I'm a lvl 57 hunter and agree that the hunter's traps do may not last as long - my freeze trap currently lasts UP TO 15sec. But anything is a bonus. BUt I don't totally agree with everything else you said.  Hunter DPS is constant and consistent - rarely is a shot parried or blocked and if the hunter has the added distance he is beyond the range or most aoe stuns which stop a main tank.  Also, does you DPS counter include the pet?  When you through in the damage a pet does a hunter's dps moves up in the ranks.  Also, the ability to send the pet on an annoying caster to keep him off cloth wearer's or even the main tank is a bonus.  Generally, most any class played poorly can be useless and annoying there just happens to be a number of hunters who are poor in groups.