Extra Point
By Mike Fitzgerald
Monday, April 8, 1996
Men and women, boys and girls are shore fishing, casting from the rocks and sand - hoping this sun-drenched morning or cool evening will be the one when a giant ulua strikes.
In the sparkling ocean off of Waianae and Haleiwa and Kailua, boats of all shapes and sizes carry fishermen. They are after ahi and ono and marlin.
In the deep, fertile waters along the tranquil Kona coast and in the choppy froth of Hilo Bay - throughout the entire Hawaiian Islands - folks are fishing today and every day that brings us hope with the new dawn.
Back in the Midwest where I grew up, the bluegill are spawning close to shore and the largemouth bass will soon follow.
It is a rite of spring in Illinois and Indiana, Michigan and Wisconsin, to clean the old Zebco reel and inspect a tackle box that survived another brutal winter.
Fishermen are casting flies for trout in the Rockies and silver spoons for walleye and pike in Minnesota.
There are great fish to be landed from the shoreline and waters of the Atlantic to the Gulf of Mexico to the Pacific.
I was fortunate to have fished in Alaska once and sat in a johnboat, with a huge bald eagle in a nearby pine tree, and caught silver salmon in the most beautiful setting imaginable.
My early family memories are filled with fishing. My dad and two uncles took time out to teach me the wonder of being alone with nature on a lake or along a stream - especially after growing up in the middle of a big city.
There is nothing more enjoyable to me than being in a rowboat on a glassy lake at daybreak, the early golden slivers of sunlight reflecting on the calm water.
FISHING in Hawaii is more than mere sport. It is sacred and for good reason.
Sure, there are related problems, but they can and are being solved. Fishermen of all backgrounds are basically reasonable people.
The Hawaiian International Billfish Tournament and most other competitions in the state are now models for tag-and-release and help fund extremely beneficial ocean research. This practice and dedication will assure future generations of being able to fish for fun as we do.
Most charter boat operators are excellent people with much respect for the fishery that provides their livelihood.
And the vast majority of sport fishermen eat what they catch or return the fish to fight another time. Also, in these tough economic times, fishing is sometimes the only way to avoid hunger or handouts.
Perhaps most important, kids who go fishing will likely develop a love for the sport that will last throughout their lifetimes - and it could keep crack pipes out of their mouths and guns out of their hands.
If you take time out of your busy and hectic life to take a child fishing, you are a hero. And your reward will be a great one. Smiles don't get any bigger than on a kid's face while reeling in his or her first fish.
Now I read where the animal rights group PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) wants to go after fishing, saying it is cruel and unnecessary.
I have no problem with an organization that wants to protect animals from abuse, although it amazes me to see so much human suffering get ignored while campaigns are so fervently waged for animals.
And everyone, each group, certainly has the right to act on their beliefs.
That's one of the cool things about living in the United States, freedom of speech.
So let me exercise mine. Here is my advice to PETA in regard to its fight against fishing:
Go take a long walk on a short pier.