A request came up on my Twitter feed last night, asking me to sign a HM Gov petition rallying against any consideration of airgun licensing in England and Wales. The following is an explanation, despite my good standing within the airgun community, of why I can’t sign such a petition. On October 10th 2017 the … Continue reading Airgun Licensing … What Are We Scared Of?
Category: Government
Labour’s Animal Welfare Plan? A View From The Countryside.
So today saw the launch of the Labour Party’s ‘50 point plan’ for Animal Welfare Reform and what a cuddly, gushing document it made too! Hardly nature ‘Red’ in tooth and claw, as would be expected. The brief introduction (by Sue Hayman MP, Shadow Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs) sets the … Continue reading Labour’s Animal Welfare Plan? A View From The Countryside.
The Buzzard and The Betrayal
The decision this morning wasn’t whether to brave the winter weather. It was what guns to take? Looking out of the windows at home I could see the light boughs of young yew and cedar bending under a Northerly blow. In the habit lately of taking both air rifle and rimfire, I glanced at the … Continue reading The Buzzard and The Betrayal
‘We Do It To Ourselves, We Do’
The title? "We do it to ourselves we do." is a line from a Radiohead song. Never more pertinent. That I'm a committed 'shooter' is beyond doubt, despite a CV which predominantly reads 'air rifle' and includes many hundreds of shooting press articles. Not to mention several books. I have three shotguns and a .17HMR … Continue reading ‘We Do It To Ourselves, We Do’
The Fairy Tale Of Re-Wilding
The Fairy Tale Of Rewilding It was Christmas Eve, in the inn next the muir Ex-keepers debating how life could endure. Re-wilders, with funding, had bought up the land No shooting, no snares, all vermin control banned. They planted the hillsides; a young forest grows, The grouse have all gone, replaced by the crows. … Continue reading The Fairy Tale Of Re-Wilding
The RSPB’s Feeble Commitment
There have been several comments over the latest release of the RSPB conservation cull statistics for 2015/16. In their continuous efforts to 'build bridges' with a bird charity guilty of massive misappropriation of members funds, I was disappointed to see shooting and conservation organisations applauding these figures. A table of record which confirms the RSPB's … Continue reading The RSPB’s Feeble Commitment
Beefy, Charity, Lead and Lunacy
Sir Ian Botham (in my humble opinion one of this country's most laudable down-to-earth sporting heroes) put up a great idea last week. Sir Ian (aka Beefy) asked why not donate excess shot game-birds in the coming season to charities who support feeding those in need of meat and protein? The urban and tabloid reaction … Continue reading Beefy, Charity, Lead and Lunacy
Poor Little Hedgehog?
Forgive the question in the title, but I saw this rather twee and pathetic plea on my Twitter feed this evening. It just about sums up the witlessness and hypocrisy prevalent amongst armchair 'wildlife worshippers'. The ignorance and arrogance of the modern human being makes me almost ashamed to belong to the species. Reading this … Continue reading Poor Little Hedgehog?
The Righting Of A Serious Wrong
There will be few occasions in anyone's lifetime where they will be privileged to witness the righting of a serious wrong. My generation has, perhaps, been luckier than most. We benefitted from some major historic amendments to injustice (the abolition of slavery being a prime example). The last century has produced a raft of improvements … Continue reading The Righting Of A Serious Wrong
Jaguar: The Black Angel … a synopsis.
A juvenile big-cat is washed up on the Pembrokeshire coast following a shipwreck and manages to survive in the Welsh hills undiscovered. As it matures, the cat is driven by a natural urge to head East. Its journey leaves behind it a trail of chaos and death, none at the claws of the beast. A female … Continue reading Jaguar: The Black Angel … a synopsis.
