Just to refresh your memory Kharon:
I was responding to Markmud's comments when you posted this in direct response to what I said (Post 127):
I sure wouldn't dive with you. No! you can't use (grab) anything I have. It's my equipment and my life! I will share with you - but I will decide how and what. That will be discussed clearly and completely before splashing. I have a protocol that I have decided on and developed over time based on my kit. Deviation from that protocol endangers my life. In a choice between my life and yours - guess what - you lose. If you are in trouble, it's not because I have neglected or abused your equipment, nor done anything stupid, nor neglected to keep track of air. All on you. So if you expect help then you damn well better have been listening on shore.
So, who started what? The only nonsense I see is you feel free to criticize someone but don't want to defend that criticism.
Again, if you want to explain what you are using that will cause your demise by donating a pony reg on a recreational dive I'm all ears.
Also, I challenge this idea you have that an insta buddy has to follow your procedures or they're SOL. Most (all?) modern divers are trained to respond in a certain standard way to situations. That should be the default position in an unknown partner scenario. If you have developed some sort of specific strategy that deviates from that norm the onus is on you to ensure the partner is trained and competent to follow that protocol, not the other way around. Saying it once on a boat and splashing may, or may not, be enough re-enforcement. If you consequently withhold help because of poor performance it is you who should be avoided as a potential liability, not them.
This does not mean that variation cannot occur. Carrying a pony is in it's self a variation from OW training, which is where this tangent started. If you deviate from the norm by using a pony, and buddy dive, you should expect others to react from
their training perspective, not
yours. This means accepting that they may go for the pony reg in an emergent situation.