I changed the title when I first posted as a joke. I’m still laughing about it. My Surftech was made in Thiland not China. It’s very hard to live in this place called California with out being a Hypocrite. (They raped the side of the mountain to build more houses. I’m mad. Oh yeah ,they raped the land where my house is 20 years ago)
The French bashing was very wrong. Not funny at all.
I think Jerry Lewis isn’t very funny either.
Look, its simple…
the guy fought the good fight…as long as he could (someone had to, dont you think?)
but HE LOST.
Reality hits hard and in order to survive, you adjust.
Times are tough everywhere…its especially hard for old school surfboard makers.
Kudos for trying.
When it’s “one of the boys” it’s not hypocricy it’s “losing the good fight” (Brave lad, insert flag waving on the moon )
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Look, its simple…
the guy fought the good fight…as long as he could (someone had to, dont you think?)
but HE LOST.
Reality hits hard and in order to survive, you adjust.
Times are tough everywhere…its especially hard for old school surfboard makers.
Kudos for trying.
Here are the real facts…there is no good fight when it comes to making surfboards. Handshapers are not some gurus to be held up on a high place of honor just because they shape by hand. Some are good at what they do and are rewarded…others are not and go by the wayside. The overseas junk is here and part of the landscape…deal with it. No one needs a savior of the old way. In fact the new hype is those claiming to be that savior by boycotting expos and going on about some heritage that never existed. The only thing in life you can count on is change. I think the sandwhich tech has potential…I just don’t like the companies in the business right now and still have fun on my poly. Others like the way they ride and thats ok too. To each his own.
i say we form a new group of shaping police within the swaylocks community.
Deputies In Complete Knowlege of Handmade, Epoxypopout, And Domestic Surfboards…or DICKHEADS for short.
I’ll be the first member. I will blast all people who oppose my ideals. Furthermore I make it my mission to search out and publicly roast any person who knowingly changes their mind or opinion. I will then continue with a demand for an apology directly to myself and any others affected for mental distress caused by the aformentioned change of mind.
In addition we will also weekly appoint a new “sell out” or evil shaper to discredit. This will help keep our community happy and fancy free.
Quote:veuillez ne pas nous juger par nos plus mauvais spécimens. <–(probably screwed that up, but i gave it my best shot)
You didn’t screw up anything, Soulstice. Thanks for your support. You’ll probably understand if I say: “Les gros connards, malheureusement, on en trouve partout…”
Thank you Solosurfer and Stingray, too.
Now that was funny! Hee, hee, hee… Thanks.
i say we form a new group of shaping police within the swaylocks community.
Deputies In Complete Knowlege of Handmade, Epoxypopout, And Domestic Surfboards…or DICKHEADS for short.
I’ll be the first member. I will blast all people who oppose my ideals. Furthermore I make it my mission to search out and publicly roast any person who knowingly changes their mind or opinion. I will then continue with a demand for an apology directly to myself and any others affected for mental distress caused by the aformentioned change of mind.
In addition we will also weekly appoint a new “sell out” or evil shaper to discredit. This will help keep our community happy and fancy free.
Good post…keep up the good work. I love the analogy of Deputies. That is classic. Dickheads unite!!!
Solo,
I humbly accept your dead horse award. I must say that your post was much better worded than mine, and I was completely unaware of Thailand’s government being involved with the sex trade there.
John,
I am aware of the shootings at Kent State, as well as other horrible acts by agents of our government. The shootout at Ruby Ridge is another example of the power of the government gone wrong. I wasn’t saying that our government is perfect. If you pay attention to what is going on, you know that is far from the truth. The point I was making; is that for the most part, people here get treated pretty well at work, get payed a somewhat decent wage, and have at least a small voice in the way things work.
In my personal opinion, If you are already doing well, and you can’t meet the demand for your product, either let someone else have some of the business, or let people wait. It won’t put you out of business by doing this. If people really want what you have, they’ll wait. If not, you will just be making friends in the business if you send some people their way.
I know this from personal experience as a tattooer. My product is strictly limited to the hours in a day and how much I can produce in that time. I have people wait for me for up to two months sometimes, and sometimes I send them to someone else when I think that that would be better for them. When I do they usually come back later for more from me.
Sorry about kicking that dead horse earlier, I didn’t know it was already dead.
I hope you all have a great day.
Seems to me this thread is about the transition Dave Parmenter made from (1) being basically against mass produced and offshore manufacture of surfboards (with well intended and well thought out ideas about the current and future affect on the domestic and regional industry - large and small) and (2) not advocating or supporting epoxy composite construction.
Does anyone really doubt his sincerity in addressing those issues ? Is it not possible to change or evolve our thoughts and opinions without being labeled a hypocrite ? I would hope so, or each of us is a hypocrite many times over !
Trust me, making a living as an aging cottage shaper / manufacturer is not easy and it isn’t getting any easier. I have (past tense) been at odds with the introduction and growth of Surftech in our industry, but I would probably jump at the opportunity to have Randy approach me about producing and distributing a relevant array of my shapes. Quite simply there is such a diverse demography of clients in surf culture that multiple technologies and business models can survive and thrive side by side.
Of greater concern to me are the extreme price point PU boards manufactured overseas entering the North American and I would assume world market. We must certainly agree that when Surftechs were introduced they were not dropping the bottom out of the market’s price structure !
With regard to staying on point with this thread. I’m offended and doing my best to ignore the post bashing France and the French. What does that have to do with Dave Parmenter’s decision to work with Boardworks on SUPs ? Nonetheless I can’t help from commenting. Despite differences of opinion over the course of history between France and the US, the political, social, and economic institutions of each country are deeply rooted in the same liberal (as opposed to totalitarian) philosophy that allows we as citizens of either country to prosper like no other cultures in the history of mankind.
I may be a bit prejudiced here as France and French citizens have provided me great opportunities during my life and during my career as a shaper. In the 60s and 70s Michel Barland hired me to shape thousands of surfboards, at a time when I truly needed a lot of foam to begin learning my trade. I was fortunate enough to meet a French woman who brought me into her family of hard working responsible members of the human race. Oh, and by the way, WHAT WONDERFUL WAVES.
Kind regards,
Steve Coletta
Nothing against France just an OT observation that Liberal Democracy started out via the guillotine. … . . hypocricy ?. . . even the Royalists deserved a vote, and for that a head attached to the shoulders is required.
Solo,
I humbly accept your dead horse award. I must say that your post was much better worded than mine, and I was completely unaware of Thailand’s government being involved with the sex trade there.
They will tell you it’s illegal…but the government pretty much controls everything in Thailand from the research I have done. Some that have lived there say different, but to that I say…why do skumbag rock and roll and movies stars among others head to Bangkok? It sure aint for the looks. Of course that article was only written to give folks something to think about…not as a condemnation of folks that don’t feel the same. Glad to see you posting on sways. enjoy and welcome.
On DP. From what I have heard he has one product made by Boardworks and a product that makes more sense to have outsourced. I don’t see a bunch of hypocrisy here.
On France and beheadings: I don’t know many country’s whose past is rosey. Including N.Z. and Australia. It sure isn’t my own America either.
Steve, that was a very reasonable and eminently sensible post but again I say you are missing the point IMO.
The issue (and I know that these concepts are almost laughable in this era) is integrity and honour.
DP has spent most of his adult life living and publicy espousing a code which places the human above the machine, which devalues and lampoons the mass-produced items of our consumer age.
These are not something as flimsy as mere opinions, these are deeply held convictions argued passionately for an extended period of time and intended to act as bulwarks against the changes which he observed and was revulsed by.
Changing your mind…hah…if I went up to DP a year ago and said “Dave, all this stuff your talking about mass-produced surfboards is just opinion, you’ll get over it soon” he would’ve swung at me.
Changing your mind is something 13 year old girls do at the mall. "like, that colour Ipod is soooo last year "
Have we become such a frivolous, mall-addicted culture of shallow tossers that the concepts of honour and integrity have no resonance at all? And yes the answer is obvious for the majority, the vast kookocracy to steal one of DP’s favourite concepts. But at the core. Right at the core have we become a culture of shopkeepers?
And make no mistake DP is at the core of our culture. Through his writings, his shaping, his involvement with Makaha and it’s strong lineage of Hawaiian watermen and women.
I know it’s just surfing and in the grand scheme of things etc etc but it must mean something to someone otherwise people here would be jerking off to porn sites rather than coming here to Sways and making a contribution.
We look up to people who have integrity and who live according to their ideals especially those who by special talent are able to articulate the yearnings and aspirations of those of similar ideals.
In literature the lives as well as the writings of those who achieve prominence are held as a beacon in terms of what they were prepared to sacrifice to live according to their ideals.
It seems apparent that DP sees himself as belonging to that great lineage of American writers including Steinbeck, Melville,
Hemingway, Crane, Emerson, Thoreau etc etc and for that reason alone and for the historical record he should come out in public and explain his capitulation. Steve
ps the BS putting down the french has no place here even though french poodles are very easy to laugh at.
Apologies for continuing to run OT just wanted to say that my comment re. democracy and the guillotine was not against France, that point was that Democracy is founded on the kind of political motivated mass murder which we usually associate with extreme fascism.
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Tom, try ancient greek city states and some Buddhist Indian republics if you want to get to the genesis of liberal democracy.many hundreds of years before the french revolution. democracy is very much a work in progress and far from static.
and democracy is not founded on mass murder. democracy is founded on the ideals of the rights of the individual. the means by which this is bought about have included violent overthrow of ruling elites.
Not to derail the mounting political thrust…
ahem
but it seems like Parmenter does owe an explanation to the surfing public who have been paying attention to and been influenced (or not) by his arguments.
Whatever his reasons and whatever any of us think of them, that explanation hasn’t happened and that’s a major omission.
Tom, try ancient greek city states and some Buddhist Indian republics if you want to get to the genesis of liberal democracy.many hundreds of years before the french revolution. democracy is very much a work in progress and far from static.
Yes of course you are correct, however no theoretical ‘justification’ can alter the inconsistency in claiming to be a liberal democracy while murdering all those in the opposing faction. . . . . as happened in France.
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Lennox76 - some great thoughts in your reply. I have to agree with you about the huge - one could say massive - responsibility Dave Parmenter places upon himself with his prominent role as author, critic, and historian to surf culture. He has been very articulate expressing his ideals through his writing. It would be cool if he put pen to paper (fingers to keyboard … ) reflecting on his decision, at the very least for the historical record, to work with Boardworks on SUPs considering his strong convictions regarding the human and the machine - custom manufacturing and mass production. That said, I feel no ill will towards Dave for his choice to work with Boardworks nor anyone who correctly observes that Dave has relinquished his passionately stated convictions. Thanks Lennox76 for the intelligent input.
Kind regards,
Steve Coletta
and democracy is not founded on mass murder. democracy is founded on the ideals of the rights of the individual. the means by which this is bought about have included violent overthrow of ruling elites.
Mass murder takes away the right to life of the individuals who are murdered. … . if the first act of the new democracy is to establish its position this way then the ideals are not being adhered to . . . . and the so called democracy is a lie from day one.
Those individuals who were murdered had a right to life.
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