Blackmail by 'professionals"?

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Man, this idea that you instructors come in to contact with "THOUSANDS" of folks interested in diving EVERY DAY, is incredible. I don't even interact with 500 different people on any given day. You guys lead some incredibly special lives to not only interact with over 1000 people a day but 1000 people who have an interest in what you do.

-Z
 
As a group of 4 instructors traveling (yes real instructors, no entitled millennials) ...

This part of the statement says so much (for the record, I'm pushing 50). Shaking my head.
 
Man, this idea that you instructors come in to contact with "THOUSANDS" of folks interested in diving EVERY DAY, is incredible.
I interact with between 10,000 and 20,000 people a day. :D That's the power of ScubaBoard.
 
In short: it's not ethical for me to do that.
I will never lie on this forum. If I have nothing good to say about a shop, then I simply remain silent. If it's a mix, I let them decide if I post it or not.

I appreciate your honesty, but I find it hard to come to terms with your hypothesis that it is not ethical for you to give an honest review. This is what this thread is about, honesty and ethical behaviour amongst dive professionals, yet you claim this is not possible to do? Is this where the dive industry is at?
 
but I find it hard to come to terms with your hypothesis that it is not ethical for you to give an honest review.
I only give honest reviews. You can try to paint me into whatever corner you want, but I don't lie on reviews. My opinion is really no more valid than yours. But my status as the owner of ScubaBoard lends more weight to that opinion than it deserves. Ergo, I only review gear, resorts and dive ops that I like. If I find a gear/resort/dive op problematic, I simply won't report on them. That's my choice. That's my right. That's the only ethical way for me to do this. If it's mixed, I let them decide if they want it posted. Again, if people are being hurt physically or fiscally, I'll cross that line. I've been painfully open and honest about this from the start.

The diving world knows me. The diving world reads me. No, I don't pretend to be famous; merely infamous. My tag reads NetDoc and I'm no longer worried when I get pulled over. It's usually a friendly officer wanting to say "hi". You can bet he's a diver. When I finally put ScubaBoard on the Transit, I had an officer do a u-turn and chase me down just to look the van over and say "hi" to me. Divers know me and want to meet me. I've had divers hang around tanks I've been filling just to do just that. It's embarrassing at times and I'm sure I don't deserve the notoriety. But with any power comes the requisite responsibility. It would be way too easy to use that power to extort businesses and I won't do that. I won't even allow the appearance of that. That means that I'll never let my hurt feelings, petty disagreements or disappointments result in a negative review, because I just won't do them. It's not happening. It wouldn't be ethical.

So if I post sunbeams and roses about something: you can truly believe what I write. If I can't recommend something, then I don't write about it. Let my silence speak volumes. That may or may not help you understand my position. You do what's right for you and I'll do what's right and ethical for me.
 
Caveat: I have never been to a resort I wouldn't recommend. There are a couple of dive ops and lots of gear that I wouldn't recommend.
 
@The Cat Man,
Everyone screws up at some time or another. While you may not be entitled to a discount at the dive resort in question, you are entitled to the chance to rectify the issue you brought upon yourself. Perhaps using this space to offer an apology to the resort manager/owner, perhaps a line apologizing to your fellow instructors....couldn't hurt. Exercise those entitlements you definitely have.

Just sayin,
-Z
 
Instructors don’t deserve a discount just because they’re an instructor. I’ve seen the same attitude among other groups (active duty military/veterans/first responders) that often are offered discounts and loudly demand discounts at stores just because they think they deserve one
 
"They're" :D :D :D

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Instructors don’t deserve a discount just because they’re an instructor. I’ve seen the same attitude among other groups (active duty military/veterans/first responders) that often are offered discounts and loudly demand discounts at stores just because they think they deserve one

It has been 2.5 years since I retired from the military. Never in the 22.5 years since I joined the military have I ever seen/heard a military member or veteran "demand" a discount. I have heard plenty "ask" if one is available/offered. Now I am not saying that it doesn't happen, and I have not been in the presence, obviously, of all military members and veterans at each point of sale policing this, but most military folks that I have come across tend to act with more humility than to "demand" or argue about a discount....most of the junior guys tend to not make waves in fear that their command will hear about it.

As a retired veteran of 3 wars, I have mixed feelings about military discounts. I often find it uncomfortable when someone says "thank you for your service". It comes across almost cliché and empty. I have tried to think through and reconcile why I and my fellow brothers and sisters in arms are gifted discounts at various retail locations....The only thing that seems to ring consistent is the expression that "every person who has joined the military has written a blank check made payable to "The United States of America," for an amount of "up to and including their life."

I don't think military and vets are entitled to any sort of discount...but if a business owner/manager understands the sentiment in quotes above, and chooses to extend the offer of a discount, I will graciously accept it, and I hope my fellow service members (active, retired, separated, etc)...graciously and humbly accept it as well.

If a service member is "demanding" a discount, being argumentative about it, or otherwise misbehaving, snap a picture of the person and send it with a note to the local base...they will be dealt with. For a vet, or someone not in uniform, don't be afraid to say something to them about how they are acting...a simple "you should be ashamed of...." will usually be enough to snap them in line...military personnel put up with a lot of frustration and uncertainty that does not exist in the civilian world...those robes are not easily shed once we leave service, and sometimes we are overwhelmed to the point we forget we are interfacing in the public etc....it does not take much to remind us and get us to fall back in line with the accepted standards of the venue/situation. I am not trying to make excuses, just trying to provide insight.

I do believe that there are folks out there that struggle more than the folks in the military. There are plenty of people living at or below the poverty line, there are plenty of people out of work, and there are plenty of people that struggle to feed and cloth themselves and their families. There are no specific discounts offered to those people. I wish there were, as they often need it more than the folks in the military.

Just my thoughts on the matter.

-Z
 
https://www.shearwater.com/products/teric/

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