The AT membership wouldn't be too happy if they sat on this forum all day.
Why not join and give them your view, instead of expecting someone else to pay their membership fees for you to get what you want? If more people joined the AT would have more say and more views on what it's members want, and more would get done.
Sitting on forums isn't going to change anything.
You can't expect a handful of people to be working on every aspect of our sport. And if you knew Martin, you'd know he's not one to sit on his a**e and do nothing, and he'll be working probablty double the hours on AT campaigns than what he is paid for.
I was still chasing big carp and a member of the SAA, and ACA, when the AT came about but I still joined, so I don't understand how specimen angling was ignored.
I was a member, reason I am not any longer? lack of honesty from the trust, going behind anglers backs to achieve what they want, to be frank with you I no longer trust them.
I don't expect anyone to pay their fees for me to get what I want but that type of rhetoric is what I have come to expect from the look at me I care I am a member type of angler. Its all been said before and all it does is alienate anglers that are not members.
I don't expect a handful of self appointed people to work on every aspect of angling, I would expect some sort of feedback to a debate started on here by MS before ANY contact was made with the EA regarding the rivers CS, once again that lack of trust is reinforced by their own actions, were the membership aware that this recent contact had been made, nothing on their site.
I care not a jot what hours MS works, that is his choice he is not forced into it the same as he wasn't forced into starting a debate on here.
Like you I was a member of the SAA and the ACA, I was astonished that when the trust was first set up there was nothing on their site to do with specialist angling despite them receiving around £10,000 from the SAA, it was many months before anything appeared and that was after many complaints both here and elsewhere.
If you truly believe that a forum cannot change anything perhaps you can tell me why the trust through their representative use this one to put over their points and start debates on here?? they don't need to sit on here all day just long enough to be open and honest about what they are doing.
---------- Post added at 14:53 ---------- Previous post was at 14:40 ----------
I think Craig made a good point that is often overlooked when this talk of who represents who is made.
The AT must have a wide cross section of every type of angler in its ranks. Pleasure, match, specimen, commercially interested, clubs etc.
In this respect they represent all of us pretty much and the only people who can get a good all round view of the angling community- that cannot be a bad thing- I cannot think of any other organization that could do this and it would be necessary to have as wide a view as possible for any discussion or change in angling legislation.
Forums cannot facilitate that. there are thousands of them, just to many individual views spread across the wide internet, it would be impossible.
Sorry Mark I cannot agree that because they represent a cross section of anglers they represent us all, they represent their individual members and clubs/syndicates that have joined, that's all. Of the clubs that have joined how many have done so to take advantage of the very good insurance that is offered? The only "all round view" they can get is from their members isn't it? after all forums do nothing.
When anglers join a club I doubt very much that their first thought is "are they a trust member" more that the club have waters they want to fish.
Any change to the river CS should be on scientific evidence, these were the words of the AT and the EA now we find that the trust have already been in touch with the EA about the CS some clubs have offered their waters for trials all this without the required evidence to show there is even a need to change it never mind do it. I am for a change in the CS but only if scientific evidence proves beyond doubt that there is a need for it.
If I may I would like to ask you the same question I asked of Craig, if forums cannot change anything why do the trust use this one to start debates?