"However, it seems to me that the people who have crafted this and wish to see indiscriminate shooting of "roaming" cats are really closet troublemakers who want to see neighbor pitted against neighbor."
Sorry but this is the same gibberish that is posted on the other threads. This doesn't give you the ability to shoot cats on other people's property or to discharge a firearm within city limits or other places it is prohibited. It is targeted to where the problem lies- rural areas where cats don't belong in the wild and need to be controlled like any other nuisance animal.
But I expect that part to be ignored and the same lame claims to be made that 'a bunch of rednecks just want to shoot cats' - just like it always is.
I guess logic isn't required when talking about cats.
Well trap them then. You've heard of farm cats surely.
I grew up in the country in Texas, and I now live in the country in California, so I think I am fairly well acquained with rural habits and attitudes. I didn't say that this measure did give anyone the right to shoot cats on their home territory. But unrestrained cats do roam, often widely, and when Mr. A's Tigger sets foot on Mr. B's property, Mr. B would be within his "rights" to shoot Tigger. Mr. B may then "shovel and shut up," but people are notoriously bad at keeping secrets, and when Mr. A finds out just what happened to Tigger, he may then find it within his "rights" to shoot Mr. B's hound dog the next time he gets out of the fence again and comes trotting down the road. This is where the Hatfield/McCoy aspect comes in. People get very, very testy about other people shooting their animals, even when they should have controlled them themselves in the first place. If you don't believe that this measure ups the potential for human-on-human violence, just look at some of the veiled threats on this thread.
As for other methods for controlling cats, there are plenty. For true ferals that can't be rehabilitated, you trap them and euthanize them. They end up just as dead, yes, but at least you can weed out the ones that are totally uncontrollable or too sick to get well from those who can be placed somewhere. And lots of places are now supporting feral "colonies," where volunteers trap, neuter, and release the animals, then feed them until they die of old age. This is work, yes, and I agree that it should not be done on the taxpayer's dime -- but there are plenty of people who are nutsy enough about animals to do this sort of thing, if they are simply allowed to do so.