It is barbaric....killing anything is barbaric...but this is where opinions come apart..just like the seal hunt issue...is it because the baby seals are cute???? no...for most of us it is simply an issue of necessity...it is not necessary to eat meat...or to kill animals for their fur, blubber, *******, horns or whatever part of them we humans think we need. For all those who believe in rhino horn or tiger *******...there is ******. For those who eat meat...there are alternatives...and having been vegetarian since the age of nineteen, i can tell you you do not miss meat. there are so many wonderful foods out there that don't have to taste 'tasteless', a criticism i often hear about vegetarian food...has no one ever heard of herbs and spices????? even my husband will tell you he likes my cooking, and he eats meat way less often now. he, by the way, would never eat cat.