nessum
it would be interesting to know why you were not assigned to see if there was sexism in the feminist movement. i have read both threads. not only did you bring out the bad side of some, you created the appearance that large numbers of divers are sexist's. you primarily pushed the buttons of those who are tired of being stereotyped and falsely accused because of what is between thier legs. if it is a gap you are a victom if not you are sexist. that is the feminist movement as it has developed through the years.
i have not found sexism, acted out, in the diving community unless started by women. i have seen both extreems of it. women who carry thier agenda with them and look for oppertunities to make acusations when ever possible,, and those who do not wear a wet suit because it only gets in the way of removing thier thong for some 50' playtime. even these instances are rare. there are the dive bunnies out there but few. most (99%) of the divers do not buy the required gear to have a 50' hot tub party. they are a breed of thier own, a very proud and honorable group of sportsmen. (oops i used the work men) if you wish to condemn the courses for content. please do so on the lines of training value not political correctness. the latter kills people.
the whole feminist thing pisses of a lot of people. diving is one of the last bastions that has not been ruined by politics. those who do this sport understand that some one hase to be the first in and some one has to be the last out. the thought that a man entering the water first is machoism, and letting a woman enter first is,,, test for sharks, she is of lesser value ism is crap. there are all levels of skills out there. we are taught to look out after each other, it is a necessary part of survival, daaaa buddy system. to infer that our behaviors are sexist suggests that the sexist problem may be more in the eye's of an observer with an agenda.
let me ask you why you did not take on the project of writing a paper about women who obtained thier position because of sexist based regulations. commonly refered to as reverse discrimination. you know sex before qualification's,,,, perhaps that would not have been in the intrest of the teacher who made the assignment. after all you can not cultivate followers and advance you position by exposing your own flaws. you do so by inflating and exposing others flaws.
on the note of rescue courses, i have been involved with some of the training exercizes. unless i am very comfortable with the woman i will not (for training) rescue her. one cannot help feeling threatened when you have to grope, tug, manipulate and twist some one to strip gear off them and not do something that may be considered as inappropriate. perception is 90% of what gets you in trouble not groping. do not try to create the perception that divers are criminals. team up with some one who perceives every action as a hostile and you are in trouble. legaly or socialy it is the same. i will train with a man any day. fortunatly once again this is a rare situation given the mindset and integrity of the diving community,(men and women both). thankfully, there is as much chance that gloria's girls will take up divng in order to further thier cause as there is a bunch of over hormoned guys taking up diving for the purpose of getting a date at 60' in some cold water rock quary. please look else where for your reaserch. perhaps you could comprimise by doing sexism during ballay sky diving. those folks may feel the same however. those who are upset by your reaserch are probably so not because of threatened exposure but by the the idea that you have made your conclusion and are coming to us to get the evidence.
tired of being stereotyped
KWS
