wolfriverjoe

Go to post 150 on page 6. Pete's detailed description of the video and analysis of the incident. I won't entirely disagree with the idea that a properly trained TI could still make this mistake. There have been a couple more tandem incidents that ended up being addressable situations, had the TI reacted properly. But the investigation showed that the I/E with the pulled ratings had shortened the class some, and much of what was shorted was EPs for unusual situations. My understanding (as always, I may be wrong on this) is that the TIs that were allowed to keep their ratings with only additional training (the ones not required to take the whole rating class over) were primarily given EP training. After most of the info came out, Mike Wadkins was at my DZ. During a weather hold, he gathered the TIs together and they did an improptu EP seminar. I sat off to the side and watched a very thorough discussion/quiz session on tandem EPs. I already knew that a tandem was a complex and specialized jump. This just reinforced that. "There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy "~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo

Keep your eyes open. Get on the FB groups. Put the word out at your DZ and in your area. Lots of DZs have a FB page, many are closed groups. See if you can get on as many as you can, put the word out there. If you can find a complete rig, great. If not, you may end up piecing one together. One thing some folks are unaware of is a harness resize. If you find a rig that holds the canopies you want, is the brand & colors you like, but the harness doesn't fit, you may be able to get it resized. Go to the manufacturer's site, find out how to be measured, have someone measure you (don't try to measure yourself, it won't work). A rigger or decent seamstress/tailor is a good choice, but in reality, anyone who can follow directions and read a tape measure can do it. Send both your measurements and the serial number of the prospective rig to the manufacturer and see if a resize is an option and how much it will cost. Some stuff can be changed (fairly) easily and for a reasonable cost. There was someone asking about getting the laterals shortened recently. There's some good conversation about this in that thread. "There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy "~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo

TI in question was a foreign national. Not sure of his 'home' experience. Tandem course was conducted by an I/E who had had his ratings pulled. And was apparently a bit shorter than standard. This incident was what prompted a close look at TI training and I/E credentials, and resulted in retraining a whole lot of TIs (some had additional training and kept going, some had to go back and take the entire course again). It was a rather unusual situation of the drogue tangling with the bridle and being choked off, not being left uncocked. Most of the 'full and straight story is here: http://www.dropzone.com/cgi-bin/forum/gforum.cgi?do=post_view_flat;post=4810236;page=1;sb=post_latest_reply;so=ASC;mh=25; As is often the case when Lodi is involved, there's more than 'just a bit' of contention and argument. Some assertions that are far from accurate (in both directions) and a lot of missing posts. "There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy "~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo

Depends on the DZ. My DZ has what's called 'tandem progression'. So do some others. 2 tandems, with performance goals/requirements, 10 min in the tunnel, then on to 'real' AFF. I think those requirements include a good arch during freefall, altitude awareness and pulling the drogue release, controlled turns to a heading, canopy control, landing pattern and flare timing, and a few other things (not an instructor, not sure on that). You can learn a lot doing a tandem, if the instructor and DZ treat it as a lesson, not a ride. If nothing else, doing a tandem first gets the whole "Holy Crap!!!! I just jumped out of a plane" sensory overload out of the way. It's really common to not remember much from the first jump. Best choice would be to call the DZ and see what they say. I see you are out in LA. Perris and Elsinore are good places. "There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy "~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo

Trump has absolutely infringed on Brennan's right to call Trump an asshole. He is also threatening a whole lot of other people with the same thing. If that isn't infringing on the free speech of those people, I don't know what it is. He took punitive action against Brennan. Not for misconduct. Not because he didn't need a clearance anymore. But because he said mean things about Trump. 13 former high level intel people have signed a letter, saying pretty much the above, but with better words. Too many people are trying to look at this as: "Why should Brennan (or Comey or the others) keep their clearances?" Too few (IMO) are looking at it as: "Why did the president punish this one person in this manner?" If clearances aren't needed by retired people, or anything like that; great. Let's have that conversation. Separately. The fact that the sitting president has taken punitive action against a citizen for criticizing the president is abhorrent. "There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy "~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo

Whistleblower law, that may be able to apply, but we don't know what Brennan told the FBI. Trump didn't revoke Brennan's clearance for talking to the FBI. Trump's own statement, read by Sanders, said it was due to his public statements, both on TV and over the internet. "There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy "~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo

I'm not convinced by that. In fact I think that anyone leaving a sensitive position with access to secure material should have their rights revoked as a matter of course. I've done subcontractor work for various defense departments, and my clearance was certainly stripped once my part on the projects were over. That Trump did it to be petty speaks volumes about his character, but I don't see it as a crime, a violation of rights or even a surprise to be honest. I don't think Brennan had any 'access' to classified stuff. It's not like he could log onto "CIAdotcom" and discuss classified stuff with other retired spooks. What he had was the ability to see and be shown classified material, should the need arise. With his experience and skill set, the likelyhood of being consulted for a variety of things is pretty high. Allowing retired and former employees to keep their clearances is one thing. Allowing the Director of the CIA, FBI, NSA, ect (or any of the deputy directors) to keep it is something quite different. And it's apparently something of a standard practice. For the Mango Mussolini to take it away, for no other reason than not liking what Brennan said about him may well cross the line into civil rights violations. I'm not a civil rights lawyer. But this is pretty clearly an attempt to stifle speech. By the head of the US government. "There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy "~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo

Sheesh. I didn't expect the Spanish Inquisition. "There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy "~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo

Well, I'd bet fairly heavily that those 19% represent a large portion of the folks who are very insistent that everyone stand for the National Anthem and that burning the flag should be a capital offense. "There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy "~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo

I the real world I agree with you, but to quote HH, 'this ain't no damn democracy'. I maintain that forcing a change of behavior on the behalf of people who follow the rules in order to facilitate the posting of someone who breaks them is... I don't even know the right word? Irrational? Irritating? I guess I would call it 'enabling', at least on the part of the troll. Allowing his inappropriate behavior to continue while others behave. But I don't really see where anyone else's behavior is being forced to change. You don't have to respond to him. Although it is sometimes very hard to restrain myself from posting something along the lines of "You aren't that stupid, are you?" You know full well he gets enjoyment out of winding people up. It's a fairly stupid and very juvenile behavior, but that's all it is. The best way to deal with it is to ignore it. I don't think I've responded directly to him in a couple years. He rarely responds to my posts. He has more willing targets. However, given his apparent need to respond to just about everything directed at him (machine gun posting), it would be interesting to see what a ban would do. Would he accept it, wait it out and learn? Would he come back the same? Or would he pull a "John Rich" and start posting under sock puppet usernames? "There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy "~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo

I know exactly what you are saying, and whom you are saying it about. To a large extent, I agree. Someone (a particular 'someone') who repeatedly posts nonsense, refuses to respond to challenges about his nonsense, refuses to answer questions about his nonsense, and simply posts more nonsense can be especially frustrating. It's pretty clear that he posts simply to annoy those who have a different viewpoint. It's pretty clear that it works. BUT... To a very large degree, the bigger 'noise generator' is those who respond to him. Those who demand he acknowledge that his info is false, that he answer their questions, that he 'behave'. I made a couple posts about this yesterday. It would be far, far simpler to ignore him and not respond. Not necessarily easier, but simpler. To a certain degree, I agree that he should be banned. Not for any one particular post, but for his pattern of nonsensical posts that are clearly intended to inflame. For his continued pattern of refusing to participate in any real 'discussion' of any topic. Even Rhys would respond in a coherent and readable fashion (not truly 'rational', but you could understand it and he would address points made). But, OTOH, I'm a huge believer in 'free speech' (yes, I know what the 1st A says, what it means and how it really doesn't apply here). Banning someone for posting in a disagreeable manner is a bit too 'close to the line' for my personal taste. "There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy "~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo

Can you find one instance where he did that? One. Anytime in the past, say 3 years. Where he actually answered questions and responded in a rational manner, where he provided at least some sort of backup for his assertions? Betcha can't. See my post above yours. "There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy "~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo

He has to find something that supports his position. The fact that there's no truth to it is immaterial. "There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy "~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo

I honestly don't get it. Why does no one seem to understand that he doesn't care? He won't answer your questions. He won't provide proof for his ludicrous assertions (which doesn't exist in the first place). He won't post in a rational manner, or even in decent English (unless it serves his needs). He posts links where the headline sort of matches the point he wants to push, but doesn't care if the actual text in the article agrees or disagrees. As was noted by Billvon somewhere recently, he's in favor of anything that opposes the Democrats. It doesn't have to be true. If someone says it and it makes the Ds look bad, he repeats it. Provide proof that he's wrong and he ignores it. Ask for proof and he ignores it. He refuses to acknowledge anything that makes Trump or the Rs look bad. He simply ignores it. The repeated demands by many for him to back up his claims are foolish. He ignores them and keeps posting his garbage. WHY does anyone treat him as if he is going to do anything different? "There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy "~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo

Fascinating. The things medical progress has accomplished are amazing. I knew of a guy somewhat local to me who had attempted suicide with a shotgun, but had flinched away at the last moment. Not as severe, but his nose and the front of both the upper and lower jaws were gone. Note - I feel a lot of sympathy for the young lady. Both of them actually. The following is not intended to be demeaning or degrading in any way. It may come across to some that way, but I'm having a hard time finding the right words. I find it... I don't know... Tragic? Ironic? "Fateful"? That her situation was the result of a suicide attempt, and the donor came to be because of a drug overdose (heroin?). Both self inflicted, but neither intended for it to end up this way. The one that lived wanted to die and the one that died most likely didn't. Again, not judging or 'looking down' on either of them. Just an observation of how life can take some strange paths. "There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy "~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo

Pfft. You jumped out of the plane, right? You maintained stability and control during freefall, right? You pulled for yourself, right? You flew and landed the canopy, right? Maybe you had someone holding on to you at first. So what? I'm usually holding onto or being held by someone most jumps. Maybe you had some guidance by radio for landing the canopy. Again, so what? You still had to control and land the thing. You may not be licensed yet. You may not be able to jump when, where & with whom you wish yet. Again, so what? You are a 'real' skydiver. "There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy "~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo

No kidding. Trump met with him as an equal and called him all sorts of complimentary things. Then came back and said that the threat from the DPRK was over. Of course, KJU loved having his stature elevated in that way, but has no plans to denuclearize. What's Trump going to do? Sic the "SPACE FORCE!!!!!!" on him? "There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy "~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo

If by "an incident" you mean knowingly allowing an unrated person to teach multiple ratings courses at his DZ and then employing those improperly trained jumpers? Yes, every DZO who has that kind of "incident" should be chucked out of USPA. Never been to Lodi, never met Bill or anything. But... After all the info about inadequate training and faked credentials came out, a few "Lodi Alumni" told me flat out that Lodi is Bill's kingdom, and that there is absolutely zero chance that this could have gone on without his knowledge. It was strongly suggested that Bill would have been the one who wanted the course 'shortened' to save time. "There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy "~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo

I find it rather amusing that the actual crime (receiving the e-mail about the failed trial and then calling his son to warn him) occurred at the WHITE HOUSE. At the annual picnic. Go figure. "There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy "~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo

Who is saying it wouldn't be? The questions are around the actions that led to escalation. A car is replaceable, a life isn't. Well, if the narrative is correct (and I still haven't seen a link, so I don't know if it even happened), the thief escalated it. Unless "Hey, stop stealing that car!!!" counts as 'escalation.' One more time, despite the gun being 'present', it wasn't apparent until the dude pulled it out. After the thief started trying to run people down. I fail to see how the gun escalated anything. "There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy "~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo

And taken to Monster Joe's, right after a cup of serious gourmet shit. Well, after someone has to be in the back seat, on 'Brain Detail' picking up all the itty bitty pieces of skull. "There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy "~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo

Bingo. Thank you. I find it interesting that people are blaming the guy with the gun for the actions of the thief. Even if the guy with the gun had been brandishing it on approach to the car thief, it still would have been assault/attempted murder to try to run someone down. There are lots of cases where someone drives quickly towards a cop (or more than one), maybe not even directly. They often get shot. The cop 'feared for his (her) life and responded with deadly force. Sometimes it's apparent that the driver was trying to run over the cop, others it's pretty clear they weren't, but were just trying to get away. "There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy "~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo

Don't be so sure. There have been plenty of cases where the 'bad guy' panics & flees, either intentionally ramming/running over anyone who presents a threat, or simply panicking and trying to escape, no matter who/what is in the way. The way Westerly relates the story (and claims in a post one or two up), there was no gun present in the situation until after the assault with the car. Again, I found nothing with a quick search. A link to a story about the incident would be helpful. "There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy "~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo

Or, in the absence of the "A guy with a concealed weapon". The car thief would have just fled the scene without striking the woman. Because obviously he didn't have a gun. That he was in fear for his life and that led to his fevered actions in fleeing the scene. The post from wolfriverjoe re the dangers and financial costs associated with shooting someone. Needs to be front and center. Suppose the car thief has no money or assets and the woman is seriously injured by the fleeing thief's actions. Bring in some lawyers who discover the armed man has assets. Did you read what was posted? If I'm reading it correctly, the thief tried to run the woman down before the gun was pulled out. That is, the thief was confronted by someone not holding a gun, attempted to escape by running someone over (twice), then the citizen produced a firearm. And the idea that the interior of the car was ruined because the thief's brains were splattered all over it is sorta silly. If he was dead, he wouldn't be facing charges. I won't disagree that confronting thieves is often dangerous. It's not a good idea. This citizen will likely be dealing with this for a while. Lots of time and lots of money to get through it. Also, I did a quick search and found nothing that matches the story. Got a link? "There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy "~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo

Well, if the person recording the conversation has proper clearances, then they know how to handle recordings of conversations that include classified stuff. If they don't have the clearances, then Trump shouldn't be talking about that sort of stuff. I know that, as Pres & CinC he can decide unilaterally what can and cannot be discussed. In that case, the person doing the recording should be very careful. They would be in illegal possession of classified material. They might get "locked up." "There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy "~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo