Recently an aboriginal speaker was talking about reconciliation. Reconciliation, he said, is not about feeling guilty for past actions, it is about seeing the situation as it is. On the one hand, he said, Whites must acknowledge that the arrival of Europeans 200 years ago, was an invasion - and that an invasion has consequences. On the other hand, aborigines must accept that the the invasion happened. That the Europeans arrived, and that they are staying. That they are now part of Australia. That they are never going to return to their tall ships and sail away. That we must all make the best of it.

And that is why we must accept our non-indigenous (feral) animals. Non-indigenous animals were brought here for our use, convenience and comfort. To slaughter them all is impossible. To slaughter them at all - particularly by the means described on earlier pages - is indefensible.