An example of why low PADI standards can be bad

"Lee Bell" <pleebell2@bellsouth.net> wrote in message
news:eRhFg.17673$0k4.3844@bignews1.bellsouth.net.. .
> dechucka wrote
>
>> Having said that especially diving in Q'land has become a lot more strict
>> since the 2 seppos ( sorry citizens of the USA ) were lost. You actually
>> sign yourself back onto the boat but that is a gov regulation, I assume
>> under Health and Safety laws
>
> I read the proposed Q'land diving rules after the two incidents in one
> year, both by the same operator as I recall. They were pretty strict. I
> was not pleased to see that kind of government controls imposed on the
> sport anywhere and certainly not in such a popular dive destination. I've
> not seen the rules actually adopted. Are they available on line somewhere
> that does not require me to pay for them?


Try here http://www.dir.qld.gov.au/workplace/subjects/diving//. ( I was put
onto this by a mate, I haven't read it so don't know if this is what you
want)

As a diver the only thing I really noticed in Q'land was the signing on that
you were back on board and that has been going on for quite a few years now.
I assume that there is probably more paper work for the operators. I haven't
been on live aboard for a few years now ( non diving wife and I like to
spend holiday time with the kids ) so I don't know how the new regulations
have effected them.


ps had a couple of magic dives off Wollongong NSW first on the " Bombo "
and second around 5 Islands ( Toothbrush Is ) so I am a happy bubble blower
tonight

On 17 Aug 2006 04:40:54 -0700, "-hh" <recscuba_google@huntzinger.com>
wrote:
> Feel free to ask Grumman how large of a set of brass ones it would take
> to do this once. Then how much harder the brass has to be, to be
> expected to do this repeatedly - ie, once per month.

Well, since you asked ...

On the order of sphincter tightening experiences that I've had...

Landing at night without a landing light on a well lit airport is not
that big of a deal after the first couple of times that it happens to
you...

Landing at night with a landing light, but without runway edge lights,
but in a major metropolitan area airport where the ambient light
reflected off the clouds provide quite a bit of secondary illumination
-- quite a bit more sphincter tightening...

Landing at night with a landing light, but without runway edge lights
and at a remote rural unfamiliar airport with only some guy at the
other end of the runway in a truck with his headlights on, but no
major obstacles along the flight path -- somewhat sphincter
tightening...

Quite frankly, my landing light doesn't provide me with enough light
to actually see the runway until I'm about ready to flare anyway...

Even when you have one person marking the end of the runway with their
truck and the headlights shining down the runway, it's difficult to
get lined up on the runway... You know where the runway *ends*, but
you don't know exactly where it starts... It is nice to know *both*
points so that you can draw a line between them and figure that the
runway runs along this line...

Summary -- those little lights on the edge of the runway are really
nice to have at night...

Lee Bell wrote:


> I don't know about you, but I don't want that level of government
> involvement in diving. Divers are not much of a risk to others. If they
> screw up, chances are, they're the only one that dies as a result. The one
> thing that is as sure as sunrise tomorrow, though, is that the government
> will get involved if the industry does not self regulate as promised.
> Letting PADI claim that certification only means training was given is not
> self regulating as promised.
>
> > Thus I was PADI certified. I signed the form, filled it in truthfully, got
> > my medical checkup, both as required by PADI . . .
>
> Does PADI require a medical checkup in the US these days or do they still
> accept a checklist signed by the student?

No checkup, Just a checlist-
They even tell you explicitly so you do not mark any condition that if
you mark one of them, then (oh no) you will have to go to the Dr...
therefore is giving you the subtle clue about "not marking anything".
I have noticed this in all of them I visited.

In fact the instrictors become DM and even MSD inless than 5 years and
I do not think they dive every week, and if they do is during the
summer in the same lake, so how much experience is this?.


>
> No disrespect intended, but come back after a few hundred more dives and
> revisit the issue of how comprehensive the training you received really was
> and, when you do, remember that, right now, you've taken two courses more
> than most certified divers ever do.
>
> Lee