Opinion

Greta blockade

On Saturday a group of people plan to win friends to their cause by blockading the New England Highway at Greta in the Lower Hunter, and it's just too bad if that doesn't fit in with your plans. Evidently your plans for the day, your reason for travelling through Greta, are inferior to their own. Miss your plane from Newcastle Airport? Tough. In fact, the organiser of the highway blockade, a young Greta woman, Stephanie Sutton, tells me she cares more about horses than missing a plane, and I suppose that extends to caring about causing you to miss your plane too!

She and presumably the 100 or so people she expects to join her say it's all about horses, specifically the aerial culling of brumbies in Queensland, and I say it's all about people's rights to use the highway and to be free of constraints imposed by Miss Sutton and others.

And so in my column in The Herald today I propose that the people who are caught in the blockades - there's two of about 15 minutes duration between midday and one o'clock - launch their own protests by chanting "brumbies are mincemeat". (Muswellbrook police who'll be supervising the crossing say drivers should not sound their horns because it is in breach of Australian Road Rules to do so unless it is as a warning.) Culled brumbies should be minced as pet food rather than left to rot and feed the wild pigs.

No cause gives any Australian the right to seize my day or yours, my time or yours, to effectively deprive me of my freedom. I can't see how the right to protest overrides my right to travel along the highway, to be free of intentional disruption. Can you?

Posted By: Jeff Corbett on 13/04/2010 5:25:00 PM | Comments (222)

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Horses are the biggest money eaters we have in this country. Unless they are used as working horses on properties, we have no need for them. (I realise the racing industry is too huge to ignore.) All these people that buy 5 acre blocks etc to keep a few horses are insane. All those 5 acre blocks should be actually producing something. Brumbies? It's a romantic notion of horses running wild in the bush, but in all reality they are a nuisance like every other introduced animal gone wild (pigs, cats, rabbits etc). They need to be culled. And I think these people have the right to protest, but not at the expense of other peoples rights. I just wish their obvious passion could be channelled into something worthwhile than wild horses.

Posted by leahkf, 14/04/2010 9:57:53 AM, on The Herald

Yep! Why are they not protesting against the culling of feral pigs? Wild dogs? Goats? Rabbits?

Posted by Jeff Corbett on 14/04/2010 10:07:38 AM

Why not cull some two legged ferals while we are at it.

Posted by Steve, 14/04/2010 10:12:14 AM, on The Herald

It sounds like these equine evangelists adhere to the "whatever it takes" philosophy espoused by Buell and demonstrated with nauseating monotony by groups like Sea Shepherd and Rising Turd. Not content with the abundant opportunities afforded in our democracy to those who wish to engage in lawful protest in support of their cause, they seek to disrupt and inconvenience those who simply wish to go about their own business unhindered in the name of maximising publicity. No doubt they would be most vociferous in their complaints should they miss a flight, were delayed getting to the latest coal train blockade, or have emergency services delayed for themselves or family. As to the cause itself, wild horses, like wild dogs, foxes, rabbits and other introduced animals cause immeasurable damage to our environment, and culling is an appropriate management tool where capture is not possible.

Posted by Directeur Sportif, 14/04/2010 10:12:24 AM, on The Herald

Look, I'm so no-one really likes the idea of shooting horses. However, its the most appropriate management tool to control their numbers. I would suggest that, if his silly chick from Greta wants to save some of them, she puts her hard earned dollars into establishing her own private trapping and horse re-location venture. If she thinks that its such a sensible idea, then perhaps she should do it herself!!

Posted by King Idiot, 14/04/2010 10:34:28 AM, on The Herald

Anyone want to join me in blockading the F3 in a 'SAVE THE FERAL PIGS' campaign??

Posted by King Idiot, 14/04/2010 10:35:08 AM, on The Herald

Why don't they put their money where their mouths are by offering to remove the brumbies and house them, all at their own expense? Horses are OK, but horse people tend to be self righteous, impractical and altogether a pain. Roads are built for traveling upon, not for protests, cycle races, processions and what else. Let's use them for their intended purpose and force everybody intending to use them for any other purpose to instantly yield to those using a road for its intended purpose.

Posted by jackson, 14/04/2010 10:43:51 AM, on The Herald

sorry king idiot, i am already booked in to attend cane toad appreciation meeting.

Posted by catl, 14/04/2010 10:46:24 AM, on The Herald

The horse racing industry is the biggest offender to maltreatment of horses. Racing them when too young and disposing of those (est 80%) that don't "race" well. I spit on the racing industry and the wankers who support it (esp. the loud mouth who buys free beer for everyone when his horse wins, has a name something like joan sing la tonne.

Posted by Jinx, 14/04/2010 10:46:30 AM, on The Herald

They do not have the right to do this. Surely the police will intervene? What if an ambulance or fire vehicle is held up? These people are idiots who have nothing worthwhile to do with their time. Can we get the aerial cullers to hover over the blockade for 5 minutes?......

Posted by Abundance, 14/04/2010 10:46:54 AM, on The Herald

Jeff, not so long ago 100's of bike riders did the same on the Sydney Harbour Bridge. What should the motorists have yelled? I could think of some if you cannot. Are you scathing of their actions or do you discriminate when you agree with the cause? Did you see 60 minutes two weeks ago? The last round up, much better sollution than yours shooting horses for pet meat, but the guy lived there and proberally knew what he was talking about.

Posted by Buell, 14/04/2010 11:09:34 AM, on The Herald

As I state in my column in The Herald today, Buell, I oppose those cycling protests for the very same reasons I oppose the Greta blockade.

Posted by Jeff Corbett on 14/04/2010 11:13:10 AM

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