Personally, I think the current Boater's Exam and License is pretty much a waste of time and money.
Anyone with even a passing knowledge of boating can easily pass the exam, and those without it simply have to study the material for a weekend and then write the exam.
What does that do for you in reality? Nothing in my opinion. How much of your high school algebra do you remember? Heck, how much of last night's newspaper or the thread you read on AO the other day do you remember? Written tests like this do very little as far as I'm concerned when it comes to actually providing people with the knowledge and skills they need to safely operate their boat, and in particular the practical skills. They certainly don't actually assesses a person's ability to operate a boat.
It's like handing out driver's licensese to anyone that can pass the written learner's test and they've never even sat behind the wheel of a car before. It sounds unbelievable, but that's exactly what goes on when it comes to boating, and in reality, even that written exam isn't required as yet. The only qualifications you need to operate a boat is owning a boat. It's amazing there aren't more accidents actually when you think about it.
As I said, I don't like the idea of further gov't involvement and creating a system like that used for driver's licenses, but on the other hand, forcing people to have a minimum skill level before they can head out on the water would likely be a good thing for everyone. Honestly, I don't know what the answer is. Well actually I do, it's personal responsibility and common sense, but I think we all know where that gets us...
Waxy
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