Airman1270

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Everything posted by Airman1270

  1. I think there is nothing worse in a civilized society than to allow confiscation of personal assets to benefit the local police or judiciary. I get sick when I see a fancy car confiscated and plastered with D.A.R.E. stickers so the police can have something fun to drive... _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Yes. This is a dangerous trend. Once people accept the premise that the police can take your stuff because you broke a law, where does it end? Will the people who support this totalitarian crap be willing to have their cars taken away because they (or someone else) committed a traffic violation or struck a cute little child who ran into the road? Why do they confiscate the Corvette, but not the 1980 Winnebago in the back yard with the flat tires and the tree growing through the engine compartment? Cheers, Jon S.
  2. That's a problem for you americans, suing everyone and anyone for every little fart done in the wrong place.. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Two reasons for this: 1) Despite the fact that the legal profession is well saturated, many people want to become lawyers even though there's no demand for their services. Each year brings thousands of new law school graduates with bills to pay. Their only chance at earning income involves creative new ways to justify lawsuits. 2) Jury selection. Much effort goes into weeding out the majority of "normal" people who do not believe such lawsuits are justified. Lawyers instead go for the kind of people who watch daytime TV, the ignorant, clueless among us who don't pay attention to what's going on in the world around them and can be persuaded that evil defendant "X" is responsible for failing to prevent an unfortunate incident from occurring. If a guy decides to become a carpenter, even though his community already has plenty of carpenters, he can try, but will struggle to find work. A carpenter will not show up at your home out of the blue, build you an $8000 deck you never wanted in the first place, and demand you rearrange your life so as to make this project your first priority. But a lawyer can do this to you, in the absence of any wrongdoing on your part. Cheers, Jon
  3. I think the main issue is: Give us information, but otherwise leave us alone. If we must err in judgement, let it be in the direction of liberty & freedom. Let the DZO provide information & leadership, but allow customers to make informed choices. If he provides the agreed service (airplane ride, place to land, free beer, etc.) he should not have to deal with lawsuits because something didn't go as planned. Cheers, Jon S.
  4. The SIM's recurrency guidelines, which speak for themselves, say the following... _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Just because it's written on paper doesn't mean it's necessary. Anyone who's made a few dozen jumps doesn't need a full blown FJC upon his return. Nor does he need to make a static-line jump or, God forbid, a tandem. The people I affectionately describe as "currency nazis" tend to be people who make lots of jumps & spend lots of time at the DZ. They spend much time with others who show up regularly and jump often. This is their "norm." They end up in leadership positions and write "guidelines" for the rest of us. I never would have made it through my student days (years) if their "guidelines" had been accepted policy in the early 1980's. We've all heard the stories of the returning, uncurrent jumper who shows up at a boogie and gets on a 20-way & messes things up. This borders on insane. But there's nothing dangerous about that same jumper doing a solo with a high opening, following a briefing with an instructor or other DZ official. Cheers, Jon
  5. Sure, but if somebody does not possess awesome skills, maybe a cell phone is an acceptable substatute... _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Yeah, fair point. Having been a smart-ass, it's only a matter of time before I'll be navigating my way back to the DZ after sunset. Bet I'll be thinking about the phone I left in the car. Cheers, Jon
  6. Yup, noticed it immediately. Perhaps some people were distracted by the image of the woman & the skimpy garment. At my age, I have no reason to believe she's taking it off for me, so I'm free to notice spelling & grammar w/out being burdened by other matters. Reminds me of a brief "debate" I had in 10th grade English class. I said the proper phrase is "must have..." while another student preferred "must of...." She cited a song title by the J. Geils band that was popular at the time: "Must of Got Lost." The teacher smiled in amusement before awarding me my hard-won victory. Not that it mattered. I didn't have a "D" license so it went unrecognized... Cheers, Jon S.
  7. ...Even with an A, you still need refresher training and a recurrency jump after a lay-off... _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ No, you don't. I concede some DZ's may require this, but anyone who has made enough jumps to earn an "A" license does not need a babysitter, even after a year or two off. A quick briefing followed by a short solo delay is all that is needed to blow off the cobwebs. Don't be intimidated by the currency nazis. Cheers, Jon S.
  8. The December 1989 PARACHUTIST has an excellent aricle on building freefall banners. I (er, my rigger friends) built three banners following the instructions laid out in this article to make birth announcements for my kids. (Hey, I did it for the first one so I had to do it for all of them, right?) They were very easy to fly & photograph. They currently occupy some hallowed space on my basement room wall, alongside the corresponding photos. Cheers, Jon S.
  9. Perhaps working on accuracy skills might render this matter moot? Cheers, Jon
  10. Several years back a co-worker said he'd made some jumps somewhere in north Georgia. I asked what DZ, expecting to hear "Rome" or "Ellijay." No, he'd made a few bandit jumps, without any training, from a friend's plane near Dalton. I asked what kind of gear. He said it was a normal parachute. Fighting increasing disbelief, I asked if the reserve was on the front or the back. He said "The front. It's always on the front." Have to admit I think he may have been giving me a line of fiction. Cheers, Jon
  11. Several years ago I had a brief on-air conversation on my small-town market radio show. The caller knew I jumped and was expressing his enthusiasm, explaining how he intended to find a pilot who'd take him up w/out any training. He thought I'd be happy for him; Instead I said that if I had any knowledge about this I'd make a phone call and do what I could to prevent it from happening. I encouraged him to vist a local DZ, but don't believe he ever showed up. Cheers, Jon S.
  12. It doesn't matter who made the damn thing. If there's a computer involved, you can be sure there will be times when it does things you didn't ask it to do. If my parachute had a computer, I would have gone into the ground years ago. Cheers, Jon S.
  13. Wow. Such a great place to be, having enjoyed so many jumps and yet deciding you don't wanna anymore. Life will be so much less complicated, and you can always come back. Cheers! Jon S.
  14. Keep the gear. You can always change your mind later when you're more comfortable with the decision. Cheers, Jon S.
  15. Paul Simon, Learn How to Fall from his 1973 "...Rhymin' Simon" album. "... You've got to learn how to fall........ before you learn to fly...." Cheers, Jon S.
  16. QuoteKapowsin in WA has one, but she is also a staff jumper there. Does massages in between... _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ How much for a massage "in between?"
  17. Above all else, don't lose sight of the basics: Jumping out of airplanes is fun. Don't think you have to be "working on something" every time. It's a blast just stepping out that door, watching the plane fall up & the ground get big. Enjoy every brief second of this unique sport. Cheers, Jon S.
  18. Not only is it fun to fly like Superman, it's the safest way to get a parachute ride. Cheers, Jon
  19. ...It's as good as or better than sex... _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Besides, I can GET a skydive. And even at my age I can do it more than once if I have enough money. Cheers, Jon S.
  20. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Nah, not important enough. I qualified many years ago, mostly. All that's left is to jump into a swimming pool with a canopy over me & survive. The point is that the "D" requirement is irrelevant and, as has been noted before, petty. I spent nearly 30 years working toward my 12-hour badge & don't want it sullied by a waiver. Ditto the PRO rating. If I can meet the accuracy requirements, I should get the rating regardless of which license I hold, what color socks I'm wearing, or whether I can play a kick-ass version of "Penny Lane" on the guitar. I'm already an emotional cripple, and can survive without the 12-hour badge, But I do believe the people who support the "D" requirement should have the guts to step up and explain why. Cheers, Jon
  21. QuoteQuoteI have 207 jumps and still jump a 220 pilot... _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Don't know the details, but I jump a 220. Am having trouble with the whole concept of a guy with 200+ jumps having to justify a 220. Maybe the others are being harsh, or maybe they've got a valid point. But he shouldn't be made to feel like there's something wrong with a 220. Cheers, JonS.
  22. ...the same dude that was swilling beer and probably ate a steak afterwards doesn't want to admit that a vegetarian lifestyle will do more for the environment than not driving at all... _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ If God didn't intend for us to eat animals, why'd He make them out of meat? Cheers, Jon
  23. ...Amazing, the vanity that drives these people who actually think mankind >can alter the climate. And even more amazing the people who do not understand atmospheric chemistry... _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Okay, maybe you understand atmospheric density better than I do. But you really believe mankind can alter the climate? Cheers, Jon
  24. Hope there'll be time to repeal the "D" license requirement for the 12-hour badge, Gold Wings, etc. ....Holding breath.... getting dizzzzzzyyeee... Cheers, Jon S.
  25. ...he lives in CA and drives down the street for milk... _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ This says it all. Very nice. 100 years from now people will look back on this phase of history and bust a gut laughing at the gullible folks who swallowed without question this whole "climate change," "global warming," "carbon footprint" series of myths pushed by left-wing totalitarians. Amazing, the vanity that drives these people who actually think mankind can alter the climate. Go ahead, worry about your "carbon footprint" or don't. It doesn't matter either way. In a few hundred thousand years the sun will blow up and it won't matter. But while we're still here, if you value liberty, freedom, and America's foundation of Constitutional limitations, don't ever vote for the extremist losers who take this crap seriously. Cheers, Jon S.