\u00a0\u00a0It is strange that the biggest risk of trying to help wildlife does not come from these animals themselves but often through explicit threats of violence from those who\u00a0cannot understand the concept of trying to help something that cannot help itself. Why grown men want to spend company with other men in tents for days on end is beyond me, but each to their own I suppose. For the anglers amongst you, perhaps consider that other waterway users judge you all on what this minority are doing, and perhaps consider trying to remove them from the bankside permanently.\u00a0<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
THE COMPLETE URBAN ANGLER<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n What lies beneath those womblike waters?-<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n The canal delivers the eery fascination,<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n for those reluctant little Oedipus lads<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n dragged along the cut by their eager dads<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a0cloned in their own perceived bulldog image,<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n bored at throwing bricks at passing ducks,<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a0their suck used up and litter chucked-<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n curiosity when invited \u00a0to play with a waggler,<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a0dad has \u201cscientific\u201d skill unlike mother-<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a0botched DIY, predicting dogs,\u00a0 his others.<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n spotless<\/p><\/div>\n \u00a0<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a0Not alone in these perverted pleasures,<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 old men past their prime clutch dysfunctional reels,<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 loners huddled together under an umbrella,<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 cursing pisces, the law and those Polish fellas,<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 next to them jobless youths for whom a Smirnoff is God,<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 a couple of carp stashed in the tackle box<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n with hot copper wire to burn ad hoc,<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a0the air polluted with misogyny,<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n spouting about the world\u2019s right and wrongs<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n from their rambling liquor laced tongues.<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n Jesus liked the company of fishermen,<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a0\u201ccan\u2019t go out to sea, repair your nets\u201d he said,<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n todays fair weather angler dodges the eye of the labour<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n decorating for Mr Patel his neighbour,<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n careful to hide the NF ink on his white washed fingers,<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n his hands a pallet of red groundbait and tobacco brown,<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n the thought of the pub tempers his frown,<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a0where free to make jokes about colour and race,<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n why shouldn\u2019t he bite the hand that feeds<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n and clothes his children in fake burberry and tweeds?<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n But pity the plight of their virago wives,<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n angling widows left behind on the council estate,<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n sleeping alone with Izaak Walton\u2019s book,<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n jealous of their blokes affair with fish and hook,<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n and in part amusement and part revenge<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a0they reach for their own device in the draw<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a0with a flashing battery powered core,<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a0a buzz and a sound when they get a bite<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n but still from this aimless loveless abyss<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n they murmur lonely-\u201cwhat kind of life is this?\u201d<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n \u00a0Bankside, little Johnny has caught his first big one,<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n unlike the failure of every exam he will ever sit at school,<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n father and son united in a phallic obsession,<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n they hold aloft their prized possession,<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n captured in a photograph with their catch of conflict,<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n bonded but still enemies in this \u201csport\u201d<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n much like their eternal dispute of sorts<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n about ownership of one woman\u2019s genitals.<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n This is the feed that drives the route,<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n a\u00a0poison porcine passionate pursuit.<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n and they think they are predators<\/p><\/div>\n \u00a0<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" \u00a0 A break of sorts from the goings on at the lagoon. This post is about my observations of the urban angler. Some anglers appreciate wildlife and respect it, but a sizeable number do not. I have witnessed one drunk … Continue reading ![\"\"](\"http:\/\/whatliesbeneathrattlechainlagoon.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/05\/2009_0909rhodia0005.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/a>\u00a0<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a>