An economic theory of fishing

Yesterday four of us paid a sum of money to go on a two hour fishing trip in the Bristol Channel. Despite the best efforts of the skipper to locate a shoal of mackerel, we caught just three 🐟🐟🐟 However, by happy coincidence, an earlier excursion that day had been far more successful (as evidenced by the gore on the skipper's T-shirt) and there were more than 50 unwanted fish in the boat's hold that we were invited to take away with us. The equivalent market value of the fish was well in excess of the hire fee for the boat. We were happy, the skipper was happy, and a finite natural resource was saved from waste.

Back home, we lit a barbeque and grilled 25 fish for friends and family. The remainder went in the freezer or were given away. Our 'exertions' thereby bought us an evening's company and entertainment, and a fair quantity of wine, cake, and fresh vegetables.

The questions I now put to the economic sages of SW (of which there are many) are:

(1) Was our unexpected boon of protein and entertainment justified by our inputs? Or are we in fact "idle benefit scroungers"?

(2) Is any moral responsibility attached to the previous fishing party who wasted a valuable economic resource (for reasons unknown)?

(3) Is there any way in which a better economic outcome could have been achieved? And can this little parable be related to contemporary society?

Answers on a postcard please 😌