I have mixed feelings about it all. There are plusses and minuses. Disease, neighbors engaging in "bait wars", deer getting spooked up and going nocturnal are bad aspects. Good shot placement, insured harvest, ability of those with limited land or time to hunt to attract deer are plusses. With regard to ethics, shooting a standing deer at 80 yards with a gun through a scope, bait or no bait, is not really too tough is it? On the flip side, shooting a deer at 20 yards with a bow, even with bait, can be a challenge. My only gripe is when some in my area seem to be dumping huge amounts of bait in excess of what is legally allowed and the deer completely disappear, leaving my teen son with absolutely nothing to see or shoot - that bums me out greatly.