The billionaires who hate regulations that protect the rest of us all expect

[malaise]

Last edited Wed Jun 21, 2023, 03:59 PM - Edit history (1)

Government resources to be available to rescue them.
That is all.

Adding this link

https://www.democraticunderground.com/100218027058

[republianmushroom]

1. Nailed it.

[marble falls]

2. Trying to be nice about that as long as there's a chance they're alive. But, yeah.

[malaise]

8. I only have so many tears to shed

Play with your unsafe toys for bragging rights and deal with the consequences.
Many more people will die this week trying to escape poverty, war or because some business or the other violated safety or environmental regulations.

[orthoclad]

14. They're using an ocean grave

for a tourism thrill.

This is not a research operation. Strictly something to milk the marks. Maybe another startup can begin offering tours of drowned migrants.

It's sad, really.

[malaise]

21. Nailed it

Or wrecked ships that went down with the stolen people from Africa

[DBoon]

18. I sometimes wonder how the miners in Elon Musk's family emerald mine are doing

[malaise]

22. Great question

These people are depraved

[marble falls]

26. I admit. I have no tears but for families. This sort of thing needs to pay for it's rescues ...

... and recoveries. There was no need for this. I was a submariner in the Navy, and these machines are capable of huge disasters over pitiful little mistakes. These amateur one of a kind submersibles are just a step beyond backyard projects regardless how much they invested in it. We won't even get into the proposition of charging "clients" $250k to tour a grave yard. What do they want to see, John Astor's skull in a top hat with a crab scuttling out of an eye-socket?

I'm trying to stay respectful, but we'll be seeing this crap in the tabloid covers by the grocery checkouts for decades.

And now there's a psychic involved. He may may not read tea leaves, but he knows a good marketing opportunity when it crosses his crystal ball.

[malaise]

30. Men and their toys

Great post

[calimary]

73. Agreed, sad to say.

[dalton99a]

46. +1. 10 subs in the world can dive to Titanic depths. Titan is the only one not certified.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfoundland-labrador/oceangate-warned-2018-david-lochridge-1.6883432

Marine group says 10 subs in the world can dive to Titanic depths. Titan is the only one not certified
Company fired director of marine operations after he published a searing report: NYT
Ryan Cooke · CBC News · Posted: Jun 21, 2023 5:49 AM CDT | Last Updated: 2 hours ago

Dozens of industry insiders penned a warning to OceanGate Expeditions CEO Stockton Rush in 2018 saying he was walking a dangerous path by not submitting to a certification process for his submersibles.

CBC News has spoken with two signatories to the letter, including Will Kohnen, chair of the Marine Technology Society's submarine group.

"There are only 10 submarines in the world that can go 4,000m or deeper and all of them are certified except the OceanGate," he told CBC News. "Out of the entire population of submersibles, 90 to 95 per cent are certified. There's a five to 10 per cent fringe, so in that aspect they are an outlier, but sure, in the deep submersibles they really stand out."

The letter outlined the concerns of more than three-dozen scientists, explorers and industry leaders.

"Our apprehension is that the current 'experimental' approach adopted by OceanGate could result in negative outcomes (from minor to catastrophic) that would have serious consequences for everyone in the industry," it reads.

...

[malaise]

48. Ah well - as we say here

story come to bump!

[airplaneman]

75. Its more interesting than that he was using a $25 video gaming controller to control the sub n/t.

[The Unmitigated Gall]

3. Rugged self-reliance.

[dalton99a]

4. Why should U.S. taxpayers pay for any of this?

[malaise]

19. Great question

[spooky3]

5. They don't like taxes either. Those are for the little guy. But the big guys demand

Services.

[malaise]

9. Nailed it

Representation without taxation

[Diamond_Dog]

6. Nailed it malaise

[Ilsa]

7. Anyone who doubts it should watch Too Big to Fail, a 2013 film. nt

[malaise]

10. THIS

[orthoclad]

11. The adventure company

seems to have cut a lot of corners.

According to WaPo, there were many design and safety issues.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2023/06/21/titanic-sub-missing-search-update/

Are any rescuers being put at risk?

I feel bad for the kid aboard.

[malaise]

12. Indeed

I agree re the kid although 19 is an adult - but daddy picked bragging rights over safety.

[DBoon]

13. Just like this take on the ending of Atlas Shrugged

[orthoclad]

15. Libertarians: anarchists who want police protection

[malaise]

16. Perfect

😀😀😀

[louslobbs]

17. I'd drop 5 sets of bootstraps and an enormous thoughts and prayers

banner. Seriously though, if they survive this situation, perhaps they will appreciate how working together with government assistance saved them, rather than the all to often “I did it all myself” attitude many of the super wealthy tend to embrace. Also, perhaps those in power at these institutions won’t so easily remove people involved with safety issues in order to make things happen more quickly. Lastly, $250,000????? REALLY?

[malaise]

20. We were happy when our parents gave four of us a 25 year old VW Beetle😀😀

Who spends that to look at a wreck?

[louslobbs]

23. Someone who has way too much

Cash!

[orthoclad]

28. 250K was cheap

compared to the 2.5mil (iirc) the one guy spent for a few minutes of space tourism.

[louslobbs]

50. I didn't realize this was the same guy.

Dude has way too much money and I guess we’ll see if he continues to have way too much free time.

[ProfessorGAC]

24. Thought The Same

All these resources over a few rich daredevils.
So much for the concept of voluntary assumption of risk.

[malaise]

35. Risk is for the ordinary citizen

Not these billionaires and millionaires

[ProfessorGAC]

44. Apparently So

I get that some of it is a sunk cost (pun intended), but I just hope some other people don't need help due to issues beyond their control.

[IronLionZion]

25. Taxpayer funded resources to rescue billionaires

I would hope this type of search and rescue would be used for ordinary people too.

I'm interested in taxing these billionaires more.

[malaise]

31. How many fishermen do we lose globally in a given year?

They sure don’t make the headlines.

[orthoclad]

37. Compare to the Andrea Gail of Perfect Storm tragedy

from the wiki
"On October 30, 1991, the vessel was reported overdue. An extensive air and land search was launched by the 106th Rescue Wing from the New York Air National Guard, United States Coast Guard, and Canadian Coast Guard forces. The search eventually covered over 186,000 sq nmi (640,000 km2).[5]"

This was for people who died trying to make a living.

[mackdaddy]

27. Has anyone given an estimate of how much the rescue-recovery operatin is costing?

It has to be in the many millions of dollars diverting so many resources.

[Upthevibe]

29. This! I have not one effing

ounce of sympathy for anyone involved in this submarine fiasco. I'm just pissed that our tax dollars are being spent to find these idiots!

[orthoclad]

40. I'm sad for the kid

and for the professional diver.

[malaise]

43. Don't you wonder how people with so much money

Would take such a trip without researching the entire operation.
Idiots is kind.

[jaxexpat]

32. Rugged individualist socialist billionaires, eh? Breathtaking.

[moondust]

33. Yep.

Would the rescue of a few homeless conned into going on a "test dive" look anything like this?

[malaise]

41. Of course not

[markpkessinger]

34. It's also hard not to notice . . .

. . . the yawning gulf between the massive, international search and rescue operation underway to try to save a handful of billionaires who undertook a foolhardy, very risky venture simply because they could, and the relatively non-existent effort to save hundreds of migrants -- men, women and children -- when their boat capsizes in the Mediterranean!

[malaise]

38. Nailed it

Add to that the non-stop global coverage

[Doc Sportello]

42. Great point n/t

[aggiesal]

36. Privatize the profits (i.e. no taxes) ...

and Socialize the debt (i.e. we rescue them).

[malaise]

39. It always works for them

[pandr32]

45. They get the resources, too.

As well as tax breaks.

[brooklynite]

47. Don't have to be a billionaire...

Plenty of people build coastal homes and expect rescue/repair when a hurricane come through.

[malaise]

52. Many poor folks only have one home on the coast

On the other hand, I have a problem with anti-tax paying folks receiving post-hurricane tax payer resources for their vacation homes.

[Demobrat]

49. Thoughts and prayers for the billionaires

There, now I’ve done my part.

[malaise]

51. Nicely done

😀😀

[treestar]

53. Like the Magats after the storm in Florida

a couple of year ago - mad that the feds weren't doing enough for them - after going on about how states should handle that stuff.

Conservatives - when it's them, then it matters.

[malaise]

54. Nailed it

Me me. Me. Me. Me. Mine, mine mine mine - that’s their meme.

[Demobrat]

55. I do feel sorry for the terror they must be experiencing.

They are human beings. And all their money can’t help them now.

And yet - they chose this. They did it for fun. I hope their families get the bill. No doubt their estates can cover the cost.

[yonder]

71. +1. Agree.

If it was not a sudden, catastrophic end it would be an awful fate to be faced with. No matter who they are and how they were able to place themselves in that situation, I'd think most people can emphasize with their predicament.

But respect for that graveyard and basic common sense should have tempered their unscientific, silver-spooned, lookie loo curiosity. They bargained for where they've found themselves and from the looks of it, lost, while leaving their misadventure for the public to pay.

[BeckyDem]

56. Yep.

Link to tweet

[malaise]

58. THIS

The truth

[Blue Owl]

57. K&R

[Yonnie3]

59. Yes, they feel entitled

It is not a bad word for their needs, just for everyone else.

I feel like cursing now.

[fierywoman]

60. They didn't even bring along a supply of water.

[malaise]

61. Effin crazy people

Tots and pears

[UniqueUserName]

62. Malaise, I am always in awe of your strength and words

The Virtue signalers were out in force signaling "all lives matter; can't we think about those helpless billionaires!"

And this post of "Dumb Ways to Die" got no traction. Those cute little things doing dumb things. ----- a PSA (Public Service announcement, watch it to the end if you don't believe me) at that!

https://www.democraticunderground.com/1034101278

[malaise]

63. My mother used to tell me that I never left anyone wondering how I felt about any given

subject. And take it from me she wasn’t sure it was a good trait.
I’ve been like this since I was five years old.
My father’s oldest sister was my mentor. She was tough as nails with a gentle smile that fooled many😀😀😀😀

[Pepsidog]

64. The sub looked small, cramped, and uncomfortable. No certifications because it would slow down

their “innovations” so they say. These are some dumbass, rich daredevils that may die horrifying deaths because of inability to recognize a shitty vessel with a shitty history. Suckered by the clown CEO of OceanGate who “agreed to disagree” with those experts expressing alarm by the company’s shoddy business practices.

[malaise]

65. I still check airline safety records before booking a flight

These people have more money than sense

[Pepsidog]

69. Good practice checking their safety records. OceanGate was bragging about using an Xbox type as

controlling or steering the sub.

[malaise]

70. I saw that and laughed

😀

[calimary]

74. And bragging about "breaking the rules."

I guess the rules finally broke him.

[Warpy]

66. Hikers who run into trouble get billed for their rescue

and I think the same should apply here.

However, I can see part of the cost to find this thing defrayed by outfits that use submersibles, like oil companies and oceanographic researchers. It was directly above the wreck when the transponder quit, not sure of the depth. The shallower they were, the larger the search area, currents are strong down there.

Other outfits that use submersibles are going to want to see how and where this one failed. Given that the transponder just stopped, the location beacon was not activated, and that none of the manual flotation systems were used to bring it to the surface, we can all conclude the failure was sudden and catastrophic, not a bad way to go, just gruesome.

[intrepidity]

67. Having morbid thoughts

about what these guys must be going through, and wondering if they are attempting to bargain with their deity to give up all their riches if only they are saved.

And if they do, by some miracle, get rescued: do they follow through?

[sarisataka]

68. Perhaps some are atheists

Do you suppose they are suddenly reconsidering their beliefs?

[grantcart]

72. In this case they thought that the law of physics didn't apply to them

Two points that the gushing media misses

1) there is zero scientific benefit to these trips. Everything could be seen by robotic cameras.

2) they try and do it on the cheap. If they spent the money necessary to do it safely they could have bought a n actually double hull submarine with a professional crew. They used a submersible to save money at 12,000 feet depth for zero scientific gain.

[calimary]

76. Sounds like pretty reckless risk.

And a terribly, dreadfully unsatisfying “payoff”. A hard lesson to learn. I wonder how many actually will.

[diane in sf]

77. They also expect the laws of physics to bend to their will.

[malaise]

78. They didn'work this time

I'd love to see the media cover all those sinking boats full of migrants with such enthusiasm.