THERE is only one thing that can be politely said about Mr Perkins’ letter regarding hunting (Bay Post/ Moruya Examiner, January 30) - shameless biased twaddle!
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In the past he has vilified anglers as raping the oceans in a wanton destruction of fish with no thought to the future.
Now he slanders hunters as irresponsible yobbos who go into the bush with guns blazing, shooting anything that moves in an orgy of blood-lust.
That is as untruthful as claiming all forest “eco-warriors” smear logging equipment with their faeces, urinate on timber workers’ cars and bang nails into logs in order to injure workers in timber mills . . . they don’t all do that, do they?
His letter is one of a line of letters from a few people who believe they have somehow become the self-appointed guardians of the Eurobodalla’s cultural morals, deciding on what pursuits we should look forward to on the Nature Coast.
They are, in fact, just plain intolerant of anything they don’t understand and have no experience with; in other words, bigots.
Mr Perkins’ hypocrisy is there for all to see.
In a letter to the Narooma News, June 2011, he strongly advocated the aerial culling of horses in Kosciusko National Park.
Having seen this done on deer in New Zealand, in my professional opinion, this is an inhumane method.
A single shot from a ground hunter is a far more effective, precise and kinder solution.
What is lost in the whirlwind of misinformation from the likes of Mr Perkins is the fact that Australia’s national parks are becoming reservoirs of feral animals that are wreaking havoc with the environment.
Soil erosion caused by deer, pigs and goats and the slow but sure killing off of small native fauna by feral dogs and cats are serious issues.
As a regular user of Kosciusko National Park since 1964 I have noticed a substantial increase in the numbers of deer and pigs in quite a few areas.
From my personal experience allowing hunters on to a family farm, the vast majority are responsible, care for the environment they move in and want to do the right thing.
It is possible to have satisfactory management of feral species in areas where localised hunting occurs as part of an overall strategy of feral pest reduction.
It has been successful in national parks in Victoria and South Australia and is certainly worth a trial in the three parks down here.
Philip Creagh
Narooma