Glad to see they are showing the body part where their head normaly is.

Posted by: Mars | September 5, 2007 10:02 AM

My sister went to the UK for 4 weeks on Monday.
I told her that if she goes to see the queen she has to yell at the guards for me

Posted by: Ferretboy | September 5, 2007 10:05 AM

M - ars shut up you silly joker!!!

Posted by: Lord of the Apes | September 5, 2007 12:12 PM

As a brit through and through I am discusted that they are still using real animals skin when there are so many alternatives. I am equally discusted that as Her Majesty is patron to the Royal Society for the Protection against CRUELTY to Animals. She should not allow this to happen. Or does she think that the bears shot out of the trees then tore apart by raging dogs or left in traps in agony for three or more days is not cruel then pardon me......Also the duke of Edinburgh is a patron yet someone should tell him this the next time he takes out his rifle to go animal shooting. HOW DARE THEY!!!! I call upon tourists to boycott London untill the Ministry of Defense uses animal free alternatives....

Posted by: stefan | September 5, 2007 02:54 PM

PPLE JOKIN NEED 2 STOP NOW THIS IS A SERIOUS MATTER

Posted by: alex | September 5, 2007 03:39 PM

I don't get it. It's a hat. Why does tradition matter when it's a hat? Why does it have to be skin when it's a freakin' HAT? I mean, I was surprised to find out they were real bearskin; they're the fakest, ugliest things I've ever seen. Cheap teddy-bear-type faux fur would have the same effect. They don't even have to make it publicly known, only providing proof to the complainers.

How long do people have to do ridiculous protests over a hat, before the royals & the government (whichever's more in charge of this thing) realize that they're fighting for the right to slaughter god-knows-how-many bears over a HAT?

Posted by: Jessica | September 5, 2007 04:00 PM

'' Stefan '' wonderfully put.

Posted by: keith | September 6, 2007 02:33 PM

"realize that they're fighting for the right to slaughter god-knows-how-many bears over a HAT?"

The bears are not hunted for their skins.The skin is a byproduct that if not used will get thrown away.

Posted by: Mars | September 12, 2007 08:28 AM

The skin (or fur) of these bears is not a by-product. These bears are only being killed for their fur, and primarily for the fur in those hideous hats!

And to top it all off, the oh-so-wonderful traps that are used to catch these bears also happen to trap a lot of "unwanted" animals, who end up chewing off their own limbs to escape. Are they just "by-products" too?

Posted by: Michele | September 12, 2007 11:57 AM

"The skin (or fur) of these bears is not a by-product. These bears are only being killed for their fur, and primarily for the fur in those hideous hats!"

You obviously don't know the truth!

"And to top it all off, the oh-so-wonderful traps that are used to catch these bears also happen to trap a lot of "unwanted" animals, who end up chewing off their own limbs to escape. "

There is only a few animals that will chew their leg in a trap and it is not to escape the trap.If an animal was that smart I couldn't catch it in the first place.

Bear trapping is only legal in one state in the U.S. and those traps are too big to catch any other animal.

Bear fur comes from bears killed during regular hunting and the fur would be left to rot in the field if no use could be found for it.

Posted by: Mars | September 14, 2007 07:39 AM

Mars, you are a psychopath. An animal who chews its leg off to escape from a trap is not stupid, it is doing so out of sheer desperation!

I don't know about the US bear hunting issues - the black bears that the British use are from Canada. The only reason that bear hunting still goes on in Canada is because there unfortunately is still a foreign market for the fur.

Fortunately, it is likely that the European Union will be banning imports of black bears, so the decreased demand will render the culling of Canadian black bears unnecessary.

Here are some more facts for you:

"The Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources report that as many as one in seven bears is not killed outright and escapes wounded. Wounded bears who get away may die from blood loss, starvation or gangrene.

It is common for bears to be hunted from bait sites. Food is left regularly for hungry bears, so they become accustomed to going to the same spot to find food. Hunters then hide in tree stands and shoot at the bears who come looking for their regular meal. It's hardly a display of skill or sportsmanship.

In some Canadian provinces, there are no restrictions on the shooting of mothers with nursing cubs, leading to the slaughter of entire families during hunts.

Bears are also trapped with foot snares or box/culvert traps, which are intended to keep the bears alive until the return of the hunter. While some provinces insist that the traps be checked daily, others allow the traps to be checked as infrequently as every three days."

Posted by: Michele | September 14, 2007 01:21 PM

"The only reason that bear hunting still goes on in Canada is because there unfortunately is still a foreign market for the fur. "

Wrong.Nobody hunts bear just for the fur. Of course I'm just a bear hunter so what do I know.

" An animal who chews its leg off to escape from a trap is not stupid, it is doing so out of sheer desperation!"

Wrong. An animal chews it's foot after it becomes numb from being in a steeljaw trap and eats that foot as a food source not as an escape effort.An animal would have to possess knowledge of human traps and how they work in order to know that chewing(eating) a foot would work to bring it freedom.They don't and cannot have such knowledge.

"Bears are also trapped with foot snares or box/culvert traps,"

So much for foot chewing which bears don't do anyway.

"It is common for bears to be hunted from bait sites. Food is left regularly for hungry bears, so they become accustomed to going to the same spot to find food. Hunters then hide in tree stands and shoot at the bears who come looking for their regular meal. It's hardly a display of skill or sportsmanship."

So what? Hows that effect your life?FYI, bears are ALWAYS hungry.

"so the decreased demand will render the culling of Canadian black bears unnecessary."

No, it means the fur that could be used will now be thrown away.

Posted by: Mars | September 16, 2007 06:41 PM

well the main thing is America beat the red out of the british, so tradition is all they really have left, so let them just do their own thing, and stop bugging them, or they might try to issue a stamp act or somthing

Posted by: US is GREAT | November 16, 2007 02:52 AM

That`s our tradition. Love it - or hate it. This campaign is CRUELTY...

Posted by: loyalist | December 22, 2007 12:28 PM