Posted by Wayne on November 06, 2000 at 18:36:14:
In Reply to: Re: Babies in the Bathwater-DIR Cult posted by Kendall Raine on November 06, 2000 at 16:58:19:
I think there is much that DIR can do to benefit the gereral population of divers. My big fear is the attitude that has often accompanied the DIR messengers.
I have no doubt about the sincerity of the proponents. It just bothers me that the attitude is louder than the message on many occasions and sometimes the message gets completely lost as in some recent personal exchanges seen on this board.
As for throwing the baby out with the bath, I also am concerned about this. I want the applicable DIR technologies to enter the mainstream. More precisely, I want the mainstream to evolve into safer ways to dive. I am flexible enough to understand that there will always be multiple ways of diving and many can be situationally appropriate. I was attempting to point out how the message of diving safety is being lost in the political rhetoric of PRO-DIR and ANTI-DIR.
I think the ANTI-DIR is not really what it seems. I think many of us want to stick to what we are comfortable with and slowly change. The strong ANTI-DIR sentiments come as a result of feeling attacked.
For example if I said I was going to dive the Yukon solo, one small flashlight, no reel, and wanted to see what is under the engines, I would be attacked (rightfully so, I might add). With my sanity attacked, I would fight back and say that DIR is evil (because it points out that I am doing things considered stupid by sane and knowledgable divers). (For the record, I am not stupid enough to dive like this!)
We can see it clearly in this example. But what if I say I am going to climb down the cliff at Haggerdy's alone at night and look for bugs along the surf line in the rocks? Not as clear cut to me because this is a fairly common way to get bugs here. But if attacked, I would also scream and holler that I know what I am doing and if I drown its my own fault and all that. I am not being ANTI-DIR, I am just defending how I dive and the planning I have put in place to minimize the risks in this unusual non-mainstream diving method.
The next issue is gear configurations. I learned to dive before jacket style BCs were normal. I learned before we had octos. We already had SPGs, thankfully. I made the transition from horse coller to my AT-PAC and later to my jacket style, but it took a while. At each step I was more comfortable in my old gear because I knew it. To change made me uncomfortable and therfore less safe until I was up to speed. DIR is the same to me. If I changed to DIR style, I would have to re-learn (at least a little bit) and get used to the new configuration. I dive enough that It would not take me long to be comfy in the new style of gear. On divers who only dive 2 or 3 dives per year, this would be a major adjustment and they might not feel comfortable for years. These divers will especially fear DIR configuratrions since they barely know what they dive with. And they probably dive with unfamiliar gear rented at a resort. So this is another reason for the ANTI-DIR feelings. We do not want anything changed after we get used to our usual gear.
As far as MHK and others who champion DIR, I hope they are near if I have an emergency. They are clearly experienced and safety minded. I respect their judgements on many fronts. I also respect the judgements of myself and others. I do thing the hot discussions have lessoned the impact of their writings. I think MHK's audience has been shrunk because of the recent exchanges. And that is too bad. His and Terry May's recent discussion of remembering to drop weights is an important reminder for ALL of us, but there are some who will not listen to this improtant reminder because of hurt feelings and their own tempers. That is what I mostly feel bad about.
Although I have not evolved into a DIR diver, I support the movement. And as you say it is a movement not a cult. But there is also a cult out there and I fear it because it can interfere with diver safety. I oppose the cult, I support the movement. Sounds confusing to me, so I can imagine how screwed up it sounds to others when they read me saying it. But there it is.
As I said, I think we all want the same things, we are just differing in our approaches. The real problem is that we do not discuss this stuff over a pitcher of Diet Coke and a Pizza. Then it would all work itself out. It is after all more to my style of speaking softly laughing loudly and wearing a loud aloha shirt.
Wayne