Posted by seahunt on January 16, 2003 at 07:03:12:
In Reply to: DM'a needed or not? posted by Captain Tim on January 15, 2003 at 21:56:22:
In your first post you seemed to ask about legal authority and were rather definate about that. There is far more than legal authority required to make this society work. Human survival is based on cooperation and agreement. The social contract is in many ways more important to the society than even the legal contract. As far as the DM is concerned, there is also the issue of respect.
I for one, rarely have much need for a DM, but that doesn't mean that I don't listen to them and appreciate them. I am also a bit more experienced than many divers on boats. Still, somebody has to know if I am on the boat at the end of the dive and I depend on the DM for that. When I suit up, DM's can often see details of my gear that I cannot see. DM's have often helped me with minor or dive ending problems.
Also, beyond theory, I am so impressed at all the DM's that actually managed to keep track of me while I'm out diving hither and yon, to be able to do something if they think something is wrong. It is amazing that these guys can keep some track of the number of people, underwater, in all directions, that they do. I'm careful enough that I have basically never had a DM say anything to me about a safety issue, but if they do and it is at all a legitimate safety issue, I'm sure not going to ignore them.
Now, I have had DM's say things that I thought were out of machismo and I will challenge them if I feel I should (can only remember once). I will say that the captain has the final say and will approach the captain with the appropriate respect to his position and to minimize conflict (oh, the captain sided with me).
As for the DM that wanted to play F&G, I decided that if he had demanded to measure my lobster, I would probably not bother the captain about a bug or two (it was just his personal problem anyway), I would tell the DM that I would rather throw the bugs overboard than give him the right to check my game. A bug is not worth giving up my Constitutional rights to him and that is what that actually comes down to. (He checked it when I wasn't looking and I was too distracted to want to deal with him at the time). I don't need anyone to measure my game and he had no reason to suspect I was in violation of any law.
I have disagreed with a DM asking me to buddy on the Spectre, but I had asked about that WHEN I SIGNED ON and he didn't much squawk.
As for your issue of 200 psi, what about if I had used my air doing a safety stop? I might be nervous about something and just for luck want to do a safety stop until my tank is empty. Air pressure on the surface does not define safety. I think it would have been fine if the DM had asked the diver about it and if he was concerned, it would be his function to request a bit more caution if he thought there was a specific danger, but there are a lot of reasons to come back without much air that are not safety violations. Frankly, if I am shallow, I don't care how much air I come back with. I've used a K valve before. The divers I have seen that were dangerous were not dangerous because of how much air they brought back. Most were dangerous for far less specific reasons than Ken Kurtis mentioned. It would (often) take an observant DM to recognize these peoples hazard. I dove with a girl and she did nothing wrong, but when she went on the helicopter, I had her profiles for all 3 dives written down, because I saw it coming.
As for what that DM did, I think he broke the business contract of the person that paid for the boat trip to go diving. I believe that in the extreme, before a DM tells a diver they cannot dive, it must go to the captain, because that is who the agreement to go on the boat was made with (This may be superceded some if there is an agreement with a shop or a club. They may nix the dive based on their agreement.). At a point, if the captain or DM cannot state specifically why the diver is unsafe to dive, that implies a situation with enough gravity that the captain might even want to say that they would offer a refund or partial refund for the trip, but the person cannot dive. That would help to make the point and it attempts to honor the business agreement in good faith. It also puts the DM on notice that their decisions cannot be arbitrary. There might be a cost, but it would be cost effective.
Whether a DM or the captain, there are some things that must be kept track of and that goes beyond making sure everyone is aboard when the boat leaves. I for one appreciate that DM's try not to interfere with my diving or become overbaring. I also appreciate the DM's presence and assume it is my responsibility to help them do their job, which is at minimum to help make the diving safe for everyone.
Enjoy the diving, seahunt