AlexCrowley

Actually I think stupid or duped are too strong here, manipulated and mislead would appear to be more accurate from my perspective. 1, Im not a citizen of the US, so I tend to read different news sources than most people (plus I read fast so I read a lot of news sources). 2, Existing in an alien society means you see things from different angles and perspectives than are possible if you've grown up within it. 3, Security work is my profession and intelligence matters are a hobby, so I tend to follow through on a lot of additional research and context. Whereas the rest of the world (including our allies) were presenting information from both sides of the debate there was little conversation in the US press about options. Where the US press would hop onto the next sensationalistic morsel of info the world's press dug deeper, provided explanatory information and follow up work. I actually blame the media over anyone else. Once you work out the twisted Chalabi/Miller stuff it gets more and more nauseating. Chalabi already had very low credibility with the CIA and yet became pretty much the single source for most of the pre-war intelligence used. It's very tough now that the Iraq situation has gone to hell (as far as public opinion) as the signal to noise ratio using Google is pretty high now, but a very good example of the differences would be the Niger situation. In the US it became about a single source and his motivations and methods, because there's no real depth to the story it remains in this mythological limbo of left vs right rather than an attempt to discern the truth. Rather than look at the history of the documents we look at the history of the man and his wife. In the rest of the world the story was followed from it's inception (with a european journalist being 'leaked' the documents in the early 90s) through to the rumors and then the followup. In the majority of the world the Niger story is accepted as being dead, a nasty situation regarding the italian secret service and finally someone just trying to cover their ass. TV's got them images, TV's got them all, nothing's shocking.

Ahh that explains it. I've been avoiding doing stuff that may incur beer (like getting off student status). If I'd have only known I was stunting my training!! TV's got them images, TV's got them all, nothing's shocking.

Thanks for the yoga idea - my coach has also mentioned it, guess I'll have to start my research. Cool!?!? Oh dear, I think I should take up bowling. As far as watching videos: I'm trying to prove that a laser can wear out a DVD over time with Good Stuff and a couple of DVDs I burnt from stuff out there on the intarweb thingy. I agree with what you're saying regarding visualization, I have been doing it since jump one, from walking to the plane to putting the rig down in the rigging room after the jump. With AFF I did that about 100 times for each jump and never felt unprepared. Even if I dont have the opportunity to "take a dive flow home" I spend the entire plane ride going through it from the door opening to getting on the truck afterwards. Oh god, I'm so screwed on the Cool stuff TV's got them images, TV's got them all, nothing's shocking.

I'm not going to repeat myself here: There are NO Extraterrestrials. Move along, nothing to see here. TV's got them images, TV's got them all, nothing's shocking.

But what if Bush planned or allowed 9/11 to happen for political gain? Then he should be drawn a quartered Then I'd reevaluate my feelings about the situation and hope that the intelligence community would be able to find additional corroborating information. However, it will never stop my disgust at how the war was sold to the US public, the way that the citizenry was manipulated, people and countries were villified and that the entire thing was so transparent that anyone paying attention to the whole story could see it for the game that it was. It will not change the fact that peoples lives have been lost on both sides. Would a link to 9/11 make me feel the war is justified? No. One meeting doesnt mean a damn thing without additional information to back it up. We already know that Saddam made some attempts to work with several organizations as far back as the early 90s. Ideologically and realistically any joint venture was unworkable and the intelligence community worldwide did not and have not changed their opinion that Saddam stopped following that line of inquiry. As for WMDs, it was known *before* the war that any existing chemical weapons that Saddam owned were beyond their useful life, and he had not been able to manufacture anymore after the first Gulf War. Remember, the search went from 'finding WMDS' to 'Finding a WMD program'. People tend to misunderstand what 'intelligence' is, it's not about 'smoking guns', it's about gathering everything up and using experience and information to sift out the lies and rumors and piece together something that approximates the truth. This is why valid sourcing is so important. TV's got them images, TV's got them all, nothing's shocking.

Thanks Ron, Now: which mental skills? TV's got them images, TV's got them all, nothing's shocking.

But what if Bush planned or allowed 9/11 to happen for political gain? TV's got them images, TV's got them all, nothing's shocking.

IIRC the Germany meet was debunked thoroughly around the time it was first raised. A lot of the spotlighted intelligence was stovepiped against the advice of seasoned intelligence analysts. It's pretty complex but basically the CIA were told to simply funnel Iraqi intelligence stories directly to another group (who's acronym escapes me for the moment), it is this group who, lacking analytic experience, created a lot of the myths that led the US into war. The intelligence was often single sourced from non-credible or third party sources. A seasoned analyst will take 100 pieces of information, sift through them, correlate them with previous intelligence and a little instinct to develop 2 or 3 items that *MAY* lead to something concrete and will havea high probability of being factual. In the build up to the war the new group would take those 100 pieces of information and react strongly to the most sensational, regardless of merit - Niger uranium, aluminium tubes, the presence, quantity and quality of chemical weaponry available to Saddam etc etc. While one could argue the CIA were upset that their main function was circumvented to 'amatuers', in hindsight every publicly made criticism leveled at the methods used to gather intelligence to justify the war has held true so far. Exactly as predicted by current and former senior analysts. This is also true for the financial analysts who were villified for merely suggesting that the war would cost many times more than the initial lowball quote that was sold to Congress and the US public. Edited: Ah, now I remember: John Bolton and the State Department’s Bureau of Intelligence and Research (INR). TV's got them images, TV's got them all, nothing's shocking.

Hey Jen, I understand totally about the thousand jumps, I'm pushing for the next 975 as soon as possible. I'll be jumping in the off season whenever I can. I'm not talking about ironing out problems through experience, I'm talking about a holistic approach to skydiving to be the best skydiver I can be. That doesnt start at jump # x00 or x0 or even x000, that started the moment I decided I was going to become a skydiver, which was months before I ever drove to the DZ for my first jump. There is no discipline on this earth that is JUST about performing the activity involved. It may be anywhere from 25 - 95% of the activity but there's always X% that needs attention. I am specifically interested in that X percent. It's the X percentage that sets you apart from everyone else. It is the X percentage that means that every time you jump you get more out of it than the guy who wants to fun jump a few times. Let me give you an example: As a pro-wrestler the only thing that counts is the show. As someone in the main event that averages about 15 minutes of GO time per show. I started pro-wrestling and I wanted to be the best I could, other than work out in the ring every spare hour until my body wouldnt respond to my brain - I sat down with veterans and worked out a training plan, got back into martial arts, ate better, did cardio, read the history and watched many hours of old classic wrestling, did tons of visualization and mental preparation. As a result I am considered one of the best at what I do, won an award for being the best in New England in my first year of the business. I'll win it again this year. Working with guys who approach things the same way we've taken the company from barely selling 20 tickets per show to selling out our home venue every month and drawing 120+ to spot shows in new areas. Our TV show is watched by 2 - 3000 people each week. Through all this it has never been about anything more than meeting my personal goals, if the rest of the world wants to tag along and see where im going that's fine by me, but it isnt the motivation. Pushing myself further, beyond what I considered possible, constantly. As every sports coach will tell you: It was a biological fact that a human being could not ever run a mile in under 4 minutes, this had been proven time and time again. Until Roger Bannister did it, once he proved it could be done people started breaking that barrier every few weeks, nowadays it's totally commonplace. This didnt happen just because Bannister ran a lot, it was because he tapped into the X% beyond the mechanics of moving his body forward for 1 mile in as short a time as possible by using his legs. It's the X percentage that makes the impossible unlikely, and the unlikely commonplace. I've only just picked up the DeRosalia book, but the program he discusses in it is very similar to what I'm talking about here, except I'm hoping for more mundane pointers to things also. Or maybe I'm just ranting incoherently to myself like a drugged horse. TV's got them images, TV's got them all, nothing's shocking.

Thanks for all the advice on where and how to jump. I may not have been overly clear on my initial question, which is more about overall life training FOR skydiving. examples: Yoga for flexibility (which style if any?), weight training (what to focus on), any land sports (inside) that helped with whatever aspects of skydiving. In otherwords, if you were a really serious skydiver who was interested in becoming a champion (not that Im intending that) what has worked for you, or would work for you? This is a question for the other 24 days of the month that I can't get to a DZ. TV's got them images, TV's got them all, nothing's shocking.

Wasnt scared at all on the first 5 jumps last year. Then I started getting more and more freaked out each jump, mostly of the door, then just about the exit itself. This year no such problem except on the recurrency after the 6 month layoff. Now I just worry about the money situation or making a stupid decision at some point. TV's got them images, TV's got them all, nothing's shocking.

First things first Jist of the above link: A leaked FBI report from April 2005 basically updates Project Meggido's conclusions from 5 years previous, but since no one in the US noticed terrorism until 9/11 they dont mention Meggido at all, also it pisses all over the 'run scared from the darkie' theory practiced by ignorant and fearful xenophobes. Back to business: 50,000 out of 1.1 billion. What is that anyway? 0.00045% Ok, lets see: 1:220000 muslims may be a terrorist. Of course, racial profiling is so obviously a useful tool. Once again, there's a reason security protocols are developed by professionals and not knee jerk reactionaries and armchair quarter-backs. BTW Malkin's article is interesting only in that it defends itself by using the corruption in one state as evidence of a universal problem. GM, I dont know if you missed the previous conversations on domestic terrorism but you're quite happily missing the point by changing the rules of terrorism. The definition used in previous conversations was the one agreed upon by law enforcement, intelligence agencies and the military. It's also backed up by reams of documentation that very clearly illustrate the fact that, by all official accounting, there are indeed many acts of domestic terrorism every year in america by many different groups. Terrorism is terror. That you, and the population at large, remain largely ignorant of the facts is just indicative of the nature of the media. The complete stupidity of a 'it isnt going to be a white guy' continues to fly in the face of all available documentation and intelligence work that has been compiled by the FBI and law enforcement. Once again, there are copious links in previous threads on domestic terrorism that have cropped up in the last few months. These provide a very quick overview of the facts. Some useful ones to start: FBI's Meggido report on domestic terrorist groups, in preparation for Y2K, sobering stuff DHS sponsored DB of terrorism related sources, domestic and foreign Anti-Defamation list of domestic incidents Domestic resource for security readiness compiled by PPRI TV's got them images, TV's got them all, nothing's shocking.

Started last year, have my checkdive and a pack job to complete: $1300 for AFF $540 for required coached jumps $660 for required jumps + gear rental. Add $90 for the check dive (tomorrow unless the weather is as forcasted). Urg, I didnt need to know that. TV's got them images, TV's got them all, nothing's shocking.

I emailed Skyventures a few days ago. They expect to be open early 2006. TV's got them images, TV's got them all, nothing's shocking.

Over two weeks with a few friends? Surely some smart DZ out there would come up with a decent price for bulk buying in advance........right? [sits and waits for PMs from smart DZ owners ] TV's got them images, TV's got them all, nothing's shocking.

There's a link to anti-abortion terrorist attacks on a previous thread, search under my postings and you'll find it. I also posted many links on domestic terrorism, hate groups, the dangers of racial profiling etc. TV's got them images, TV's got them all, nothing's shocking.

Tunnel time is already planned for November/December. (including a well orchestrated email campaign to the new Skyventure's crew in NH). Gloves are also on the shopping list. Boogie in FL is pretty much guaranteed. There's a very good chance of heading down to AZ this year, if I can get the people together and find a decent deal (like prepaying for 200 - 500 jumps and getting a decent price on them). I'm not a huge fan of mediocrity, especially if it's myself. I learn (in fact, humans learn) by creating connections from already existing knowledge, the more information and preparation I can discover for myself means that information I am given by my coaches and others I jump with will be easier to assimilate, and also will allow for the beginnings of an early BS detector TV's got them images, TV's got them all, nothing's shocking.

The Poynter book is the first one I bought - before I took AFF, a great book and I should have mentioned it. I think its still the only skydiving book I've found in mainstream bookstores. Great idea on the Breakaway DVD, I'll put it on the list. Thanks Mike. TV's got them images, TV's got them all, nothing's shocking.

First Clinton, now Bush TV's got them images, TV's got them all, nothing's shocking.

Public Opinion Shocker! America Blames Sheehan for Rising Gas Prices TV's got them images, TV's got them all, nothing's shocking.

God makes official statement regarding Pat Robertson TV's got them images, TV's got them all, nothing's shocking.

Without commenting on the Clinton reference at all. does anyone remember when the Onion was actually funny? TV's got them images, TV's got them all, nothing's shocking.

I'm not sure this is the correct forum, but this seemed more of an open ended question than the Safety and Training forum seems to cover. Im looking for advice and information so I can put together an off-season program for myself. My question's aimed at those of you who approach skydiving as something more than a fun way to spend a weekend, (not that I consider that attitude good or bad. I'd be very interested to hear from people who understand 'beginner-mind' style concepts. In New England we're rapidly appraoching the end of the season, soon it'll be a case of hoping the weather breaks enough to get in a recurrency jump. What I'd really like opinions on is stuff to do on the ground that will help in the air, specifically: - Exercise: anyone out there have any good training systems they use? Yoga, martial arts, weight training etc? Beyond basic body fitness I'm interested in particular systems and methods that directly impact your physical conditioning as it relates to skydiving. - Books/information: I continue to read the Parachute and it's Pilot, the Skydivers Survival Guide - currently: Mental Training for Skydiving and Life (so far interesting, need to find this DeRosalia guy though). Any other publications, websites that deal with the mental and mechanical aspects of the sport written by those who know what they're talking about? - Recovery groups? Hell, I figure most of us are addicted, do skydivers get together for 12 step programs? Seriously - seminars? non-boogie type gatherings dedicated to skydiving? Stuff that doesnt need covering: Nothing specifically about skydiving that is covered by coaches - I'm looking for ground based stuff that can be done regularly. I can hit a wind tunnel or a boogie if funds permit. Im really interested in putting together a system I can maintain all year that will help maximize what I put in and get out from the sport. Anything else anyone can think of? Thanks in advance for your help, hope this doesnt come out sounding too weird. TV's got them images, TV's got them all, nothing's shocking.

Ditto TV's got them images, TV's got them all, nothing's shocking.

Give them a break, most companies in a position to sponsor H-1Bs are run by republicans, and they've never been that sharp. TV's got them images, TV's got them all, nothing's shocking.