Gary I agree with what you say.I consider myself a good all round float, feeder and pole angler, but I dont have any preconceived ideas about other aspects concerning the sport, I dont fly fish, or go fishing for carp or catfish. Each to their own.
Yes I have caught carp to low doubles on the pole with balanced tackle and I had one in quicker than a bloke on another bank using a proper carp set up, I am not saying it was skull dragged in because that can be a recipe for disaster . I more or less "walked" it to the net on soft set elastic,
If I fish a club water that has a head of carp in, I will have a go for them either with a feeder rod or a pellet waggler, not with carp rods and alarms, only because that method does not interest me.