wrote

course and practical work for an Australian boaters license, it is
my
opinion that few if any lives would be saved by licensing because
licensing can't teach good boating and because not many folks die
boating anyway.

I agree with you entirely here. Somehow, I've become the licensing
advocate in this newsgroup. When I said it was strange that licenses
weren't required for boating, I meant that it was strange that a
society like ours hadn't already implemented it; not that I desire
that it be done or that it would do any real good.

Translate your experience with sail instructing into 12,000 - 20,000
pound keel boats in a busy harbor and it may look different.

The most critical phase of flying is, of course, landing. The
critical phase of that lasts about 5 seconds. When I soloed, I
figured I had spend a grand total of less than two minutes in that
critical phase of flight! By the time I had my license, it was up to
about ten minutes.

--

Roger Long