Now let's ban fishing

[GrahamM]

In one breath you say: "I thoroughly agree that fishing is a cruel sport and that is part of its attraction."

In another breath you say you love it.

Farter, you're talking through your arse.

 

[Ryan Whalesby]

With all those big words I missed the point aswell Graham!!

Creatures in the animal kingdom do exploit and abuse each other for their own palates and enjoyment. Ever seen a cat play with a mouse before it kills it, only to leave it uneaten, or a killer whale tossing a seal about before eating it.

It's human nature (for some, myself included) to hunt and gather, and although some forms of hunting are crueler than others I beleive that the majority of anglers treat their catch better than some of their wives!..... (No comment, she'd kill me!!)

How cruel do you think a golf course is in the long run, with all the chemicals entering the water system, destuction of habitat etc etc.(just an example before I get torrents of abuse from golfers)

Within our sport we are responsible directly or indirectly for a majority of the upkeep of this country's waterways and lakes. It must be equated into terms of how much we, as anglers, put back into nature and the countryside

The real enemy is the small band of thoughtless anglers who treat their catch poorly and leave the contents of their rubbish bags behind them.

 

[GrahamM]

The last thing we want though is some self-righteous, preaching salmon-angling so and so proclaiming angling to be cruel and saying that other anglers are losers.

 

[Gerry Castles]

Listening to what you say makes no sense Mr McFee. You would seem to want to have a foot in both camps and this surely is not possible. Being a meat or fish eater requires you to accept the cruelty of raising animals for food in some shape or form. Organic farming, free range farming, acceptable forms of farming, all the same euphemisms for raising animals to serve up on a plate. I can live with vegetarians and vegans and at least the ones I know are somewhat less pious than you and there is some clarity in how they explain their values. But the real giveaway is in the dismissive way you see other anglers who choose to follow a less expensive but more popular version of the sport. Without those masses of people who spend each weekend under their umbrellas and in their bivvies, your end of the sport would become exclusive and reclusive and would simply not survive. The people that you seem to despise are the backbone of the sport. Without them tackle dealers would not exist much beyond three shops in Pall Mall and if you also despise the flyfishers who never get past the 'hole in the ground' or municipal fisheries, then without them, I suspect those three shops would dissapear too. Learn to live with those people whose fishing aspirations don't match your own Mr McFee and we might learn to live with your arrogant dullard nature. I bet the ghillies just love you.
Gerry Castles
pike fisherman
sailfisherman
flyfisherman
very occasional maggot drowner.

 

[albert watkinson]

i saw a fishing film on tv last saturday morning.2 blokes creeping about in sherlock holmes gear.this was the ultimate way to catch a carp.after netting the carp one of them{no name no pack drill}dumped the carp on the gravel.i myself use a mat but this is where the anti angling fraternity get their ammo from.why should the average angler have to put up with this when he is doing no wrong .no doubt this message could be improved on.make these tv anglers get their act together.

 

[Alan Bowles]

Cruelty is a human concept. Animals do not understand it as we do. I think at the end of the day you have to weigh up all the pro's against the cons and as far as i can see what is put back into angling and the environment far outweighs anything that is taken out. case closed my conscience is clear.

 

[Farter McPhee]

I am astonished at the reaction my simple little letter provoked. Let me assure the other correspondents that I am an angler with far more catholic tastes than most. The day after returning from the Royal Dee (where I had three fish to my own rod)I was catching dabs and whiting on lugworm by Perch Rock at the mouth of the Mersey. A week later I was taking some decent chub from a coloured R. Wye near Ross. I am merely making the point that the abolitioists do have a case. Angling IS cruel but most participants dont care. We will get nowhere by pretending that fishing is kind, equally nowhere by pretending that fish have human feelings.

By the way, I have fished at Avington and was utterly disgusted that anyone could catch fat pig-like trout from a hole in the ground next to the stews and call it sport.

 

[Martin Wright]

Farter - The question of cruelty in fishing is a point of some debate although few would deny that there is some cruelty involved.

However, in over 30 years fishing you are the only Angler I have heard of who actually enjoys the cruelty for its own sake. I hope either you're a wind up merchant or you just expressed yourself badly!

 

[Darren Russell]

Hello, I have visited an anti-angling website and it is completely biased. Apparantly all anglers are evil sadistic child beaters.

If fishing was banned what would stop people from fishing any way and just not paying for a licence that they used to have to.Then thier would be a problem thier would be no money to spend on the water. people would lose thier jobs.(Not to mention the anti anglers who will then proceed to ban FUN.)

 

[John Hepworth]

I have not read all of the postings on this, but was not Ms Thom (aren't they always a Ms) done to death on Keith Arthur's Talk Sport radio programme some months ago. The only problem with some of the letters she sent( and she sent hundreds) was that she complained of seeing "cruel match anglers" in areas where match fishing has never taken place. What sad, sad people.