The author points only to the symptoms, and not the cause.
Posted on 01/29/2012 5:26:55 AM PST by rhema
[ . . . ]
This change in the behavior of ordinary people in the face of crisis reveals something about who we have become in the century since the Titanic's demise.
For several generations now, we've disparaged the view of life that produced the men who, in 1912, willingly sacrificed their lives in service to others. "Women and children first" sounds patronizing and downright sexist to the modern, enlightened sensibility. At the same time, words like "duty" and "honor" sound antiquated and empty of meaning -- and may even bring a cynical smile to the lips of our modern debunkers.
These words sound hollow because we have made them so. The idea of "duty," for example, begs answers to two questions that few of us can give today: "A duty originating from what?" "A duty directed to what end?" We're so accustomed to being tongue-tied by such questions that we've stopped asking them altogether.
In 2012, we no longer try to direct our lives according to principles of virtue, as our great-grandparents and their peers on the Titanic generally tried to do. Self-restraint is foreign to us. Life is about emotional fulfillment: getting ahead, enjoying ourselves and cultivating a personal sense of well-being.
Our language has changed in response. We no longer speak of "virtues" -- a word that connotes traits of character strongly and universally held. Instead, we prattle on about "values" -- a much more neutered term, suggesting nothing higher than "different strokes for different folks."
Today, we operate on the smorgasbord principle. We select from a vast array of "lifestyles," based on purely individual tastes. The only overriding principle is that no taste be elevated above others, lest we risk being "judgmental."
(Excerpt) Read more at startribune.com ...
Alright. Where is that picture of our soldier standing in front of our women and children verses the Muslim firing a rifle from behind their women and children?
IMO Recognizing that our own soul is our only true responsibility makes it easier to do the right thing.
In other words, there is no salvation in waiting for others to do the right thing. If we truly care about ourselves, we’ll care about others as a direct result.
Good article...thanks for posting.
I’m not exactly sure but the behavior of the crew aboard this ship seemed more European than Anglo-American to me. You can read a ton of press on the weaknesses of Italian men in ITALIAN newspapers. Doesn’t anyone remember the Andrea Doria?
The nationalities of all crew aboard have not been enumerated, but it consisted of citizens of 20 to 40 countries.
Some are Italians (including the captain and all the officers), but 202 Indians and 296 Filipinos made up approximately half of the personnel.
Other nationalities include 170 Indonesians, 12 British nationals, 6 Brazilians, 3 Russians, and an unspecified number of Colombian, Peruvian, Spanish, Honduran and Chinese.
Besides the obviously negligent Italian captain, exactly who in this “international” crew were trampling women and children to get on the lifeboats?
Even you admit that the captain and officers were Italian! I think they bear the burden of this disaster, sorry if that hurts your feelings. That captain has been the subject of numerous editorials in the Italian press excoriating the weakness of the Italian male. That, in and of itself, has been an ongoing discussion in Italy.
Rich Russians passengers were paying bribes to be first in
the lifeboats.Members of the band were helping passengers
to the boats,while the captain and some of his senior crew
were in the boats.
No it doesn’t hurt my feelings at all, there’s no excuse for incompetence or dereliction.
I’m just curious as to specifically in the crew, especially the officers, were derelict, and if they face prosecution also, that was my point.
BTW I meant to add quotes to the crew stats, from Wiki: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Costa_Concordia_disaster
“Soul-searching and self-doubt is such a modern thing, as is casual dressing.” — Lady Rosemary Muir, 82
I think there is a connection here between our current need for instant gratification, our lack of a sense of duty -- along with that comes a need for soul-searching and a lot of self-doubt.
At some level, our society knows that we are "doing it wrong" but we are reluctant to realize that previous generations handled this stuff better. We feel modern; we feel superior. But in fact, we're playing the part of the fool.
There is abundant evidence of Italian weakness:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Tobruk_%281941%29#Tobruk
“Lifestyle choices”......bah!
People have become selfish and a life of self sacrifice is scorned. Proof? People are more than comfortable with murdering babies and old people for economic reasons or less.
Great article.
I, too, feel that there is an element of greatness still in the American spirit. As someone who was in the area on 9/11, I still remember the bravery of our fellow citizens that day. (I shudder to think if it had happened in Rome, lol!)
The Stockholm is now held to account for the collision.
BTW, the ship was 'top heavy' and when it listed to the side AFTER A LARGE WAVE half the life boats were unable to be lowered.
Until just now in reviewing the stories on this particular sinking I hadn't realized there were reports of A LARGE WAVE. At that time in history ship's captains and officers were NOT supposed to believe in LARGE WAVES, only SMALL WAVES ~ there were no ROGUE WAVES if you wanted to keep your license. We now know ROGUE WAVES are common. Satellites keep track of ocean basins with a history of such waves. They can be predicted to some degree.
So, the Andrea Doria was hit by another ship and a rogue wave in close proximity, maybe simultaneously, and the crew could not lower all the boats, but everybody who could be saved was saved.
This event is not at all similar to the more recent cruise ship problem.
The author points only to the symptoms, and not the cause.
Mark Steyn, too, decided that the Titanic/Costa Concordia contrast was a sign of civilizational decline, but it’s complete humbug. It’s a difference between northern European and Mediterranean culture:
Once asked why he had booked passage on an Italian ship, rather than a British one, Winston Churchill replied:
‘There are three things I like about Italian ships. First, their cuisine, which is unsurpassed. Second, their service, which is quite superb. And then - in time of emergency - there is none of this nonsense about women and children first.’
One might as well attribute the fact that Italians, Greeks and Arabs, don’t queue up like Britons and Americans (though we call it “lining up”) to wait for service, but tend to form something akin to a rugby scrum, to our civilization going to hell in a handbasket. (Not that it isn’t, it’s just that different behavior on British and Italian cruise ships isn’t proof of it.)
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