Coursing — the debate that divides

This week Paul Rouse tackles a subject dividing people for a number of reasons - hare coursing.

Trying to assess a sport that divides opinions as dramatically as coursing is no straightforward matter. It is obviously not the same thing as divided opinions on, say, golf, where even people who hate golf recognise its right to exist.

Coursing is different. Its opponents wish to destroy its very existence. These wishes can be seen in speeches and pamphlets and newspaper articles and in bills brought before Dáil Éireann.