Baiting is extremely effective, you see a lot of animals, but don't for one minute try to argue that it takes as much thought or skill as more traditional methods like still hunting, tracking, spot and stalk, or stand hunting. It works very well when you are trying to hunt a specific deer. I did it a lot when I lived in Texas, but I don't consider killing deer over bait more of an accomplishment than other methods.
Baiting opponents don't like baiting because it is perceived as being less sporting, which is what recreational hunting is supposed to be. Pro baiters always bring up the midwest corn fields, however, I make a distinction between those hunts.
Traditionally corn fields were planted to make money, not hunt over. With a traditional corn field you also do not control where the deer feed at, whereas you do with bait. Bait is also typically timed, and the deer conditioned to compete to get the limited amount of bait before it is gone, so therefore they come out of cover on command. In a corn field, they come and go as they please.
However, without bait, I don't know how anyone would hunt in South Texas. Maybe over water holes and unbaited senderos, but you I'd hand it to anyone who regularly still hunts deer in the brush country of South Texas.
