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Regarding George's post about diving being akin to witchcraft, the reason that poor equipment and procedures are so often pushed on this list is lack of education. Diving is unlike many other activities, in that the training agencies themselves ar not the epitome of the education process. Getting a c-card that indicates that you have passed a specific course does not necessarily indicate that you know what you are doing. Rather, the courses provide a starting off point to continue the dive education and gain knowledge through diving. In my own case, I was lectured on some simple math, and got a card that enabled me to get trimix fills. Big deal. Was I a better diver? Of course not. It took the experience gained through doing the dives to get to a level where I'm comfortable with what I'm doing, and not being a stroke (thanks go out to everyone on this list whom I have learned from). People who DO dive will learn the idiosyncracies of different types of gear, how to rig it, etc. I think that the requirements for attaining certifications in various areas of diving should be raised, but material that can be taught in the classroom will never approach the knowledge that can be gained through experience. Learning from others is a big part of this process, and is something that is severely lacking in the system. George's vids, for example, would be tremendously valuable in a course situation. JJ already recommends that his students see the vid and come properly set up, so he can focus on more important matters. It is exactly this type of information that needs to be passed on to newbies, so that we have a hope of decreasing the death to dive ratio. The courses also don't teach some of the practical aspects of diving, due to ignorance. Why the double-barreled o-ring manifolds are better, etc.. is useful stuff. Why then, do I have to find out about it on techdiver, AFTER I've just spent god knows what on new gear? People who dive and "do it right" need to convince the training agencies to stop drilling bullshit into the students' heads. Proper equipment choice needs to be thoroughly covered in the courses, and instead of complaining about every stupid bit of misinformation in the diving community, we should take some initiative to prevent it. Just my $0.02 ($0.0154 US) -Sean This Message Was Sent With An UNREGISTERED Version Of PMMail. Please Encourage Its Author To Register Their Copy Of PMMail. For More Information About PMMail And SouthSide Software's Other Products, Contact http://www.southsoft.com.
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