On Tue, 22 Apr 1997 21:05:04 -0400 (EDT) Wallitra at aol.com writes:

>I suggest that Craig Corder's description of Listing as "hunting
>without the
>violence" become "hunting without a gun but still extremely violent."
>Hunting
>that includes the use of tapes, flashlights, forays into areas that
>are
>restricted, and so forth is harmful to birds and extremely unpleasant
>for
>those who don't hunt birds in this fashion. Listers who hunt in this
>fashion
>deserve their ugly step-sister status because they do cause harm.

I am really tired of listers getting all the flack. I AM A LISTER. I AM
ALSO AN ENVIRONMENTALIST. I would never "hunt" a bird in this fashion,
and neither would any of the other listers I know. It's not considered
"fair play."

A great many of the listers out there follow the ABA Code of Ethics. We
don't deserve the bad name you and others are giving us. Why not just
say that this particular group of birders was a bunch of jerks? Why tar
all listers with the same brush?

Most listers are responsible people who want to protect the birds. We
just want to see lots of them. Also, our birding tourism provides an
economic boost to the areas we visit, and the impetus for local people to
protect the land you are hiking on and the birds you are enjoying.

If you were that upset about the behavior of these people, why didn't you
speak up and tell them so? I have done so in the past, and a few of the
jerks have at least had the grace to look ashamed. Some of them actually
stopped what they were doing. Also, is there absolutely no one in charge
at Madera Canyon? Was there no authority to report this behavior to?
Letting the authorities know that you don't appreciate this type of
behavior is one way of getting it stopped.

There are jerks and morons in EVERY group of society. It is unfortunate
that you ran into so many at once. It is also unfortunate that you
didn't speak up about it at the time. You might have enlightened a few
people who badly needed it.

Cathi Pelletier
Waterbury, CT
Heronwing at juno.com