculous statement!!

Well said Mr looney. I for one DO come from an equestrian backround and AM associated with hunting/horse riding etc. SO i say, at least these horses are being properly cared for and the stag at least goes home to a nice bed of straw and has half of the year free to run around with a herd (i know I have witnessed it). And yes I am opposed to stag hunting for the most part but theres is a hell of a lot more cruel cases out there compared to the The Ward Union Hunt. Why not go to a slaughter house Ms Healy and stop people SELLING THEIR HORSES THERE FOR MEAT INSTEAD??? Or find the people who are selling irish horses illegally to other countries for meat? huh?? if you have no idea what your talking about when it comes to equestrian and rural ireland matters THEN DONT COMPLAIN ABOUT IT PEOPLE. And its also not about class or wealth and people who hunt are not imbociles. All of them are educated buisiness/family people who hunt for because its what they’ve always done. And its what their ancestors have done.. And whoever mentioned them being half drunk going out IS NOT THE CASE. Yes traditionally some hot drinks are had at the meet as part as a social thing in the winter. And I can assure whoever is concerned about the horses welfare, that once the season is over they go run around in a field for half the year, getting fat on the good grass and acting like herd animals. Okay rant over. Sorry if I insulted anybody but you should really know what your talking about before you go judging other peoples lifestyles.

How many people are killed by defective firearms each year? Probably less than the number by defective bicycles … Should we have a NCTS for bikes too? What about toasters? Kettles? High heel shoes … Your talking nonsense and has nothing to do with the discussion.

Barry, pretty much every firearm in Ireland already has a firearms version of the NCT (ie. a proofing mark or quality control marks from the manufacturer), and has had for the last century or two…

David the use of the word priest was a substitute for Imam or the scholarly leader of a Muslim community that in Christianity we would describe as a priest or theologian.
Most of the opponents of Hunting have no knowledge of country life or the origins of everyday foods that they consume. Living outside cities brings with it all of the excitement associated with septic tanks and vermin control together with sheep dipping and pot holes. We therefore developed rural practices that combined entertainment and vermin control to ensure our motivation levels could be maintained for tasks that other wouldn’t do. The entertainment is in the chase while the satisfaction lies the removal I’d animals that kill our chickens and newborn lambs and all of his is achieved without discharging firearms which seems to have become a form of urban amusement.
The Imams and the priests would surely speak out against the latter.

Barry, any firearm bought today will either come with a proofing mark or (if it’s from the US) quality control marks from the manufacturer. It’s been that way for a century or two. Firearms which have degraded due to wear and tear are normally retired by their owners; occasional inspections by the Gardai are carried out and will pick up any firearms that are obviously no longer fit for purpose. Over the last three or four years, pretty much every one of the 220,000 licenced firearms in the state was inspected as the new licencing system was rolled out.

But to be blunt about it, you’re asking for people to solve a problem that just doesn’t exist. We might as well require all firearms owners to carry bear repellent on them at all times lest marauding polar bears swim to Ireland to steal their firearms…

It’s a miracle that there hasn’t been human blood with this ward union nonsense. I live in the area ans was almost killed when the stag got loose one year. They trample over people’s rights and I hope they never get the ban overturned.

People on horseback garner little public sympathy… It’s a class thing…

Which is why the position of Labour is so predictable.

Funnily enough I can picture Pat Rabbitte, on his trusty steed, at the head of the hunt. Cheeks reddening with every blow on the bugle!
Tally ho!
:)

Winston I think you’ll find it’s not a class thing but a realisation the stags were not put on the planet to be chased down by dogs and a**eholes on horses for a bit of sport

Chickens weren’t ‘put here’ to make a nice curry either though…

Bilbo if you can’t quiet understand how the food chain works there’s no point in me trying to explain it to you.

Suffice to say if I decide to treat a chicken in a cruel inhumane way for nothing other than sport I will be prosecuted for animal cruelty offences.