Recently whilst looking through a few fishing sites, the following topic made me sit up and take notice:-

Disabled Angers Kill Fish !!
This topic was about the following comment made on the BBC Ouch website-

1. Fishability
If you are of a mind to disable or kill some fish, you will be delighted to hear that your own disability may work in your favour when obtaining the necessary documents. From 2007, those of you who are in receipt of DLA are entitled to a half price angling licence.
More information from the British Disabled Angling Association
This was one comment that I found very offensive, and it seems I wasn't on my own either, as numerous emails of complaint were sent to the BBC about it, with one being sent by Terry Moseley, President of the BDAA, who has kindly allowed me to print a copy of it :-


Dear Editor,
As the President of the British Disabled Angling Association, i felt it was my duty to inform you of the comments recently made by the BBC on their website bbc.co.uk concerning disabled angling.
Within the description on a link to the BDAA the article link suggested that disabled anglers "Disabled & Killed fish, if you were inclined to do the same you now have a consession to enable you to do this", the comments were found to be very offence implying that disabled people or the sport of angling condones such actions.
I have officially complained to the BBC in a statement below, these sorts of comments damage our sport and its image, to taget disabled people and their activities is beyond contempt :
"As president of the British Disabled Angling Association charity, in an official capacity I strongly object to the description link to our web site, describing that our members "disable or kill fish" this remark is in very bad taste and obviously one that has sparked complaints from people who have viewed the text within your link to our charity we site. We do not disable or kill fish and would expect the BBC to ensure that comments they make concerning charities, organisations & activities were independent and not suggestive in a bias nature. The comments do not describe our activities or our work as a charity, we are disgusted in the suggestion that we would condone such activities. I have copied the remarks below for your response.
Yours TO Moseley President BDAA www.bdaa.co.uk
"1. Fishability If you are of a mind to disable or kill some fish, you will be delighted to hear that your own disability may work in your favour when obtaining the necessary documents. From 2007, those of you who are in receipt of DLA are entitled to a half price angling licence. More information from the British Disabled Angling Association "
Yours
Terry Moseley
President BDAA"


Terry got the following reply
Dear Mr Moseley,
Thank you for your email pointing out to us the possible offence that our article 'Save money, seek out disability concessions' may have caused to members of your organisation. The Ouch website is a site for younger disabled people. We regularly use humour, and dark humour at that, to make important points and to increase understanding and appreciation of disabled people. It comes from a good place.
The text we used was not written to deliberately cause offence. It was written, in house style, to point out what the writer felt was something of an irony: as she saw it, disabled people hurting fish perhaps in similar manner, laterally speaking, to how they were injured, or became disabled, themselves. All writers on the Ouch website are disabled too. I should point out, and we felt this a bit of 'in' humour on a disability theme.
Regular readers of the site, we are sure, would have seen this as a piece of often demonstrated throwaway humour from our online magazine - it was not meant as a political point nor do we believe readers within the context of the Ouch website will have taken it as such. Had this been reported as hard fact on a News site, the situation may be different. Ouch is known for it's slightly offbeat humour which you will see if you do a quick trawl around bbc.co.uk/ouch
We received several emails as well as your complaint. We have altered the text on the page, in house style, to reflect what your members told us angling was to them.
We hope that this alteration directly responds to your concerns and that we have changed the dark tone to something more fun and indicative.
Thank you.
Damon Rose, editor Ouch

After this reply the text was amended to:-

1. Fishability
If you are of a mind to hook some fish out of water, hold them for a bit, take a photo, and then throw them back, you will be delighted to hear that your own disability may work in your favour when obtaining the necessary documents. From 2007, those of you who are in receipt of DLA are entitled to a half price angling licence.

This in my eyes is still unacceptable.

I urge ANYONE reading this article to send a letter of complaint to the BBC, as it is not only showing our great sport in a VERY bad light, it is a ridiculous and biased comment which may affect the future of angling. Why? Because if youngsters (or anyone thinking of taking up fishing) read the comment on the BBC site, then they may decide angling isn't for them, even before they have tried our great sport! If you do wish to complain to the BBC, then go to-

http://www.bbc.co.uk/complaints/

It would seem that the BBC are trying to make light of their derogatory comment, but I for one won't be making light of my letter of complaint, I hope that you will also let them know how you feel about it!!

Ian the Disherman