Posted by Wayne on September 26, 2000 at 09:35:46:
In Reply to: Re: Did I mean you? posted by MHK on September 26, 2000 at 09:00:10:
Yes, it is hard to take me seriously in person since I almost always wear loud aloha shirts and cannot stop smiling. I have to be careful not to be insulting in written communication while saying the same things that spoken, face to face, would be considered friendly and fun.
I realize that to champion any cause, the proponants need to prevent the belief's tenents from being diluted, even though its application by the masses may be partial (at least at first).
With very few exceptions, I have enjoyed reading the discussions here and have learned from them. They have made me a better diver by forcing me to rethink my diving practices from different perspectives.
My only fear is that newbies will be confused. But while I fear it, I know it will be -- with or without our lively discussions. At least this way they know that there are people really looking to find safe ways of diving! And hopefully they will ask questions of DMs and instructors that they meet on boats and at shops.
Some of the things that have come up include the need to mentor new divers. I would hope that the discussion will cause clubs and diveshops to do more of this to serve our industry.
I think that failure of the buddy system has been shown to be a danger. This clearly speaks to dive training problems. We are not teaching buddy diving -- instead we tell them to do it without explaining what "it" is. My experience in this regard is that the students are told to ascend after a short look. They are taught to hang on to each other when sharing air. They are told to know their buddy's air. That is about it. This is clearly not enough to make a good buddy.
And no, I have not had the pleasure of meeting you. I have meant to come to one of your DIR presentations, but my travel schedule takes me out of LA nearly every other week and so far I have not been able to attend. When I come I will buy you a Diet Coke (or what ever you are drinking) and thank you for the lively fun!
Stick to your guns and keep your beliefs. It takes time for evolution. Look how long it took before we were doing safety stops!
Wayne