Munster Express Online

Dear Sir,

While the tragic shooting in Cumbria is upsetting, the reality is that there are thousands of people in this country of the same ilk who carry out the same homicidal tendencies but instead of a human target direct their lethal firepower towards animals and birds.

One shudders to speculate what would happen if Irish live target shooters were prevented from dishing out death and injury to animals and birds.

It is not a great leap from aiming at a live animal to aiming at live human. The only difference, apart from the legal restrictions, is that a human can fight back. Then again, a human fighting back would add to the buzz of hunting down and killing a moving live target.

A debate needs to take place into the need for the existence of any activity that involves the hunting down and killing of animals and birds. Such activities cloak a sickness and an evil virus that spawn tragic events like the Cumbria massacre.

Can it only be a matter of time before such an event happens on Irish soil? Played out by a member of the Irish gun owning community, twisted and soured with hate, who decides he or she is not going take it any more. Death and injury will flow from this event when it comes to pass.

Then when it is all over the air will be thick with calls of “why did we not see this coming” when in fact the signs were already there.

People who are violent towards animals rarely stop there. Constant exposure to animals and birds been abused destroys the viewer’s moral barriers.

Those who hunt and kill animals for recreation are a viable danger to society.

It is time we got back to the sentiment of “love thy neighbour” rather than “shoot thy neighbour”.

Yours sincerely.

John Tierney

Campaigns Director – Association of Hunt Saboteurs

Waterford