Hi, Cheshireman,

>Pilgrim, bit of a draconian solution...don't like it - ban it.<

Not simply a case of not liking it: IMO, as I said earlier, <i> I believe</i>
that harm is done by the removal of property that should be in the public domain by non-reporting detectorists (before I got into all this, I used to bench with one - and he was completely non-fazed by my arguments for reporting finds, considering them "his" because he found them). To invoke the number of finds removed from the ground by walkers to the number of finds removed by people using a tool expressly designed for such a task is, in my opinion, no argument at all.

Furthermore, any solution involving the removal of a once-held belief or action is bound to be "draconian" as you put it, but that doesn't make it wrong to invoke the ban if it is warranted. I, as an individual and thus able to make my own judgements and hold my own opinions on matters that directly affect me and my society, believe it is warranted. Sorry if that offends you, but if self-policing doesn't work, then we can't just lie down and say that this is how it's going to remain, can we?

Respectfully,

Pilgrim

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