Lay off them (From Oxford Mail)

Lay off them

4:30pm Friday 18th May 2007 in Letters

Ralph Leavis is surely being cynical in his opinions of our beloved anti-hunt brigade (Oxford Mail, May 15).

These bold guardians of our wildlife do a sterling job. Unelected, unasked-for perhaps, but sterling nevertheless.

After all, what could be more cruel than fox hunting? Battery farming? Of course not.

Otherwise it would have been criminalised. Even poisoning foxes is less cruel. That, too, is still legal.

So leave them alone, Mr Leavis - they are defending the rights of animals not to be killed by other animals and are striking a hefty political blow at all those upper class toffs who, as everybody knows, are the only people to follow and take part in it (as evidenced by the recent documentary, The Lie of the Land).

They speak for a majority, it seems.

The fact that this same majority consumes fast food by the Mcbucketload is of little consequence.

They really care about animals, especially if served with a plate of french fries.

So lay off the anti-hunt brigade, a finer, better informed, intelligent, perceptive and all round nicer bunch of people one could not wish to meet (or meat).

ALAN PAGE, Iffley Road, Oxford