Carbon fiber backplate

[Snusmumrik]

I didn't see any at that price

Deluxe-Rückplatte aus Kohlefaser zum Tauchen, leichte, kompakte Rückplatte für technische Höhlen und Taucher - AliExpress 18

Smarter Shopping, Better Living! Aliexpress.com

aliexpress.com

 

[OTF]

China is the workshop of the world, their factories and massively-capable supply chains make just about everything: both low-end and high-end. Their high-end can far exceed the speed and quality of production of anything produced in the dying West. Better to differentiate on price / reputation / quality control rather than origin of manufacture

But they do it with Uyghur slave labor and totally unregulated pollution.

 

[lizardland]

But they do it with Uyghur slave labor and totally unregulated pollution.

Divers will wear a plastic save-the-turtles wristband while dripping head to toe in stuff made in China so they can travel 3000 mile round the world to take holidays in countries with some of the most corrupt & repressive regimes on the planet and not think twice about the irony. Ethics don't enter into it.

 

[OTF]

Divers will wear a plastic save-the-turtles wristband while dripping head to toe in stuff made in China so they can travel 3000 mile round the world to take holidays in countries with some of the most corrupt & repressive regimes on the planet and not think twice about the irony. Ethics don't enter into it.

Is diving inherently unethical?

 

[lizardland]

Is diving inherently unethical?

At the risk of derailing the thread, I think so. It's basically cover yourself in synthetic materials, made in places that don't care about environmental or worker protections then travel in the most polluting ways to countries with less than stellar records.

Will it stop me diving? I think we know the answer to that

 

[OTF]

At the risk of derailing the thread, I think so. It's basically cover yourself in synthetic materials, made in places that don't care about environmental or worker protections then travel in the most polluting ways to countries with less than stellar records.

Will it stop me diving? I think we know the answer to that

Oh, we're going off the rails on a crazy train.

I tend to disagree with the old adage that "there is no ethical consumption under capitalism" (or, at least as a consumer under capitalism I really really want to). There certainly are huge moral problems in the supply chain, but it is at least possible to try and do a little better. Admittedly at the expense of more money. Buy the european-made Nanight instead of the BigBlue, knowing it was manufactured in a place with protections for workers and the environment. Buy the GreenPrene or Yulex wetsuit, buy verified carbon offsets for flights, avoid the most questionable destinations (and cruise ships) instead try to go places that do "ecotourism" right and use it to fund and advance conservation efforts.

Unfortunately it's pretty much impossible to know most of the time. Did that cheap Chinese carbon plate actually happen to be made in a modern factory with good standards, or by a ten year old? Did the same kid make the Halcyon product anyway? Does that boutique eco-resort actually dump huge quantities of pesticides all over the place to keep the grounds pretty? The lack of transparency in the entire marketplace is unsettling.

Ultimately I think it's a mixed bag. Diving really does encourage conservation. Many island nations would sell out their reefs to fishermen and strip them bare if dive tourism wasn't the more profitable option. People also need to see and experience the underwater world to form a connection and care about it at all. In the words of Cousteau "people protect what they love" and it's hard for anyone to fall in love with the ocean unless they strap on some plastic dive gear and go in it.

Above all, I think it's important to talk about these things, address them with others, and not ignore ethical questions as an awkward elephant in the room while we play in the sun.

 

[RIHappyDiver]

At the risk of derailing the thread, I think so. It's basically cover yourself in synthetic materials, made in places that don't care about environmental or worker protections then travel in the most polluting ways to countries with less than stellar records.

Will it stop me diving? I think we know the answer to that

This thread got derailed at post #9, when it started talking brands to purchase in the DIY forum, in a thread where OP was showing the back plate that he made.

In other words, this poor guy had his thread hijacked months ago. Everyone from from post #10 and on has just been pile up.

At least @OTF was pointing out why, if it’s coming from China, it should be DIY.

Erik

 

[boqurant]

But they do it with Uyghur slave labor and totally unregulated pollution.

Pfffft .... you might seek a lesson in basic economics and fast-forward your calendar to 2025. Low value-add items _used_ to be made in China because they had cheap labor and very poor environmental standards. A lot of that has now moved to cheaper countries. China now typically makes high value-add products because they have variously: cheap energy, fantastic and highly efficient supply chains, freezones that encourage entrepreneurship, a strong education & work ethic, and still a lot of (now highly educated) manpower.