It's a hobby for me- catch and release. I don't eat fish anyway
I do a bit of both. Depending on who may want fish. There's always someone who wants fresh fish...
Hello; Fishing is harmless, it is the catching that some may not like.
I fish and think it is a fine recreation. I generally catch and release to the point of using barbless hooks (or hooks with the barb bent down flat) and no longer using live bait. Fish tend not to swallow artifical baits as deep as so often are not damaged. If i do happen to damage a fish to the point of likely death and it is of legal size, then I will eat it. (depending on which body of water it is from.)
You will no doubt find some who do not like fishing, ignore them if you are not married to one or they support you financially.
One good point about paying for a fishing license is that the funds often support good animal husbandry practices.
Enjoy your fishing and may you also do some catching.
Would just like to state that recreational fishing is not what is killing or fisheries. Commercial fishing has single handedly destroyed fisheries. Bluefin tuna are gone. Salmon wiped out. Mako shark are hurting. It's truly sad. It's also sad that a lot of game fish that aren't commercially targeted are being affected as well. They get caught in nets and are left to die. I'm a firm believer that commercial fisheries should have the same regulations as recreational fisherman. Japan has crushed the tuna fishery all over the world