Calling into question the alcohol issue is a red herring. That's not
what we're talking about. We're talking about excessive speed and
pollution in quiet anchorages.

Why do you get to dictate what we're talking about; why does the
bad behavior you're willing to talk about only includes excessive speed
and pollution? Both of which are perpetrated by every other shape
and size of power boats besides pwc's.

I am talking about singling out pwc's among boaters at large (not
sailboats)
as being uniquely predisposed to annoying, stupid, dangerous, illegal
behavior; and also
about extending the incidences of such behavior that one has observed,
to make generalizations
about entire segments of the boating community. Doing so (singling out
pwc's, etc.) is just
incorrect, inaccurate, unfair, insulting to me and my many responsible,
safe, educated boating
friends who sometimes ride pwc's, and is also apparently indicative of
blinders that stop somebody
frrom acknowledging the too-large percentages (but still probably,
hopefully, not a MAJORITY) of all segments of the power-boating
community who are guilty of these things...not just pwc'ers.

You say you're not addressing me individually, but I'm not just
speaking in defense of myself, also of ALL the dozens of regular
pwc'ers who I know, talk to and ride with, over the last eight years or
so....we all follow the rules, mind our own business, are
out to have a safe good time, know our stuff out on the water, and do
things with our crafts way beyond your stereotyped
outdated impressions of what people do on pwc's. ALL of them. Don't
you know any pwc'ers personally? If so, do they
all conform to your impressions about how most of us supposedly behave?
Or are you so hardened in your prejudice that yuo
wouldn't even deign to associate with a pwc rider?

It's ONLY the Newbies who do the stupid stuff, I did it when I started
out, but you learn the ropes quickly enough.
TO say that the fact that a person is on a pwc tells you all this about
his personality (I don't know if it was you who said
that, it was said earlier in this thread), that they're egoticstical,
rude, show-offs, unconcerned with others, speed junkies,
is just outrageous and stupid to boot.

IN fact, I'd say the only thing you could deduce about somebody who has
a pwc vs. someone with a bigger boat
is that the pwc guy probably has a little less money. They're
extremely affordable to own and operate, that's the
only reason I have a pwc but not a bigger boat, it's not because of any
particular facet of my personality, except
that I LOVE BEING ON THE WATER, presumably just like YOU and every
other person on this newsgroup.

Sure, we get some powerboats (e.g.,
cigar boats) that zoom around, but not in an anchorage, because they
know better.

Now you're just showing your die-hard, inflexible, anti-pwc prejudice
loud and clear.
You and I kmow that you see not just some but tons of non-pwc power
boats, especially cigarette boaters,
who drive at excessive speeds, are not courteous to other boaters or
seem oblivious to the rules
of the road, and who DRINK WHILE BOATING CONSTANTLY....almost EVERYBODY
out on the
water, EXCEPT pwc'ers, it sometimes seems to me. (I'm not sure why
that is, some of the pwc'ers I know do
drink on land but abstain when they're riding....maybe there's
something about the extra exposed
situation on a pwc, interacting closely and directly with the waves
etc., that makes an experienced operator who knows where he is and
what's going on, feel more involved, less invulnerable, and take the
situation more seriously, than a lot of guys on bigger boats, where the
more enclosed or relaxed feeling makes them feel like they're partying
at their house....I'm just guessing....all I know is that drinking
seems much more prevalent on non-pwc boats.)

By the way....are you saying above that you don't think there are many,
many boaters
in your area who are drinking while they're boating and go untouched by
law enforcement? That it's
all sober out there on the bowriders, yachts, cigarette boats, fishing
boats?

That I'd have to see to believe.

richforman