Tim and Roy

Two recent events got me thinking ( a disturbing trend.) Roy of the famous Siegfried and Roy tiger and magic show in Las Vegas is in critical condition. Siegfried says the new tiger was frightened and actually dragged Roy offstage protecting him, much as a mother cat carries a kitten in her mouth. Timothy Treadwell and girlfriend were fatally mauled by a grizzly in Katmai. I met Tim several times. We lived close to each other and I've been involved in many bear conservation efforts. Many people were worried about the message he was giving people about bears being harmless. Lessons? It's easy to say "lions and tigers and bears,oh my!" and get lost in a ballistics debate, Hear the protests by PETA over performing animals ( the white tiger would be extinct if not for this show) or other post mortem arguments. What I see is another example of "trust me, I'm an expert." Roy had years of experience, a trained staff and never forgot for an instant that a "tiger is a tiger." Timothy decided he was one. Our last meeting was not amicable. I again suggested he at least stow a shotgun, if not carry it openly. When a big ALPHA male displaying the "gunslinger" stagger approaches do not assume he's read your book. There are lots of experts out there. I just wish there was an expert on appraising experts. <img src="images/graemlins/frown.gif" alt="" />

Many years ago I took a class on handling a chainsaw. The instructor told us that two groups are subject of the majority of accidents. One are beginners because of their lack of skill. The other one are people who think they are experts. This group actually outnumbers the beginners.
When a person aquires a certain skill level that person may be tempted to take chances when the odds are unfavorable. Sometimes that person will lose. Sometimes you just get careless and neglect safety issues (BTDT <img src="images/graemlins/blush.gif" alt="" />, had luck so far). After a close shave you´ll be more carefull for some time. I guess that´s a feature of human beings. Maybe our odds for survival are best with a skill level just below expert.

Something I've noticed is that true experts (if there are such things) won't get mad or upset when you suggest a reason why they should do something different (like carrying a shotgun, to stick with this example.) Rather, they'll give you they're reasoning as to why they feel their way is better and won't shy away from a debate on the merits of that reasoning. It's those people who get angry when their position is challenged that probably aren't too secure in their knowledge to begin with.

Probably not the perfect appraisal of experts, but hey, what do ya want......I'm not an expert <img src="images/graemlins/smirk.gif" alt="" />

Chris.

quote
"After a close shave you´ll be more carefull for some time. I guess that´s a feature of human beings."

But over time that will (probably) start to lack again.
There is only one lesson from history - we don't learn from it.

My 2 (euro)Cents

Heres a news report of the bear incident. Apparantly it was recorded on audio - the report is quite distrubing reading.
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2003/10/08/national/main577043.shtml
joblot

It´s guaranteed to lack again. And it starts almost immediatly after the incident. The only question is how long it takes to lack enough for the next time. The length of the period usually depends on the amount of your practice. In the case of the lumberjacks the instructor said that this period has a three year average.
I found an advice for coping with the decreasing care in a book about motorcycling. The author recommends to use a tally and increase the count each time you make a mistake. I tried it and it actually worked for me.

And a wise old sea captain once told me, An expert is someone who knows when to call in the experts. Food for thought...