A Letter to the Editor:
I write in response to your article entitled "Opponents Seek Ban On Local Waterfowl Hunting," which appeared on the front page of the Two River Times for the week of January 18, 2008. The article reported that Susan Russell of Fair Haven and certain other residents living along the Navesink and Shrewsbury Rivers and elsewhere had formed an organization called "Residents for a Peaceful River" that is calling for the end of waterfowl hunting on the rivers. The reason proffered by Ms. Russell (the organizer of the group) boils down to noise: she claims that gun shots from waterfowl hunters are simply too loud for her and the other members of the group. I would respectfully suggest to you and to your readers that Ms. Russell's call for an end to hunting on the Naveskink and Shrewsbury Rivers has nothing to do with noise, and everything to do with her radical, anti-hunting agenda that she has very publicly espoused for more than 25 years.
Ms. Russell has held many positions in organizations dedicated to ending hunting. She is currently the Policy Director for the Center for Animal Research based in Rumson. Previously, she served as the Vice President and Spokeswomen for Friends of Animals, the founder of the NJ League of Animal Protection Voters, the Legislative Advisor for the Society for Animal Protective Legislation (based in D.C.) and as a member of the Coalition to Prevent the Destruction of Canadian Geese.
In those roles, Ms. Russell has advocated against all types of hunting in New Jersey and in other states. For example, she opposed Princeton's decision to permit bowhunting in the boro to reduce deer populations, and the Monmouth County Park System's decision to open county parks for deer hunting because of overpopulation. Similarly, Ms. Russell organized against plans to reduce Canadian geese populations through hunting and other means. She wrote that individuals who supported plans to reduce their numbers are "fearmongers" who "pose more of a threat than the birds."
Ms. Russell is quoted in your article as describing the noise generated from waterfowl hunting "sounds no different than Iraq." Ms. Russell is no stranger, however, to using emotional rhetoric in support of her anti-hunting campaign. She has described the professionals at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service as the "indentured slaves of hunting lobbies" that are oriented "totally toward satisfying hunter bloodlust." Likewise, she complained that Monmouth County Park officials who expanded hunting in parks were deaf to her pleas, "there's just no reaching these people." She has also described New Jersey's hunting policies as "institutionalized pogroms against displaced wildlife." Finally, she has even attacked the New Jersey Audubon Society (a mainstream environmental group) for issuing a report advocating the expansion of deer hunting as a method of preventing deforestation. She called the group's recommendation "politically compromised and factually coy."
Ms. Russell apparently thinks little better of local government officials. She has not brought her noise complaints to them, instead she opted to write to Governor Corzine directly. In that letter, she complained that "calls to local police yield no assistance," and local officials "look the other way." When presented with the opportunity to discuss the issue with local mayors, however, Ms. Russell failed to a attend the recent Two Rivers Council of Mayors meeting held in Little Silver.
I attended the meeting of the mayors, and I can report that the mayors engaged in a responsible discussion of the issue of hunting on the rivers. Mayors from Rumson, Little Silver, Red Bank and other towns directly on the river noted that they had received no complaints from residents about noise from waterfowl hunters and that the activity already is regulated by the State. Moreover, as your article corrected noted, one mayor opined that the rivers are public resources open to all, and that hunting has been a part of river life for decades. Another mayor noted that he "did not want to open a can of worms" by deciding which activities (and thereby the attendent noises) should or should not be banned from a publicly-owned river.
I think it is also worth mentioning that waterfowl hunting is not the only source of gun noise on the Navesink and Shrewsbury Rivers. Indeed, there are two active gun clubs, one at the Rumson Country Club on the Shrewsbury River and one on Dorn Island on the Navesink River. The members of those clubs shoot many more rounds in a weekend than all waterfowl hunters combined shoot in a season. In addition, the Monmouth County Park System has opened Hartshore Woods to deer hunting with firearms, another source of firearm noise. Belying her stated objective to create a peaceful river, Ms. Russell has not, however, called for an end to the gun clubs, nor has she asked for an end to boating, jetskis, or other noise creating activities on the rivers.
In short, Ms. Russell has concealed the true nature of her campaign -- the end of all hunting -- into a none too subtle complaint about noise. The mayors rightly determined that waterfowl hunting on the rivers is not a problem for the vast majority of their constituents. I would hope that Governor Corzine will follow suit.
Regards,
Karl Buch
Rumson, NJ
I write in response to your article entitled "Opponents Seek Ban On Local Waterfowl Hunting," which appeared on the front page of the Two River Times for the week of January 18, 2008. The article reported that Susan Russell of Fair Haven and certain other residents living along the Navesink and Shrewsbury Rivers and elsewhere had formed an organization called "Residents for a Peaceful River" that is calling for the end of waterfowl hunting on the rivers. The reason proffered by Ms. Russell (the organizer of the group) boils down to noise: she claims that gun shots from waterfowl hunters are simply too loud for her and the other members of the group. I would respectfully suggest to you and to your readers that Ms. Russell's call for an end to hunting on the Naveskink and Shrewsbury Rivers has nothing to do with noise, and everything to do with her radical, anti-hunting agenda that she has very publicly espoused for more than 25 years.
Ms. Russell has held many positions in organizations dedicated to ending hunting. She is currently the Policy Director for the Center for Animal Research based in Rumson. Previously, she served as the Vice President and Spokeswomen for Friends of Animals, the founder of the NJ League of Animal Protection Voters, the Legislative Advisor for the Society for Animal Protective Legislation (based in D.C.) and as a member of the Coalition to Prevent the Destruction of Canadian Geese.
In those roles, Ms. Russell has advocated against all types of hunting in New Jersey and in other states. For example, she opposed Princeton's decision to permit bowhunting in the boro to reduce deer populations, and the Monmouth County Park System's decision to open county parks for deer hunting because of overpopulation. Similarly, Ms. Russell organized against plans to reduce Canadian geese populations through hunting and other means. She wrote that individuals who supported plans to reduce their numbers are "fearmongers" who "pose more of a threat than the birds."
Ms. Russell is quoted in your article as describing the noise generated from waterfowl hunting "sounds no different than Iraq." Ms. Russell is no stranger, however, to using emotional rhetoric in support of her anti-hunting campaign. She has described the professionals at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service as the "indentured slaves of hunting lobbies" that are oriented "totally toward satisfying hunter bloodlust." Likewise, she complained that Monmouth County Park officials who expanded hunting in parks were deaf to her pleas, "there's just no reaching these people." She has also described New Jersey's hunting policies as "institutionalized pogroms against displaced wildlife." Finally, she has even attacked the New Jersey Audubon Society (a mainstream environmental group) for issuing a report advocating the expansion of deer hunting as a method of preventing deforestation. She called the group's recommendation "politically compromised and factually coy."
Ms. Russell apparently thinks little better of local government officials. She has not brought her noise complaints to them, instead she opted to write to Governor Corzine directly. In that letter, she complained that "calls to local police yield no assistance," and local officials "look the other way." When presented with the opportunity to discuss the issue with local mayors, however, Ms. Russell failed to a attend the recent Two Rivers Council of Mayors meeting held in Little Silver.
I attended the meeting of the mayors, and I can report that the mayors engaged in a responsible discussion of the issue of hunting on the rivers. Mayors from Rumson, Little Silver, Red Bank and other towns directly on the river noted that they had received no complaints from residents about noise from waterfowl hunters and that the activity already is regulated by the State. Moreover, as your article corrected noted, one mayor opined that the rivers are public resources open to all, and that hunting has been a part of river life for decades. Another mayor noted that he "did not want to open a can of worms" by deciding which activities (and thereby the attendent noises) should or should not be banned from a publicly-owned river.
I think it is also worth mentioning that waterfowl hunting is not the only source of gun noise on the Navesink and Shrewsbury Rivers. Indeed, there are two active gun clubs, one at the Rumson Country Club on the Shrewsbury River and one on Dorn Island on the Navesink River. The members of those clubs shoot many more rounds in a weekend than all waterfowl hunters combined shoot in a season. In addition, the Monmouth County Park System has opened Hartshore Woods to deer hunting with firearms, another source of firearm noise. Belying her stated objective to create a peaceful river, Ms. Russell has not, however, called for an end to the gun clubs, nor has she asked for an end to boating, jetskis, or other noise creating activities on the rivers.
In short, Ms. Russell has concealed the true nature of her campaign -- the end of all hunting -- into a none too subtle complaint about noise. The mayors rightly determined that waterfowl hunting on the rivers is not a problem for the vast majority of their constituents. I would hope that Governor Corzine will follow suit.
Regards,
Karl Buch
Rumson, NJ
