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> SMCABE SAID: > > my > problem, and i am sure a lot of other peoples' problems is that we, > people > who are just learning this sport (cave diveing), see all this crap that > you > post, and really wonder if we should get involved with it at all. > on parkers' death, i think i know a > little more about it than you do, see, i was there on the ocean explorer the > day he died. as for redundant air supply, it was there. thanx george, > now Scott- If you are just learning to cave dive- maybe not even certified yet- what were you doing on a Blue Hole trip? I find it incredulous that a person with a 160 IQ doesn't realize that Blue Hole diving is NOT the place for the untrained and uncertified. Also, I seriously doubt that ANY instructor (even the lowest of the low "annelid stupid" instructor) would even consider trying to teach someone to cave dive on a Blue Hole trip. What I think we are seeing is a group of self appointed experts dispensing misinformation and have you believing that diving air on your back and trimix in a stage is ok. They will tell you that diving 250 or 300 ft on air is ok. "We have been doing it for years" they say. They criticize us because they "don't like us". Meanwhile, unknowing, unsuspecting "newbies" try it. Most will get away with it. A few won't. In the learning curve of diving we have all done really stupid things. The lucky ones survive and learn. The unlucky ones don't. I'd be willing to bet that seconds before they perished, Palmer, Parker etc. knew exactly what they did wrong and why. I'm sure that had they survived, they would have learned from it. But they didn't survive. So the only positive thing that can come of these deaths is for the rest of us to see the mistakes and learn. Unfortunately, in matters such as these, there can be NO ROOM FOR COMPROMISE. It is either correct or it is incorrect. The middle of the road kills. An instructor that dives three hundred feet on air doesn't deserve the title. He is a role model for his past present and future students and must conduct himself as such. The argument that out of class he is free to do as he pleases is invalid, because the instructor title carries with it a certain responsibility. If and when he kills himself, that same responsibility requires his peers to acknowlege that he died because he did a STUPID thing, not because he was unlucky. Current thought seems to make the peers the bad guys. While I agree that we should not unnecessarily ridicule anyone, living or dead, I would much rather besmirch the name of a dead man or an instructor in an effort to prevent the unnecessary death of an unknowing individual who is trying to emulate stupidity. It is criminal to cover up these deaths and make them sound like something other than what they were- unnecessary tragedys caused by irresponsible stupidity. In this instance the role of the "bad guy" is critical to the acurate dispensing of information. Take notice and observe that whenever there is a disaster you will find the same individuals and or affiliates involved using the same methods that killed before. They proclaim themselves to be leaders but always seem to be involved directly or indirectly when there is a tragic death and refuse to modify their practices. Why is this?? It shouldn't be too difficult to figure out. There are other leaders who have significantly more exposure to extended range diving, and agencys whose training protocols have evolved with the current body of knowlege who are never associated with this type of foolishness. Accidents do happen- and they can happen to anyone. Diving, especially technical diving, carries a certain degree of risk acceptance. You owe it to yourself to seek out the best sources of information and instruction available to give yourself the best possible chance of survival in an environment that really doesn't care about you. Instructors and dive buddies advocating stupid and dangerous practices are a recipe for disaster. It is in everyones best interest to correct what is wrong, speakout against dangerous practices and not waiver in the eye of a storm because it is unpopular. Joe Citelli -- Send mail for the `techdiver' mailing list to `techdiver@aquanaut.com'. Send subscribe/unsubscribe requests to `techdiver-request@aquanaut.com'.
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