Season premier of Dual Survival. Dave and Cody, lost in Tierra del Feugo. Scenario, black powder hunters, one with lacerated arm, lost in the weeds.

Dave proceeds to cut his own arm, I am talking a gash. Then Cody cauterizes it with gunpowder. Twice. "That's gonna leave a mark!"

Ok, harkening back to when Les pretended to have a broken arm, I think simulating an injury is fine. I think this crap, and that's what it was, tv audience getting crap, was over the top. What, the historical evidence of cautery is not enough? Give me a break.

I've lost all respect for these two bozos. Cody has excellent books, even he said he didn't endorse what Dave was going to do, but he let him do it. Inaction is failure to take action, epic fail.

Reckon I won't be wasting any time watching those two anymore.

I agree with you completely, and I have better ways to waste my time than watching these alleged survival shows.

Sounds like Dave and Cody have been watching too many 'SAS Survival Skills' videos on the Youtube.

Episode 1 - Survival Stresses

Episode 2 - Hunting - Demonstration of the UK MOD classified SF hunting tractor beam.

Episode 3 - Axe

Wow! I haven't seen that one yet and I'm not sure I want to now. Sounds like a dumb "look how tough I am" stunt and that's not why I watch. They often agree to disagree, and I can respect that most of time, but they usually show sound survival strategies and decisions.

This sounds like a stupid human trick. Dave's always been the question mark in that show for me. He seems bound and determined to show the polar opposite of Cody's "bush hippie crap."

Unfortunately manliness, ruggedness, and bravery are most commonly associated with stupidity. It doesn't have to be that way IMO, but this is how it is.

Now Art, that is a pretty general statement. What do you mean by those terms? If manliness equals what I call machismo, bravery is the equivalent of bravado, and ruggedness is insensitivity, I would tend to agree with you.


However, I was just reading about the conclusion of a week long search at Grand Teton NP for two missing ski tourers. They located a signal from their avalanche beacons Saturday night and spend today digging down to their bodies and completing the extrication. I am not acquainted with the specifics, but there was certainly an element of risk in this operation.

A hell of a way to spend Easter, in any event.

Incidentally, evidently the helicopter pilot in this operation was female. Manliness and bravery are not limited to males. There is good clinical evidence that women can stand pain better men. The only parameter in which guys excel is heavy lifting.

The only parameter in which guys excel is heavy lifting.

and breakin' stuff

No, D.C is making a point: Which is that you can choose to take the pain and live. Or refuse and die.

It's easy just to tell people. Actually being prepared to demonstrate takes a lot more commitment.

This is very true, although guys can also urinate whilst standing up.

Heavy lifting does form the basis of advanced civilisations.

http://forums.equipped.org/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=222187

I can't imagine that there were any girls in charge whilst the boys were chiseling out this obelisk.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unfinished_obelisk

Yes I know that the boys ended up breaking this one but as they say you can't make an omelet without breaking eggs.

The reality is that in 6000 years of recorded civilisation there are only a very few notable female names in that historical record.

Leigh - There's a fine line between hardcore and stupid.

If Dave was attempting to show us that cautery works and can be done with blackpowder, he's about 500 years late. Cautery has been used for centuries, it's an historical fact.

OK, I am out in the weeds, I cut myself, and I am bleeding. I am not going to cauterize the wound, I will use a dressing and direct pressure to stop the bleeding. Hell, I think I would use a tourniquet before cautery. Why inflict a second (and in Dave's case, a 3d) wound on the original?

I say again that Dave's stunt was for ratings. It was stupid to begin with, got dumber, then passed into sheer moronic. And no, I don't for one second believe that he didn't get some first aid from the everpresent crew paramedic.