Asking for it

So, Benson 'the UK's most loved carp' (with so many to choose from!) is no more. Actually, the news has just referred to him as 'the people's carp'; that's even better.

For the record, no, I don't agree with angling but I accept that many people enjoy it and, in the same way that I don't expect everybody to give up eating meat tomorrow, I don't advocate in any active way for an angling ban. Except to wind up Martin Salter when I see him.

But regardless of your views on angling, these quotes from the BBC report are nonsense, aren't they?

'...anglers, such as Martin Ford, editor of magazine group Angling Publications, say fish like Benson, who are caught often, actually choose to take the bait, knowing it's on the end of a hook.
"When they get to that size they will get very selective about what they eat and very often they may not be caught for 14 to 15 months.

"So, does pressure perhaps become detrimental to the fish? Yes and no. Some choose not to be caught." Mr Ford says .... if a fish was traumatised by the experience, it would not choose to go through it again. "Benson has made a choice to visit the bank and see what the other side of the world is like."'