Marques about to gore padilla...

The Matador: A Cowardly Bully...

There are some who would praise the courage of juan jose padilla, the bull fighter who lost an eye and can no longer chew his food, after he was gored by Marques, during the dance of sadism called a bull fight. Though maimed for life, padilla intends to go into the ring again. He is not a hero, but a coward who torments a normally peaceful animal into a frenzy, so that he may express his machismo or dominion over a bull. There were no victors in the match between marques and the once proud matador. As is the custom, no matter who wins, the bull loses. The bull is always put to death in yet another example the biblical injunction for man to spread dread and fear over animal kind:

'Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth. The fear and dread of you shall rest on every animal of the earth, and on every bird of the air, on everything that creeps on the ground, and on all the fish in the sea; into your hand they are delivered. Every moving thing that lives shall be food for you; and just as I gave you the green plants, I give you everything.' genesis

Animals never win with dominion.

The tragedy of the bull fight is not that this bullying matador was gored, but that he was in the ring in the first place. Surely there must be a better way to define one's manhood than tormenting and killing an innocent animal. Adding to the perversion of human dominance is the endorsement of such cruelty by the religious institutions of the Semitic tradition. In this case the blood sports of Latin countries such as Spain, includes 'fire bull', where a fire is lit on the horns of a bull as he runs in terror followed by men driven to ecstasy by the cruelty. Another primitive festival where drunk villagers chase a bull as they stab him, are often blessed by a religious leader of the Catholic Church, sometimes in the name of the holy virgin.

If this is religion, then we should have none of it. We must avoid all support of such backward and primitive religions that thrive on driving followers into a religious frenzy of ecstatic sadism. A true religion would not incite to violence and harm of an innocent creature, who under reasonable conditions, would harm no one.

"It is the essential characteristic of a wise person that he/she does not kill any living being. One should know that non-killing and equality of all living beings are the main principles of religion" Jain sutra

Ruth Eisenbud

Spanish matador heading back into ring after losing eye in last bullfight

Juan Jose Padilla will make his offiical comeback in Olivenza, Spain

By Nina Mandell / NEW YORK DAILY NEWS

Friday, March 2, 2012

Bullfighter Juan Jose Padilla slips before being blinded in one eye after being gored in his face during a bullfight at La Misericordia Bullring on October 9, 2011 in Zaragoza, Spain.

A Spanish matador who lost his eye and the ability to chew after getting gored in the face by a raging bull is heading back to the ring.

With an eye patch over one eye, Juan Jose Padilla, will make his official comeback in Olivenza, Spain this weekend - to the shock of fans and many other bullfighters, less than five months after the goring.

"Sunday will feel like a dream come true, after some very hard months, and I'm fully aware that nobody thought I would be back now," Padilla told The New York Times, sporting a massive scar down his face.

Padilla, known now as 'The Pirate' made worldwide news in October of 2011 when the YouTube of a bull gouging out his eye and slashing his face went viral. In the video, Padilla appears stunned and can be heard shouting "I can't see, I can't see" as blood gushes out of his head.

Bullfighter Juan Jose Padilla is blinded in one eye after being gored in his face during a bullfight at La Misericordia Bullring on October 9, 2011 in Zaragoza, Spain.

The Daily Mail reported at the time that doctors thought the injuries were fatal.
It took a five-hour operation to repair severe damage to his left eye, and bone, muscle and skin on his face.

Bullfighter Juan Jose Padilla announces his return to bullfighting at Colon Hotel on January 20, 2012 in Seville, Spain.

The incident was just one of many to reignite a debate in Spain about whether bullfighting, considered a barbaric sport by some and an ancient show of bravery by others, should be legal. The Catalonia region in Spain has instituted a ban on bullfighting while the country's former Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero took great lengths to protect it during his time in office (which ended last year).

Padilla's parents, according to the Times, are against his return while his wife and two children are encouraging his comeback.

Bullfighter Juan Jose Padilla is blinded in one eye after being gored in his face during a bullfight at La Misericordia Bullring on October 7, 2011 in Zaragoza, Spain.

Padilla said he's up for the challenge.

"I'm somebody who has always accepted the risks of my profession, as well as its rewards," he said.