Britain pressured to replace guards' bearskin hats

[Tom Yossarian Joad]

London — The British army's towering bearskin hats have been a well-known sight outside royal palaces for almost 200 years, but their days may be numbered.

Animal rights activists are demanding the hats, made from the pelts of Canadian black bears, be replaced by artificial fur, and one protester plans to follow the Queen in a bear costume during her forthcoming visit to Canada.

“It is time to confine bearskin to the history books, just as bearbaiting was confined to history books in this country,” Andrew Butler, a spokesman for People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, said.

Mr. Butler said one of the group's supporters planned to follow the Queen on her planned May 17-25 visit to Canada, which supplies the British army with bearskin

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http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20050514.wbearsk0514/BNStory/International/

[smoogatz]

1. Oh for cripes' sake.

I'm going to pull on my asbestos underdrawers and just say it: the animal rights movement has turned into a kind of fundamentalism. I dislike proselytizers and self-appointed messiahs of all stripes.

[livinginphotographs]

7. I'm sure the bears are glad someone's bringing it up.

But hey, it's not your skin, so why bother yourself with it?

[smoogatz]

8. Whatev.

I have no moral objection to eating meat or wearing leather or fur. I have no problem with deer/duck/turkey hunting, either--though one draws the line at doves and cats. I understand the argument--but I resent being told that we all have to feel guilty about not wearing hemp belts and canvas shoes and eating tofu three meals a day. That kind of proselytizing is un-Buddhist in the extreme.

[LiberallyInclined]

11. I am definitely not a fan of PETA-

but I'll give them some props for this one-
I don't like the idea of killing these animals just to make a nice prop hat for the stage play that is th british monarchy.

I don't like it when they do it in china/asia just to get the gallbladder, either.

Hunting animals that are not endangered/protected is fine with me- as long as the 'trophy'(for lack of a better word) doesn't just mostly go to waste.

[smoogatz]

13. There we agree.

Before you can wear the hat, you should have to eat the bear. All of it. Not to do so is a sin against the Bear Spirit.

[Dr Fate]

17. Tell that to Smokey.

I'm no PETA type either- but why kill a big ol bear for a stupid hat?

[Colorado Blue]

2. Fake fur! I love it. And it would set a great example. My

husband told me some statistics of tigers and leopards, in India alone, who are being murdered for their fur even though they're protected and terribly endangered. I can't remember the exact numbers but it was terrible. They've done a "census" recently of the big cats in India, and were shocked that there were thousands less than there should be. I'm sure the situation is probably the same wherever they live, in Africa, China, and so forth.

I can't imagine WHO, in this day and age, would actually have the poor taste to wear a real tiger or leopard skin, especially since there are beautiful fabrics available.

Those critters are absolutely irreplaceable. It just makes me want to cry.

[NickB79]

10. Apples and oranges

I agree with you we shouldn't wear the furs of endangered wildlife, but black bears are far from endangered in Canada and the US. There is no danger of overhunting black bears for British fur hats.

[BiggJawn]

14. It's not the skins, it's various other parts...

That are going to Asia to be used as folk-lore remedies for Dickus Limpus and that horrid Thai malady "Toosoon Skwirti"...

Lots of money to be made selling bear-paw jelly to old Korean business men to rub on their pee-pees...

Guess these guys never heard of SUV's, eh?

Whatever happened to that British study about PLANTS "screaming" when you eat them? Guess that wouldn't sit too well with the PETA bunch, would it.

"Blimey...Wot we supposed to eat NOW???"

[MADem]

3. Actually, I think this is a good idea--but NOT for PETA reasons

Fur is massively hot, and with climate change, those outfits have to be uncomfortable in the summer months, when the tourist season is at its peak. A light, hollow fiber, fake fur would look just as good, better, even, be WASHABLE (to get all that funky brow sweat off), be lighter on the head, and cheaper, as well. It would also be easier to create a truly standard cap, so that some guy whose girlfriend sat on his hat doesn't go into a panic trying to repair the damage before it is time to pull his shift.

[izzie]

4. Since I have met people who have said this====

We should kill all the bears as they are pests this sounds like a good deal. With people like that they will not have bears for long.May as plan for it.

[gavodotcom]

5. One of my old fark 'photoshops.'

[Sabriel]

27. I think they should use Holstein skins

Now that would be a fashion statement!

[livinginphotographs]

6. If there are viable alternatives

Why insist on wearing the skin of an animal? Seems simple enough.


But of course, I'm sure there's someone somewhere who will defend this, for whatever reason. :eyes:

[DeaconBlues]

20. "I'm sure there's someone somewhere who will defend this"

How about right here on DU? For a bunch of so-called progressives, a lot of people here sure do have problems with animal-rights.

[livinginphotographs]

28. That's what I was implying.

And we've been quickly proven right.

[oasis]

9. Dump the the hats and dump the royals. Let them work for a living.

:nopity:

[MisterP]

12. but who will the Jacobins blame when things go wrong?

and who will Chimpy show off his cowboy boots to and ask if they have any black sheep in the family?

[AngryAmish]

16. Amen

[AngryAmish]

15. Animal rights dipshits strike again

I swear they are worse in the UK than in the USA.

[DeaconBlues]

19. And here the animal-haters go again

becoming outraged because someone comes up with a plan to do away with a stupid tradition that does nothing but harms animals. How about saving some of your anger for a group of people who destroy instead of those who save?

[LostinVA]

22. Agreed. WHY do people need real fur when fake fur

looks real, is cheaper, and leaves a bear alive? I am ambivalent about hunting rabbits, ducks, etc, and I would have no problem with deer hunting if it was sporting. (I know deer overpopulation is a problem in some places, but I think Rangers should do most of the culling. Might help some of those NPS people keep their jobs, too!) But, I am completely against killing ANY animal for it's pelt. It just seems... wrong. Like torturing Sun Bears for their bile.

[DeaconBlues]

24. You're absolutely right

Why not just use fake fur for these stupid traditions? The tourists won't notice a thing.

[DeaconBlues]

18. The British should do one better and get rid of another outmoded tradition

Get rid of the whole system of social parasites called the monarchy!

[CJCRANE]

21. Or maybe

just replace them with synthetic royals which are cheaper and easier to maintain.

[bennywhale]

23. Or skin them and make them into hats for bears

[CJCRANE]

25. Good idea!!!

Although I'm not sure that's fair as they're an endangered species (the royals that is).

[livinginphotographs]

29. I second that!

:thumbsup:

[muriel_volestrangler]

26. OK, how many who replied here actually bothered to read the article?

"The army said bears are not killed expressly for their fur. Each year the army's hat manufacturer buys roughly 100 pelts from an annual cull of tens of thousands of Canadian bears. Animal rights groups protest this is far more than is necessary to control the population."

And yet loads of people say "why are they killing bears to provide hats?"

Come on, people, you can read posts on DU. Surely you know how to read the online articles too. It's not that hard.

[livinginphotographs]

30. I read it. My opinion is still that they should be replaced.

Fur hats are disgusting no matter how the animal was killed.

:shrug: