Time to Abolish Fishing

By Dan Paden

Sport fishing, like dog fighting, "entertains" at a high cost to the animals.
But violence toward weaker, unwilling animal participants should never be
entertaining. Public and legal recognition of this is overdue.

I have not always held this view. In fact, the arrival of spring evokes fond
memories of season-opening fishing trips. My father and I would ignore the
inevitable chill of April in upstate New York and head to a local lake. We
never left with our limit of trout, but that did not matter. We really went
to enjoy the outdoors and, most of all, to be together. We spent entire days
next to one another, sometimes talking, sometimes silent. I will always
cherish the peace of those days.

That said, I will always regret the suffering I caused. Along with the good
times, I remember scenes of misery also. I can still see the flopping tails
of the fish struggling while I ripped embedded hooks from deep within their
gullets. Many released fish would go belly-up, having fought for their lives,
been over-handled on shore and then inadequately resuscitated. Those destined
for my plate were kept "fresh" on a stringer, going lifeless in the shallows
with a nylon cord penetrating their bleeding, overworked gills. The less
"desirable" fish, such as carp, were tossed over my shoulder, condemned to a
slow death of suffocation in the grass.

Thankfully, I came to see the irony of celebrating my love of nature by
hunting some of her most beautiful creatures. My dad, a man of integrity and
compassion, understood and respected my decision to stop fishing. We still go
to the park, of course, but now we hike around the lake instead of torturing
its inhabitants. Come spring, we anticipate baseball's first pitch, not
fishing season's first casualty. Last year, rather than wade into icy water,
we sat together in a frigid ballpark on opening night. Dad and I still have
all we did when we fished, minus the pain, deception and death. We continue
to enjoy the outdoors, its peace and each other's company, though my mom
might debate the last when the Yankees face the Red Sox.

In the end, no one needs to maim or kill aquatic animas to enjoy nature and
to share time with friends and loved ones. Fish are as capable of suffering
as are the dogs we care for and live with. Accordingly, it is time to abolish
fishing, both as individuals and as the civilized society we claim to be.

Dan Paden works for People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA).

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