Regardless of what folks think is a "choice" or not...

The law allows for keeping a fish that is hooked from the gill plates forward.

My personal opinion is that this is a stupid law that encourages snagging, but that is what the law is at present.

That being said...

The law also says that "snagging" is illegal, and defines "snagging" as intentionally hooking, or attempting to hook, a fish without the fish "voluntarily" taking the hook into its mouth...this is in addition to attempting to hook a fish somewhere other than the mouth.

Whether you think it ought to be a "choice" or not is irrelevant...intentionally trying to take a fish by hooking it in the mouth, or anywhere else, without the fish voluntarily taking the hook into its mouth, is snagging.

Is it difficult, perhaps even impossible, to enforce the anti-snagging rules against a flosser?

Yes, it is difficult, or even impossible.

Does this make it right?

Of course not.

Intentionally flossing is illegal...it's not that way everywhere, i.e., in B.C. it is legal and culturally acceptable to floss fish.

This isn't to say that flossing doesn't have its own aspects of art or difficulty...clearly some are much better at it than others, without hooking fish in the ass repeatedly.

However, in Washington, it is, by definition, against the law.

If it's that important for you to catch a fish that you must employ snagging (which flossing is, by definition in Washington), then I think you ought to think really hard about why you are out fishing.

Fish on...

Todd