Skydiving Letters

[carbonezone 0]

Thanks for the congrats (scotty waving hands at
computer from the COUCH)!!!
Tell everyone we say HEY!!!!

[Jimbo 0]

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How is saying someone was a candidate for Darwin award going to prevent accidents or death?

It won't, but in the incidents mentioned in the first post were talking about accidents or deaths that have already happened. There is no attempt made to prevent _those_ accidents.

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It's your right to honestly express your opinion, but saying someone got what he/she deserved doesn't teach anyone anything valuable about preventing it in the future.

Actually, I disagree. When someone jumps a canopy that is too small and fast for their experience level and then hooks himself into the ground by initiating a 360 riser turn at a 300 ft then I think that person needs to be called a dumbass, a fuckup, or an idiot. That calls attention to someone and the major mistake they made a whole lot more than saying "Joe was jumping a canopy that was way to small and fast and unfortunately had a bad landing, he's not doing so well right now". Which one will you remember?

There are some cold hard truths in this sport and serious injury and death are certainly one of them, let's not sugar coat reality to make it more comfortable, that is the real disservice.

-
Jim

"Like" - The modern day comma
Good bye, my friends. You are missed.

[skybytch 273]

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If somebody is too shy to post under their their real identity, then I'm sorry, but I can give no credibility to that person no matter what point they're trying to make.

Bingo. I might feel differently if these forums were primarily for discussing video games or bowling or politics, but they're not. In a "world" as small as skydiving, and considering what it is we are doing, knowing who's talking could be kind of important.

I also think it's pretty cowardly to create an anonymous username solely for the purpose of slashing someone in the forums. Those of you who've done so know who you are; what might surprise you is that others know who you are too.

[skymedic 0]

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If you say something in a public forum, you should -have- to be accountable for what you say.

hence the reason I like this forum so much better than wreck.dot....

Marc
otherwise known as Mr.Fallinwoman....

[clrarch 0]

I think we actually agree with each other----I don't think it benefits anyone to "sugarcoat" comments, and if there's a good reason to call someone a dumbass, then call them a dumbass. It's a necessary wake-up call if it can prevent you from turning yourself into a pile of dust on the ground. But, I'm also looking at this from the perspective of someone who's very new to this sport and doesn't always know what constitutes "too fast" or "too small" for someone's experience level. If an accident that results in serious injury or death can simply be attributed to being a dumbass, well...then, attribute it to being a dumbass. Explaining some of the facts surrounding an accident, though, can be helpful. Explain 'em however you want....but give a little something to work with beyond being a candidate for a Darwin award

[quade 4]

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Actually, I disagree. When someone jumps a canopy that is too small and fast for their experience level and then hooks himself into the ground by initiating a 360 riser turn at a 300 ft then I think that person needs to be called a dumbass, a fuckup, or an idiot. That calls attention to someone and the major mistake they made a whole lot more than saying "Joe was jumping a canopy that was way to small and fast and unfortunately had a bad landing, he's not doing so well right now". Which one will you remember?

And I disagree with this point as well.

Subjective opinion about the event will do nothing. Subjective opinion about issues such as "too fast" or "too small" also do nothing. Calling the person a name will do nothing, especially if the person is dead.

What I think does work quite well is a complete and honest presentation of the facts and let the facts, no matter how grim or politically unpopular speak for themselves.

For instance, "The skydiver, flying a GeeWhizz-97, initiated an intentional 360 degree turn at approximately 200 feet and impacted the ground before he could recover. The skydiver is dead. Toxicology reports indicate that the skydiver had levels of a drug in his system at the time of the accident above those that would normally be considered sufficient to cause impairment."

To me, this gives a much better lesson than simply calling the person a name.

quade -
The World's Most Boring Skydiver

[ernokaikkonen 0]

>If you say something in a public forum, you should -have- to be accountable
>for what you say. Otherwise the rules of civility go out the door and slander
>becomes an acceptable form of expression. Pretty much the only way a person
>can be accountable for their actions is if you know who they actually are --
>otherwise they'll just run away, create a "new" identity and do it again.

Bingo. This is almost exactly what was going on at Blinc until Mick made the board registered user only. The only difference was that anyone could post without registering... I haven't been around here for that long, but has DZcom always been a registered user only forum?

Erno

[PhreeZone 20]

>I haven't been around here for that long, but has DZcom always been a registered user only forum?

The original version of the boards were not and the second version was not for a while until the Annon posting was being abused then it was turned on.

Yesterday is history
And tomorrow is a mystery

Parachutemanuals.com

[WFFC 1]

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Does it matter? Is it so important to put a real name to a screen name? Does not doing so make the point any less valid? Some people are more comfortable behind whatever amount of anonymity the 'net provides.

This has a multifaceted answer. Am I up for anonymity? Yes. But, if you're going to stir the pot, then have the cajones to stand behind your own words and not hide behind the veil of the internet. We're all family here so are we going to agree with all of your comments? Duh, No. It does add more credibility to your statement if the real poster is named.

-----
~~~Michael

[happythoughts 0]

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What I think does work quite well is a complete and honest presentation of the facts and let the facts, no matter how grim or politically unpopular speak for themselves.

I agree. Present the facts. It is helpful to have a clear explanation of the facts so that other may learn from them hopefully.
However, if you stay in the sport long enough, you will have a friend die. Keep this in mind: After bad things happen to people, the emotions can be amplified for the friends of those people. Caution in the way you phrase things is warranted for one reason. If one of my friends dies, don't call them a dumbass in my presence. I don't care if they showed entirely bad judgement. Being callous may be bad judgement on your part.

[carbonezone 0]

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I agree. Present the facts. It is helpful to have a clear explanation of the facts so that other may learn from them hopefully.

However, if you stay in the sport long enough, you will have a friend die. Keep this in mind: After bad things happen to people, the emotions can be amplified for the friends of those people. Caution in the way you phrase things is warranted for one reason. If one of my friends dies, don't call them a dumbass in my presence. I don't care if they showed entirely bad judgement. Being callous may be bad judgement on your part.

hallaloola bill (tami applauding now)
<>
Tami