I'm the Pariah again

[TSandM]

No, what I'm saying is that in everyday life, physicians enjoy a highly respected status and are generally deferred to in most conversations.

Wow -- I want to move to where YOU live. Where I live, physicians are more likely to be regarded as money-grubbing quacks. Respect for physicians died years ago . . .

 

[gcarter]

No, what I'm saying is that in everyday life, physicians enjoy a highly respected status and are generally deferred to in most conversations.

On a boat in the ocean, the captain is The Man.

Exactly. And as human nature goes, the longer and more often one is deferred to by virtue of their position, the less likely they are to react favourably when that deference is witheld. When it comes to medicine doctors are used to being the smartest people in the room. When it comes to diving they start at the same place the rest of us do.

 

[Tigerman]

I think you mistake smartest for most educated within a specific field here...

 

[cbm32]

Doctors, boat Captains, professional athletes.............where does it stop? Why do so many people seem to put other people on pedestals because they are a (fill in the blank)?

I just dont get it at all. With me, everyone starts out with the same level of respect, which is then adjusted up or down based on what I see them do and what I hear come out of their mouths. I have met smart, fun, engaging people from all walks of life and ignorant, bigoted, dolts from all walks of life. Heck, I have even met a lawyer or two that were decent human beings ..........

 

[seriousdiver]

Heck, I have even met a lawyer or two that were decent human beings ..........

That's like saying there are honest Politicians.... I'll believe it when I see it.

I work/live/breath the NOVA/DC scene and I've been to large non-profit fundraisers with Politicians,lawyers, and non-profit folk doing cocaine off of restaurant tables.

Captains get a certain amount of respect but they still have to know their **** and do their best to make sure no one gets died or injured on their watch.

At the end of the day the OP was in the right for NOT giving the Okay signal, because he wasn't okay and was clearly distressed.

I've met enough power tripping Captains,doctors, lawyers, athletes, etc to know when one is being a douche and not leading by example.

 

[vladimir]

Doctors, boat Captains, professional athletes.............where does it stop? Why do so many people seem to put other people on pedestals because they are a (fill in the blank)?

It stops well before professional athletes, for me. According somebody respect because of their accomplishments and abilities is not "putting them on a pedestal." I have a great deal of respect for my doctor, because I know she is smart, competent, and well-educated. I have a little insight into what it takes to get into and through an American medical school, so I would automatically assume somebody who accomplished that is at the very least perseverant, and probably of above average ability. Of course, I am always prepared to adjust my appraisal as new data becomes available.

 

[seriousdiver]

According somebody respect because of their accomplishments and abilities is not "putting them on a pedestal." I have a great deal of respect for my doctor, because I know she is smart, competent, and well-educated.

Actually, it is "putting them on a pedestal" if you're treating them different based on their "accomplishments". I know people with tons of "accomplishments" and the vain ones bask in their achievements, the down to earth ones hate it when they're instantly treated differently based on their "accomplishments".

I prefer to have a great deal of disdain for people until they actually earn respect, that way I can always be pleasantly surprised when they don't turn out to be utter idiots.

A doctor who graduates at the bottom of his class is still a doctor. With the diploma mills churning out substandard educations in my opinion weight should be given to their actual accomplishments, not how they did in school.

A bad lawyer is bad, a bad divemaster is bad, a bad doctor is bad. Don't revere a person based on his prefixes.

 

[Tigerman]

And the best lawyer in the world could still be a **** diver..

 

[karlimmergut]

Treating others in a polite and professional manner is not "putting them on a pedestal", and you should not do it out of respect for others. You should do it out of respect for yourself. As a side note, scuba diving is an expensive sport, money and respect often go hand in hand, and I would assume that half of the people on a dive a boat are not used to a rude treatment.

 

[seriousdiver]

And the best lawyer in the world could still be a **** diver..

Agreed, but then again we give drivers license to pretty much every tom,dick, or harry.

Sadly if you take the average person, you then have to understand that half of the people out there will be dumber.

Treating others in a polite and professional manner is not "putting them on a pedestal", and you should not do it out of respect for others. You should do it out of respect for yourself. As a side note, scuba diving is an expensive sport, money and respect often go hand in hand, and I would assume that half of the people on a dive a boat are not used to a rude treatment.

It is if you're treating someone in a polite and professional manner ONLY because they're a divemaster, lawyer,politician, entertainer, etc...

Scuba diving is an expensive sport, it doesn't need to also be a pretentious sport.

Again, just to be absolutely clear, treating everyone the same is one thing, treating someone different based on their "accomplishments" IS putting them on a pedestal.