Article

2024-03-29 -Short Attention Span Theater-

The Key Bridge collapse and the Tao Te Ching

[American Thinker] Within the classic Taoist book of wisdom is found the parable of the empty boat. Fishermen, casting their lines from the banks of a stream, get all entangled when an empty boat drifts past them. They all laugh, knowing that it was just an accident. But when someone is sitting in the boat, they all throw rocks at him — because the problem was caused by preventable negligence.

Yes, there was a crew aboard the Dali, but was the engine failure a true accident or was it easily preventable? If a fluke mishap killed the engine, then, in a Taoist sense, the boat was empty. But if reasonable maintenance might well have prevented this catastrophe, then the boat was occupied, and stones should be thrown. Various "experts" on maritime affairs have just now said container shipping is a particularly cut-throat and thus price-competitive business.

Our esteemed chief executive has pledged the overly generous American taxpayers’ money to fix the damage. However, Lloyds of London comes to mind as being on the hook for this mess.

Such events are actually not all that unusual. It’s just the immensity of the disaster that causes one to shudder.

Years ago, I was visiting friends in Bremerton, Wash. Ferry service across the Puget Sound was seriously compromised when the Bremerton Ferry’s engine died just as it was docking at Seattle. Typically, ferries back their engines to slow down when docking. But without that reversal of thrust, the ferry slammed into the dock and took it out of operation for several months. Momentum on the water, especially of a seriously massive vessel, takes a lot of effort to control. Baltimore Harbor will be impacted as well, for quite a while.

Some mild speculation is suggesting the possibility of an intentional terrorist cause behind this disaster. Skeptics point out that much greater human harm would’ve occurred should this have happened during rush hour rather than the dead of night. But precise timing may not have been possible, considering tides and other traffic. Methodical forensic analysis of the engine failure has yet to provide an answer.

Posted by Besoeker 2024-03-29 13:25|| || Front Page|| [11140 views ] Top

#1 Except that the Dali reportedly had to stop taking on cargo the day before due to power failures twice.

Posted by ed in texas 2024-03-29 14:41|| 2024-03-29 14:41|| Front Page Top

#2 An early report I read spoke of the repeated power outages aboard the Dale while at dockside, with the cause attributed to the immense power load and wiring needed to service the excessive number of on-board containers with air-conditioning/temperature control settings for perishable cargo. The inference was a mix of overloaded electrical demand linked to spotty maintenance, and human error and violation of capacity for profit?

Posted by NoMoreBS 2024-03-29 17:34|| 2024-03-29 17:34|| Front Page Top

#3 Oh, just what I want, stuff from a reefer container that was under powered...

Posted by M. Murcek 2024-03-29 17:35|| 2024-03-29 17:35|| Front Page Top

#4 The instances leading to the crash of the Dali are surreal.

Posted by swksvolFF 2024-03-29 18:10|| 2024-03-29 18:10|| Front Page Top

#5 It appears to be one shipment the looters of Baltimore are not so eager to exploit. I guess size does matter.

Posted by Procopius2k 2024-03-29 20:03|| 2024-03-29 20:03|| Front Page Top

#6 Black people don't swim, so those containers are unreachable.

Posted by M. Murcek 2024-03-29 20:28|| 2024-03-29 20:28|| Front Page Top

#7 Baltimore is supposed to be one of the top ports for outgoing stolen vehicles, so it might be interesting to see what's in some of the boxes. I was told two vehicles per container, headed for Africa and south Asia.
Which, as a coincidence, is where it was going.

Posted by ed in texas 2024-03-29 21:00|| 2024-03-29 21:00|| Front Page Top

11:11 HeavyG
11:10 Angstrom
11:07 HeavyG
11:07 Angstrom
11:06 DarthVader
11:05 HeavyG
10:58 alanc
09:43 Mullah Richard
09:27 Warthog
09:11 Mercutio
09:07 AlmostAnonymous5839
08:52 Matt
08:24 Matt
08:20 SteveS
07:43 Procopius2k
07:42 BrerRabbit
07:42 Procopius2k
07:39 Procopius2k
07:36 Procopius2k
07:35 Procopius2k
07:34 trailing wife
07:31 Procopius2k
07:30 NN2N1
07:22 NN2N1