You're correct in that statement Kyle.. the only problem is we rarely see black clear ice anywhere in Canada with all the wind and debris blown onto the water. Also, just because the ice is 3 inches in one spot.. doesn't mean it's 3 inches everywhere. Underwater springs and currents make the ice very unstable in places.
Although I'm sure you know this.. alot of the guys probably just didn't agree with your generalization.
I always go out on ice that's thinner than probably safe too (and fallen through more times than I can count)... so i'm not raggin on ya... just saying what the rest of the guys are probably thinking.