Sue Castner, s_cast@my-deja.com wrote:
>
> At the risk of falling into the Aldora Mental Midget category, I am
> compelled to respond to an inaccuracy or two or three posted by Mr.
> Ling.

No problem! Now we are getting to some PERSONAL nasties, aren't
we? Since you chose to make your rather unwarranted personal
attack (because of your Aldora Cult affiliation), I'll tell you
where you went FAR off your track because you don't KNOW anything
about me other than what you heard from the Aldora Mental Midgets
AND the one flight you sat next to me.
>
> 1. <> I am from Japan. The
> group was not from Japan. And I am the one who was unfortunate enough
> to get stuck next to Mr. Ling on the IAH to CZM flight. I say
> unfortunate for reasons that will become abundantly clear.

I was referring to the Aldora group (of twenty or so, according to
you) who were to meet in Cozumel. I knew damned well the group was
not from Japan. Your friend (who sat in coach class) was from NJ,
and Arne, whom you said was there, was certainly NOT from Japan.

Not a very good start at nitpicking, are you?

>
> 2. <> Perhaps Mr. Ling recalled the conversation
> as cordial due in large part to the Kahluas on the rocks and the Grand
> Marniers on the rocks served to Mr. Ling before take off and during
> breakfast. We all think we’re very charming after a few stiff drinks
> on the 9:30 AM flight.

Wrong on BOTH counts about the drinks. I NEVER drank any Grand Maniers
on the rocks. As for trying to fabricate a case about me being a
"drinker", you couldn't be more wrong! Having one complimentary drink
on a First Class flight is standard for me, though I am not even a
social drinker otherwise. All the internet divers who met in Coz in
the NEDfest last June an attest to the fact that I DON'T DRINK. Ask
Albert or any waiter at PRIMA (where you and your Aldora cult ate a
few times) where I had dinner at least half a dozen times, and you'll
know immediately that I have never even had a BEER there. Not even
wine. Coca Cola is my usual dinner drink.

As anyone you know on either the Aggressor or Peter Hughes Fleet who
knew me because of the dozens of times I've been on their charters,
that I typically don't have even a single alcoholic drink of ANY kind
during a week, when the booze is FREE, and available to everyone.

Sue, you surely couldn't have picked a WORSE example to fabricate
your case that I am a "heavy drinker".

Try something else ... it might be less-readily refutable. Sheesh,
and I THOUGHT you were indeed a cordial person having a nice social
conversation about diving.


> 3. <> 15 minutes into the dive (in the swim throughs).>> I’m usually pretty
> good at inter-personal communications but I apparently failed miserably
> in Mr. Ling’s case. Perhaps I didn’t make myself clear. I THOUGHT I
> explained that I PREFER a 120 steel tank for safety reasons. The
> gentleman I usually dive with is 6’7” and weighs 290 lbs. and he uses a
> reasonable of air when diving.

You made THAT clear. As a matter of fact, you said your buddy was
OVER 300 lbs. I didn't think those details were important to my two-
line summary which correctly characterized your concern!

> I THOUGHT I had said that SHOULD
> anything happen to his equipment on a deep dive, I wanted to make sure
> I had enough air to get both of us to the surface safely.

That was when I asked why it would need a 120 tank to surface from
a NO DECO dive whose MAX depth was at or before the first 15 minutes
or so of the dive.

> I apologize if I misstated. I never mentioned swim throughs and as anyone who has
> ever been diving with us will attest, it is highly unlikely that we
> will be OOA in 15 minutes. Or in 1 hour and 15 minutes.

While you never actually mentioned the swim-throughs, but the
implication about the Punta Sur deep dive was clear. Besides,
on each of my Aldora dives, one could EASILY surface without air
(unaided by anyone else) should a catastrophic mechanical failure
happened because for the MOST part of the dives (including the
Punta Sur Devil's Throat dive) the group dives ABOVE 60 fsw, and
each had an "excessively and unnecessarily elongated" safety
stop of over 20 minutes because that seem to allow some Aldora
fans to brag about their LONG dives, even though they were just
floating over sand patches, long after the sites had run out
coral reefs or any flora or fauna to look at!

Why on earth would you need a 120 tank to get you to the surface
safely from 20 or 30 fsw during the latter course of any of the
Aldora dives, or from 130 fsw (the company limit) during the
early portion of the 5-minute-from-deco-at-all-times dives?

This was what I wrote Dave Dillehay this morning, LONG BEFORE
your post appeared:

*> The "safety stop" itself is ALREADY an "unnecessary stop", for
*> insurance purposes in case a "deco stop" was required. That's why
*> they are normally recommended anywhere from 3 to 10 minutes, from
*> the liberal to the ultra-conservative. But when the "safety
*> stop" is over 20 minutes in both dives (in which neither dive
*> was "extreme" in any ordinary sense of the word) it appears
*> the "group" was just waiting for the first diver to run short
*> (out) of air so everyone can brag on their lengthy "dive".


> Now that we have that cleared up, I would like to add that I was rather
> amused when Mr. Ling actually introduced himself as the “Notorious
> Aldora Basher” (No misquote or misrepresentation. I wasn't the one
> washing my scrambled eggs down with hard liquor.) and proceeded to bash
> not only Aldora but also anyone who posts anything positive about
> Aldora. He automatically categorizes them as spammers.

Sorry Sue, that was a completely INACCURATE account, as it was your
fabrication of my drinking Grand Manieres on the rocks. Do you recall
seeing my two friends sitting in seats in Row 2E and 2F? They are
Cozumel LOCALS who know both me AND Dave Dillehay well. THEY would
have easily attested to the fact that you lied. They were well within
hearing distance of everything I said, and visual distance of what
I drank (or didn't)! They ALSO know well that I do NOT bash Aldora,
and they even share my views about the injudiciousness of using
120 tanks to cater to the "air-hogs" while no other dive operation
in Cozumel does!

Dave Dillehay even admitted to cases of the "skin bends" by Aldora
divers. Don't you think handing 120 tanks indiscriminantly to
newbie divers MIGHT have been a contributing factor to their over-
staying the N2 limits, thus causing the skin bends? No, I didn't
ASK Dave about the chamber record of Aldora divers. He volunteered
the "skin bends" info.

> He whined
> about Arne, who I’ve known and been diving with since 1995, claiming
> that someone from Norway couldn’t possibly know about diving in the
> Caribbean.

Wrong again. I mentioned Arne didn't even know where the Pro Dive
Pier was after he had been to Cozumel in THREE trips. I cited that
example elsewhere in this thread. That was a pretty good indication
that while he was spamming for Aldora, he didn't know much of
anything else about Cozumel or Cozumel diving. I wasn't whining
about Arne. I was merely stating FACTS which are in the Deja.com
records!

> He complained about how much Aldora charges.

Since you have NOT read anything I posted in rec.scuba, I was merely
explaining to you my "cost-benefit analysis", as I did to Dave
Dillehay as well. You obviously missed that pointed that I didn't
NEED any of the extras Aldora offers for the fees charged.

> He bragged
> about his “Penthouse Suite.”

It was a merely statement of FACT that I could OBSERVE all that
was on-going at the Pro Dive Pier AND the Aldora Pier. You'll have
to read the Maracaibo thread in rec.scuba.locations to see read the
explanation I gave to other members of your cult about my mention
of that Suite.

>(Puh-leeze – the Penthouse Suite at the
> Plaza in NYC or Singapore’s Raffles is worth bragging about. But a
> downtown Cozumel dive? Get real!)

I even PROVED that it wasn't a case of "bragging" because that
suite cost LESS than a "standard" room in many hotels in Cozumel.
No, Ms Sue Castner, you were just gravely mistaken about my
"bragging", just like the other Mental Midget friends of yours
to whom I have already responded long before your post appeared.

> He complained about the
> Presidente’s prices and the fact that if you stay there, you have to
> drag your gear SO FAR to get it to the dock.

That is a correct statement.

>(Gee, if he went diving
> with Aldora, his gear would be on the boat, which would eliminate the
> need to drag it all those miles to the dock.)

The same holds for many OTHER dive shops! But I don't trust MY
gears at the hands Aldora or anybody else. I made that point to
Dave when I showed him the jacuzzi in my suite (no, that's not
bragging either -- just a FUNCTION feature of that suite for MY
cost-benefit analysis) where I very carefully rinse and clean my
own gears everyday -- including rinsing and soaking the INSIDE of
my BCD in warm water in the event I ever needed to use it as a
"rebreather" in extreme emergencies of OOA due to catastrophic
equipment failure. I am SURE Aldora does NOT take that kind of
care with their clients BCD, let alone other meticulous cares
about other gears. I am also reasonably sure that you would
not be familiar with the notion of using a BCD for emergency
ascent, if you had to carry a 120 tank for the purpose bailing
out your 275 lb buddy from 30 fsw.

Besides, Dave said the reason ALL Aldora divers have to stay close
in a group is that the DM can rescue anybody in need. So why
won't the DM rescue your 275 lb buddy? ;-) Besides, why isn't
your 275-lb buddy a diver who is RESPONSIBLE for his OWN safety?
I actually had a discussion with Dave Dillehay about that aspect
of a "self-responsible" diver, once a diver is certified. But
that's a separate topic all together.

> He pontificated about
> his vast experience in Cozumel diving.

What is there to "pontificate" about -- the FACT that I have done
1000 dives in Cozumel, with at least a dozen dive shops that are
at least as good (or better) for what they have to offer than
Aldora for MY diving needs? That is in fact my EXPERIENCE and
DATA base to compare the pros and cons of various dive operations
for divers of different needs!

Different folks, different strokes! Some folks (or as Dan Bracuk
might say, some strokes ) are best suited for Aldora, while
MOST of the folks *I* dive with can find better operators based
on THEIR OWN cost-benefit analysis, given all the FACTS known about
Aldora.

> He detailed his dive schedule
> for the next few months. All in all - a rather one-sided “cordial”
> conversation with a self-absorbed, egocentric, narcissistic boor.
> Fortunately it was a short flight and a lesson to me that First Class
> seats are not always the best option.

You are certainly entitled to you opinion. I merely responded to
your mistated FACTS, and misrepresentation of what I said.


> Quite frankly, I really don’t care what story Dr. Ling buys. I found
> his observations on Cozumel redundant, his allegedly extensive
> experience hackneyed and his braggadocio rather annoying. I thought
> that I might have been able to learn something from someone who had
> been diving there since the last century. My mistake.

That attitude is quite understandable, from one who has NOT dived
with anyone else in Cozumel, and who does not comprehend the idea
that there are CHOICES for everyone -- that Aldora (nor any other
shop in Cozumel) is best for ALL -- an idea that seems NOVEL to
those in the Aldora Cult, deeply submerged in the quackmire of
her prejudices, and blind to any discourse to the contrary.

>
> That said, the most frightening aspect of this “cordial” conversation
> was Dr. Ling’s statement that he could leave Atlanta in the morning and
> he would be in the water diving THAT afternoon.

A correct statement that I often repeat as the reason WHY Cozumel
is considered by me to be my "local site".

> Deco limits, high
> capacity tanks, a plethora of computers, 1,000 dives notwithstanding –
> I would call diving after several double liquors on the rocks for
> breakfast rather unsafe. Call me crazy. Call me a broad with big tank
> envy. But I’m just that way.

No, I'll just call you an ignorant fool making charges without the
FACTS. First, I had already punctured your fabrication about my
drinking. Second, I did NOT dive that afternoon. I know MY
LIMITS and I am perfectly capable of being a Responsible Diver for
myself -- without any of YOUR misguided pontification.

No thank you, Ms. Sue Castner.
>
> Oh - and the diving? The water was a bit cold for Coz. 78 - 79
> degrees. The diving (with Aldora, of course) was fabulous. Daniel as
> our dive master did a superb job. I'll be back there in 3 weeks. Just
> as soon as I recover from the jet lag of the last trip. As Always –
> Sue Castner

Likewise for MY diving. Done on boats and sites that are BEYOND
what Aldora has to offer, at lower cost of course.

> At the risk of falling into the Aldora Mental Midget category, I am
> compelled to respond to an inaccuracy or two or three posted by Mr.
> Ling.

You weren't compelled to do anything. But since you chose to, I have
punctured your fabricated allegations, corrected your mistatement of
facts, and pointed out your failure to understand what I had to say,
about DIVING, dive safety, and about cost-benefit analysis. Pity.