That is a good point, Kevin Carlisle. However, I suspect that it would be pretty obvious from pre-dive drills, buoyancy control, trim, underwater communication, and line skills whether the divers were cave-certified or faking it.
I am not cave certified, and I live pretty far from Florida. However, it is my understanding that years ago after a rash of cave fatalities the state of Florida was very close to outlawing cave diving. What is a smaller price to pay - requiring cave divers to try to discourage non-cave certified divers from diving in overhead environments, or losing the ability to cave dive legally in Florida?
I don't know about you, but when I'm prepping to dive, I'm concentrating on my own gear and buddies, not looking at everyone else and writing up dive demerits. I also don't stop motorcyclists and refuse to let them ride unless they are wearing helmets. You can only do so much to keep people from taking risks. Requiring (your word) cavers to enforce some dive code is asking for all kinds of trouble. First off, it's confrontational, second, if cavers are "required" to take actions, what liability attaches to them for failing to do so?
I don't want it to seem as though I'm advocating OW students going into caves, I'm not. I don't have a problem with someone trying to talk a diver out of a dangerous dive, or even using ridicule (via the safety of the internets) to make risk-takers feel stupid or shameful for such attempts. But you can't put your hands on someone or go around sabotaging gear. There is no law that grants divers privilege to dive (thank goodness) and if there was, divers are the wrong people to enforce it.
The most effective methods I have seen to prevent non-cavers from entering caves are (1) gates, and (2) light restrictions.
Vortex has a gate. I've never seen it, so I don't know how it operates, but I would be very, very reluctant to dive that cave (assuming I was certified) for fear of being locked in (purposefully of by accident). While a gate can be a great deterrent to non-cavers, I think the concept is just too dangerous to the guys that want to those types of dives, and are qualified to do so.
Ginnie does not allow non-qualified divers to carry lights in certain areas. When I dove that area, our group had an actual human being watching us like a hawk, to make sure we didn't sneak any lights along. I really liked this method. While I dislike paying more to dive that area (we had to pay the watcher's salary) I feel like this is the most reasonable way to restrict stupid activity without infringing upon my freedom as a diver, or human being. But....... I could have just as easily boated my way to these areas, bypassed the land owner's rules and done whatever the hell I wanted.
As for my manliness, I'm quite comfortable with it (I'm a lover, not a fighter) and no threat was implied in my earlier post. It is simply a fact that I will not allow someone to disable my life support equipment (which imho includes a light) or prevent my free movement underwater. I'd say that nearly everyone I dive with on a regular basis has that same attitude.
