BK>>  You learn to jump when it's necessary to jump, without waiting  for
BK>> an explanation.

 RW> Yep, and sometimes that's just waht you need to do, jump as
 RW> in react to the stimuli without having to do the "what do I
 RW> do next?"

 RW> THat old adage, "what you do in training you do in combat."

 Yep. Not 100%, but a whole lot better than without it.

BK>>  And you could learn to break down and unjam a rifle in the dark.

 RW> OF course, or any number of things that need to be done to
 RW> keep the unit fighting, whether that means operate a radio,
 RW> dig a trench, cook dinner, unjam a weapon, or ...

 When I said break down and unjam a rifle in the dark, that was
 specifically for you. Think about it.

 RW>>> get a high school diploma young people should undergo cert
 RW>>> training.

BK>>>  I have often thought about that.

 RW>> At first I went into that course thinking it would be just
BK>>  ...
 RW>> knowledge that I'd either find it a waste of my time but
 RW>> complete the course for the paper, or I'd find it was
 RW>> great.  With this instructor and others like her it's a
 RW>> damned good course, and every American should take it.

BK>>  Lotta stuff like that. But it ain't the 3R's, so they won't fund
BK>> it.

 RW> THey should.  WHat's not to like?  Gives them some first
 RW> aid, some fire suppression, some rescue.  IF nothing else

 I believe the purpose of the schools is not just the three Rs,
 but to teach them to function in our society. And the emergency
 response part is a good part of that.

 RW> it helps one answer the "should I or shouldn't I?" question
 RW> when it comes to even attempting the rescue.  At even more
 RW> elementary level than that it teaches one how ot to become
 RW> a further victim while assessing the situation.

 Yeah, that last part is an important part.

 RW>>> meanwhile my lady's sitting there in her wheelchair.  I
 RW>>> pushed her forward and said something like "she may not be
 RW>>> able to operate a lever, but she should get a shot at
 RW>>> coordinating the team.

BK>>>  Exactly what I was referring to.

 RW>> YEp, and she was quite observant, told the third man who
 RW>> would be actually grappling with the body to get his hands
 RW>> back more than once.  YEs, we assembled debris as it might

BK>>  And that is something you can do even if you can't do the actual
BK>> job. OTOH, that man needed to be told, which suggests runing the
BK>> show would not be something he was ready for.

 RW> Maybe, but he was being gung ho about getting the body, as
 RW> he probably would be in the real life situation.  THat's
 RW> your first rule, don't become *another* victim.

 Yep. And that's why obeying the chief's orders is important.
 Aside from being more experienced, he's also in a position where
 he might see things you don't.

 ...

 RW>> assignment they come out to see a tripod antenna mast and a
 RW>> bunch of gear set up ready for operation.

BK>>  Yep. Get them interested, show them, don't tell them.

 RW> OF course, then after the exercise we do a bit of just
 RW> playing with it, if the hf is wired to a good working
 RW> antenna make a contact on 20 or 40 meters, play a bit of
 RW> repeater tag with area vhf/uhf repeaters.

 Getting hands on is a very important part of training. Gives
 both experience and confidence.

 RW> ONly thing I"ve got to do yet is see how quickly we can get
 RW> Kathy to assemble tripod and vhf/uhf antenna by her
 RW> lonesome, from the wheelchair.  IT might be tough, but she

 Not only accomplish the mission, but show others what can be
 done.

 RW> could sit in the back of the van at first while she began
 RW> the process of unloading tripod mast and antenna, transfer
 RW> to the chair, tilt the boom over on the tripod stand, hose
 RW> clamp antenna to it, lever the boom back standing vertical,
 RW> tighten down the fastener which holds it that way, then
 RW> possibly telescope the whole assembly further.  I've meant
 RW> to see if she can accomplish all that from packed to
 RW> operational, but I'm usually in a hurry so we haven't run
 RW> her through the complete drill yet.

 Time to work on that. Get to it buddy!


BOB KLAHN bob.klahn{at}sev.org   http://home.toltbbs.com/bobklahn

... "DIE WITH DIGNITY, YOU VERMIN!"
 * Silver Xpress V4.5/P [Reg]
--- Platinum Xpress/Win/WINServer v3.0pr5a