Brian Nadwidny wrote in article <35501B66.C73CE337@sh*.wa*.ca*>...

>Dan Volker wrote:
>>
>> Barney wrote an insult in article <354F4301.10A4F912@ho*.co*>...
>>(MORE SNIPS)
>> More importantly, what reason could you have for starting shit with me,
when
>> all I am doing is trying to prevent more deaths, and increase the quality
of
>> dive instruction----(snips)
>
>Then why don't you and George start up a new agency? Put up or shut up.
>
>C'mon, I have an open mind and respect the viewpoints of others (unlike
>George). If you are so goddamn sure you guys have all the answers then
>start a training program.


Brian
I've been pushing Jarrod Jablonski to give us an agency version of the WKPP,
Doing it Right style ever since the triple death tragedy in WPB, as has
George, Robert, Bill Mee and Errol.  While I'm happy to give advice, I do
NOT want to be an instructor---its just not my avocation. And I can just
hear George now , with a slow learner....:-)   It would NOt be a pretty
sight :-)
 In south florida you DO have Errol of Technical diving systems---he is
still "branded"  with the IANTD badge of disgrace, but don't worry, he
teaches pure Doing it Right" style diving, regardless of the stupidities Tom
Mount would have his "blindly following"  instructors teach, or the personal
preference negligence many other Mount certified instructors are allowed to
promote. .  Get a hold of Errol at errol@ga*.ne*   he is one of the best
instructors in America.
Hopefully, Jarrad will come through for you guys, and he will start up
Global Underwater Explorers ( GUE) in the next week-----I do not think he
feels he can tolerate his association with IANTD any longer---a sentiment I
have had expressed to me privately by a very large number of good IANTD
instructors, recently.
From talking to Jarrad, there will be MASSIVE differences between GUE and
the other "tech agencies".  For one, it will always be small, which means it
will never be easy for people outside of Florida to get certified----they
will have to do classes here for some time---but hell, the diving is good
here anyway....Also, any instructor who teaches for GUE will have "sworn an
oath" to be willing to give his own life if necessary to save a student in
his charge----this is a "Categorical Imperative".  If you are aware of
elements of the Doing it Right system, then you are also aware this will
mean the Buddy system will be brought in, stronger than you have ever seen
it before. And gear choices will never be personal preference again----there
is the right gear, and the wrong gear, for the dives we do. The instructors
will insist you have the "right" gear.  You will learn tech skills in
shallow water, not in 300 feet. By the time you get as deep as 200 feet, you
will feel like you have been diving doubles with stages for 10 years.  You
will spend more to be certified in GUE, and you will get FAR MORE in return.
There will not be 8 billion mini specialties---learning to tech or cave
dive, or recreational dive will be taught, with no stupid marketing gimmicks
loading snippits of info into 8 different levels of certs---there will be NO
buying your blackbelt, even though you paid your money---if you can't
perform, in this class, you don't get a c-card.  Instructors who want in
will be trained, but only the "BEST OF THE BEST"  will be accepted. Students
will ALWAYS report on exactly what happened in their classes, to the agency
itself---each student will be an informer---each student will help the
instructors toe the line. Many stufdents will be turned down---"Never Evers"
will NOT be allowed in any GUE class. Tech and cave students will have to
pass VO2 max tests to show cardiovascular fitness , and all will need to
prove they have no PFO or other medical condition which could put them or
their buddy at risk.

For many divers, GUE will NOT be a solution, because it will be for people
who are serious, and are ready to train hard, and have a great deal of
innate ability.  This will in NO WAY solve the problem of IANTD and TDI,
because it can not help everyone on this NG or the world at large. But it
will help some, and that's the the best we can offer at this time. They will
put out more WKPP training videos, as a non-profit service, to help the
world's divers to get on the right track, and have a shot at better safety
even if they can not get to GUE.  More will come. George, Bill Mee, Robert
and I are NOT in diving for teaching, and we are NOT in diving to clean up
the disasters caused by IANTD or TDI. We don't want more people killed, so
we are doing what we can. Sorry if this is not enough, but at least we are
serious, and we are trying.
One last thing about this George thread.  Everybody out there that has a bad
opinion of George due to his treatment of "fellow Cave divers" or his
general language-----this gets directed at people who dive deep air, and do
stupid things which will put their lives, and those of others , in jeopardy.
This is particularly true of the Rob Palmer incident, mentioned in one post.
If anyone out there with this bad opinion, ever is unfortunate to have to
perform a recovery, of a beautiful girl, who was killed by the stupidity of
an instructor or an agency, which had already recieved countless warnings by
WKPP members like George---- about the catastrophic results of their
behavior---    if you find yourself in this position, you will first grow
horribly sad, then you will get mad. You will want to take action against
the men that took this life by their reckless disregard for it.  You've
heard me say some unkind things about Tom Mount in the last few days. I've
met Tom, I've dove on boats with him, and each time I had ever talked to
him, I enjoyed his colorful interpretations of his place in the universe.
In the past, I did not mind giving him a small blast once in a while, but I
never had wanted to hurt him. Now I feel this has changed. As nice as the
guy is---as someone to talk to---I liked the guy---- his actions have been
responsible for too many deaths ( this is my interpretation----you make your
own) I can no longer sit back and say, awwhhh, Tom's a good guy, he didn't
mean it. When I saw this girl on the bottom, stretched out like she was--
still trying to work out her tables and adjust her bouyancy, her hair
flowing in the water like she was still full of life, I felt a kick to my
chest---a kick  to my heart,  like I could never feel in a kick boxing ring.
The air was almost knocked out of me. The pain, as it welled up, turned
rapidly to an anger. If this guy Derick, the instructor that watched her
sink and die, was on the boat with me when I had surfaced, I can guarantee
you I would be behind bars right now, since no power on earth would have
stopped me from breaking every bone in his pathetic and cowardly
body---slowly and painfully.  And I feel Tom Mount is an accomplice to this
horrible act of cowardice, which took the life of this beautiful girl. Damn
him. God Damn him. I will not let him get away with this. And this
Dereck--the one directly responsible---he will be made to pay.  And this CAN
NOT be allowed to happen again. And if anyone wonders why George gets so
nasty when talking about other divers  he clasifies the way I do "Derek or
Tom" , you ought to be able to figure out why he will not sugar coat his
comments about them. George has experienced far more body recoveries than he
wants to remember ---most would have been impossible if people had heeded
his advice. These are shoes you would not want to walk in.

Dan Volker
www.sfdj.com




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