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Obviously I did not keep it simple enough for you Todd.  You see when I said
"things were at ther worst" that does not mean "at the first sign of
trouble".   You can talk about character and commitment all you want, but when
that "little man" inside your head sees low air, long way from home, limited
visibility,increasing complications he will make you re-evaluate your
"interests" and at some point it will become your "interest" to save your own
ass if the problems on the dive cannot get worked out.
Lee

toddl@in*.co* wrote:

> >  I think some of you are missing the point of the "most important person"
> >  concept.  Mr. Rennaker is just being honest about basic human nature.
> >  When things are the worst we all revert to our survival instincts
> >  despite the best intentions.
>
> If everybody's "basic human nature" was to fuck and run at the
> first sign of trouble, cave diving would be a sorry undertaking
> indeed.  Believe it or not, there *are* divers with the character
> and constitution necessary to follow through on the commitments
> they make to eachother when they decide to dive together.  I'll
> admit it isn't always immediately obvious who will make a good
> buddy.  You have to constantly evaluate yourself and those around
> you, and sometimes make tough decisions.
>
> Nevertheless, this whole "most important diver" thing is completely
> illogical.  It's based on the premise that one team member's interests
> differ from that of another.  That assumption is a self-fulfilling
> prophesy -- such a "buddy" is an anathema, worthless at best.
>
> Sure, steps can be taken to reduce some risks in solo diving
> (like carrying a buddy bottle), but there is no substitute for the
> redundant brain a good buddy provides.  It's conceivable that solo
> diving could be "less unsafe" than diving with a lousy buddy, but
> that's not setting a very high bar.  The best route is clearly to
> dive (and continuously train) as part of a team.
>
> I could understand someone making an argument that there were
> situations justifying the additional risk of solo diving, but
> to actually claim it's safer is crazy.
>
> Another fallacy -- Rennaker's article alludes to the idea that
> a diver needs more skill/preparation/whatever to dive solo.
> Nonsense.  Being in a team is not an excuse to let yourself be
> the weak link.  Rather, you accept additional responsibility
> of looking after your team.  This does lead to something a bit
> strange... sometimes solo diving can be "relaxing", but that
> should NOT be misinterpreted as a reduction in risk.
>
> So, solo diving should be categorized as a risky behavior when
> performing an accident analysis.  Just like failure to carry
> the proper number and type of lights in a cave, it doesn't kill
> directly, but it clearly can be a significant contributing factor
> in a diver's death.
>
> - Todd

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