East Hampton May Ban Hunting for One Day a Week

An organization called the East Hampton Group for Wildlife has proposed that the Town of East Hampton set aside one day a week during the hunting season, either a Saturday or Sunday, when hunting would not be allowed.

The forcefulness of the presentation at a town board meeting by many members of this group, including Ron Delsener, the entertainment mogul, has gotten the board’s full attention. Early indications are that at least some of the board members are wishy washy about how they stand. It’s been postponed to a further meeting in June for more discussion.

Hunting is legal in East Hampton during a big four-month chunk of the year, from October 1 to January 31. My opinion is that on the one hand it would be helpful to both the hunted and hunters to have that day off every week. It can be very stressful with the hunters chasing after the animals and the animals hiding or running off during all that time, and they all could, I think, use the break on, say, a Sunday, the Lord’s Day. Everyone could relax and get together and have a few drinks or maybe sing some songs there out in the woods, gospel songs, perhaps. Or folk songs.

On the other hand, since the new rule would only be in force in East Hampton, all the deer and animals in Southampton would sneak across the border to enjoy that day, and the woods could get very crowded.