OT WED 27 MAR 24 ~ Challenging the Fear Factor
Some strategies for confronting mass induced insecurities.
A few common themes occur in the observation of popularly held irrational
fears noticed in random encounters. People seem to have recurring ideas
as to what is scaring them at any point in time. One week it is climate change,
another week is immigration issues. Then it is the economy, war or genocide.
Food and housing affordability is a common complaint. Deep state and civil
war are popular fear generators. Distrust of government, bought politicians
and inept politicos all blend into the mix.
Recognizing the sources of most of this social unease generally points to
the effects of people listening to MSM outlets. What will it take for more
people to understand that we are being lied to, mentally manipulated and
kept in a constant state of allowing propaganda to define our lives and fears?
Either disengage or develop a discerning mindset to filter information
overload into bite sized chunks of rational objectivity. Understanding the
sources of fear mongering and the objectives of the perpetuators helps
to put these campaigns into perspective. Some arbitrary fear and greed index
is not very helpful IMO.
When seen as a multi-layered herding of societal reaction for pernicious
goals, critical analysis can take the place of fearful inactivity. A valiant
effort is made within C99 to challenge these tendencies. Write-on!
Open Thread so expand on any topics you are harboring.
“Contemplation” by Lee Hyun Jong - handmade Hanji paper and ink from Korean pigments
https://www.thisiscolossal.com/2024/03/lee-hyun-joung-ridge-lines/
Comments
Good morning, QMS!
I had a conversation with a friend yesterday. To say she is a dedicated Democrat is an understatement. Seems the abortion issue is her main issue. She finally admitted the Democrats had ample opportunities to codify Roe v. Wade, and didn't even bring a Bill up for a vote, and the result of their inaction has harmed many women and their families, in her opinion.
She will never contribute to a campaign again, will never take any activist steps again.
I have made a bit of headway in getting her to be more circumspect of the MSM. I did get her to admit that on occasion, she agreed with the Righties, and ultimately, our true opposition, if not downright enemy, is the 1%.
Let's see what info we get fed today about the Key bridge, shall we?
Thanks for the OT, QMS.
"We'll know our disinformation program is complete when everything the American public believes is false." ---- William Casey, CIA Director, 1981
Good on you to enlighten your friend.
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Facts matter when shown in the right light.
Insofar as the ship taking out a bridge. Many theories floating around.
The most obvious is a lack of harbor tugs. Cheap insurance. It appeared to
me the ship was way off course before losing power. A couple tugs would
have prevented the disaster. Another feather in the cap of Mayo Pete.
good luck
That ship
was making 8+ knots when they lost their steering, and the backup gennies and steering gear apparently failed spectacularly, as I understand it. There's aren't a lot of tugs that could have even kept up with that hull at speed- let alone have had enough power margin left over to have made any difference. 97K tons is no joke.
In my admittedly limited experience as a harbor rat, I've never seen tugs stay with an outbound merchantman after they got her off the dock (and perhaps through the turning basin, if needed). Once she has steering way on, they fall away. But on the other hand, I've seldom seen a vessel of that size running at that speed in a crowded harbor. The only time I've reliably seen that is in NY Harbor, where the big LNG bulk tankers *always* run at max when outbound. As I understand it, this is to minimize the time that the harbor is completely shut down while they are underway. Nothing moves near the channel, not even the Staten Island Ferry, when one of those monsters is underway- and they have the Coast Guard and the authorities with helicopters and gunboats to enforce it. They are very focused on minimizing the exposure for nefarious activities, at least with those floating bombs in that setting. You mess with them at your own peril.
Having said all that, if I were a tugboat owner, I'd be overjoyed this morning. They are about to experience the windfall of the ages, and be able to bill out a lot more hours, as the laws are reflexively changed to require tonnage to have sufficient tug attention full-time when underway in a harbor. There's a growth industry for ya...
Here's her AIS track. Fast-forward to the 1:50 mark- everything was somewhat reasonable until they lost steering. Still, the harbor pilot is going to have a lot to answer for. https://www.reddit.com/r/CatastrophicFailure/comments/1boyd1k/als_track_...
Twice bitten, permanently shy.
Generally, the tugs make-up to the ships
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using hawsers (large towing lines) before getting underway.
Once underway, the ship drags the tugs along side. Once
out of the harbor, the tugs are released and the ship heads
out without assistance. At a certain point, a pilot boat will go
along side to pick up the harbor pilot dangling down a rope ladder.
Have seen this collection of maneuvers many times during my
tug years. I can see where it makes no sense to tow assist tugs
once the ships get up to speed (20 to 25 knots), but by then there is
little maneuvering required.
You would know that
much better than I ever would, Skipper- you have lived the life..
But here's a question for you, just the same: in the last 5-10 years, how often have you seen tugs getting a tow assist all the way out of a harbor on heavy shipping? Admittedly most of the harbors I've hung out at have been smaller, and not overly populated with large commercial vessels. But I simply haven't seen tugs accompanying anything lately in NY or Miami, once her bow is pointed out of the inner harbor- not even the LNG carriers. Have the shipping companies simply started releasing their tugs earlier than they used to (presumably, in an effort to save money), in contravention of some of the regs?
It is hilarious, in a way. In places like Miami, for example, you'll never see a tug anywhere near a cruise ship (no matter the size). Not unless she's alongside the pier and they are pushing the fuel barge up for a sip... Even in the turning basins, it seems to be a point of pride for those folks to do all the necessary maneuvering unassisted. There's nothing like watching the 20-deck Embarassment of the Seas wallowing around with her bow thrusters churning while getting aimed the right direction, as all 6,000 blissfully-unaware passengers are dutifully getting sloshed at the bar.
They'd be out of the harbor and underway in half the time if they *did* use the tugs. But then again, time isn't money for those guys. There are no FOB guests: they got paid before the guests boarded. Curious, anyway.
Twice bitten, permanently shy.
I believe that boat has had problems before
I can't find the reference to it but I read it about it earlier this AM (during my usual nightly hauntings). Apparently it hit a dock in one of its jobs Bremerhaven(?), instead of pulling away it went the other way and had to be repaired. It had also had complaints about the engine/steerings.
Another reference was from a port in South America where it had an inspection failure. These seem to point to an overall systemic problem in that there doesn't appear to be a common oversight that would consolidate and force a correction to a lemon boat.
Secondly I believe that the boat was owned by one company, leased to another, then that second company outsourced the crewing to different companies. Sounds like the Boeing corporate model. Lots of money flying around and dam little responsibility. By the time your digging thru the corporate contracts your eyes glaze over and you just...
Lots of good stuff in MOA, TAE and NakedCapitalism. They and their comment threads referenced a couple of other sites. Of course the AI history correction systems are hard at work.
There was a time when my memory and classification systems worked better. I think I left them somewhere east of the rockies. Sorry.
Hola, exindy. As to --
Such arrangements are far more common than you might expect, especially if you include that it is flagged in a country of convenience that it essentially has no other ties to and is quite possibly insured by a pool of legal entities havine an indirect or imputed interest in similar vessels in such a manner that they are, really, simply self-insured.
be well and have a good one
That, in its essence, is fascism--ownership of government by an individual, by a group, or by any other controlling private power. -- Franklin D. Roosevelt --
Dali meets bridge
Howdy all, Hi Capt.!
Hope all are well!
My understanding is that the tugs left once the ship was in the traffic channel ergo lane. Which since there is still an obstacle does not make sense IMHO. Considering generally boats are second only to planes for having a backup system, the shedding of tugs before one is clear of all obstacles really seems poorly thought out. Except for the profit margin.
The 8 knots astrounds me inside a port. This is not allowed in LA Harbor where I spent a hundred days on boats and hundreds of days birding around it, often boat watching, and dreaming. I think at 50 tons it becomes 5 mph once inside the breakwater. Much less something of this size.
This guy seems knowledgeable on the subject...
from yesterday:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N39w6aQFKSQ
MV Dali Hitting Key Bridge in Baltimore - Track and Video Analysis
Today, this morning - the day after:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DoPRz7wk3WY
Fair sailing and following seas!
We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.
Look deep into nature, and then you will understand everything better.
both - Albert Einstein
Very concise videos
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thanks for sharing them!
We were on a run one time towing a derrick (crane) barge that was rated
around 1000 tons. They will need a couple large cranes to lift the bridge,
cut the sections up and stack them onto material barges. That will take
quite awhile, depending on how soon they can get the derricks on site.
It will be dangerous work for the divers to connect the hooks and straps.
Again, I think it was bad judgement to release the tugs before transiting
the bridge. The center section of the Bay bridge further down is a
tunnel, so the Key bridge is (was) the only obstacle on that route.
Ditto for me-
those are very worthwhile videos. It is almost astonishing to see factual, non-hyped, non-judgmental reporting...
Thanks for the pointer! Lots to learn here.
Twice bitten, permanently shy.
another boating news link
Hi UFS,
I appreciate your info here too!
I watch this guy a bit for news, he is sharp, and a pro in the field of 'big boats'. He covers lots of the groundings and collisions, besides super yachts. Which I thought was a fancy bass boat...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lyt4vS2F_SU
be well all!
We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.
Look deep into nature, and then you will understand everything better.
both - Albert Einstein
yeah man!
Hi Capt.!
Imagine the crews stuck inside this. Say you just got loaded and were ready to go? Now what? OMG Are you looking at a month or more to get out? And way past my red-line for danger doing that removal work!
We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.
Look deep into nature, and then you will understand everything better.
both - Albert Einstein
Hey, good morning
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Spy Wednesday. Something about Judas and 30 pieces of silver. A precursor to
the modern spook network? Regardless. Human nature I guess.
Not giving into fear. Controlling paranoia. Be brave.
My recent foray into the dystopia...
I think I'll skip over recounting the estate planning issue and my interview with 2 different firms.
One great big grift system to "solve" a problem created by a different grift, namely elder care which exploits anyone who needs care until they are so destitute they need societal support.
This new grift comes in to pre-destitute people like us to make sure we can pre-qualify for the support. Of course the atty firm will be happy to pretend that we don't have any money at all by keeping it for us.... yeah, I heard that story before. In effect they will intercept our pensions and pretend they are being used to buy some specialized care insurance administered by the firm. We'd get a couple thou to cover our needs.
It became obvious that their system is scripted and sold as a franchise to attorneys without morals and ethics...but I repeat myself (no offense OTC, you're one of the exceptions.) Anyway, they all look the same on the web. Some are even grammatically correct.
Enough of that... we are now a non-community property estate. The atty we spoke to was very upset.
On my latest issue I have run afoul of a new gateway system for logging into gov't sites, like IRS, OMB, SSA, VA, etc. Some moron decided that having different logins would be too confusing for we "little" people and that a consolidated gateway system would help a lot.
Enter ID.ME
Tomorrow I will meet with a real person at the local IRS office to explain my problem. Of course one of the problems with the new system is that it requires me to use its system for appointment scheduling. But I'm a non-person who can't do a video chat or take a selfie so I'm not sure I have an appointment. And no way to check.
I feel like the guy stuck on the MTA.
Fun times.
On edit: fixed typos
If I might inflict myself on you a little more.
On the drive back from Spokane where our atty meeting was MsIndy and I were reminiscing about some history long ago. As I mentioned to the atty, we had been running separate finances since around 1980 when she felt satisfied with her maternal efforts and entered a more professional workforce, drawing a better salary. I think I might have mentioned how much she threw into her new career. So a couple months ago changing our accounts from joint to individual was just formalizing a practice.
Anyway, around 1977 after her father had died, her mother was having serious problems with her lack of identity. She had never gotten a DL, never borrowed money, just a stay at home wife. It was probably years before she could be considered to be on her own... and with children.
We swore that would never happen to MsIndy so we visited a business friend who managed our bank and explained the problem. The result was that he gave her a personal loan. I'm pretty sure it was $300 and he deposited it into a new account in her name. Some months later she withdrew the money and paid off the loan.
She is not MsIndy.
Thanks for letting me share it.
Spokane was distressing. So much poverty just a block from the fancy stuff downtown. It's heartbreaking what has been done to our nation.
A similar situation here
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required to have a 1099-G to file taxes. Never got one this year.
Signed into my SSA account to discover they have "gone green"
no longer mail out paper copies. Could not get anything about my
account because I hadn't visited it in over a year. So had to get
some new account authorization code which takes about 2 weeks.
Maybe it was covered in the government reduction in usefulness act?
Such a hassle.
good luck
Good morning QMS, thanks for the OT. That was quite
an opening paragraph, made me want to go crawl under the bed, except for the fact that it is a chest bed and weighs a ton.
Seriously, the trick is in the measured response. When faced with immanent danger, the lizard brain issues fight or flight instructos to the physical body, which are accompanied by many readily discernable symptoms. Should you fail to detect those symptoms, then it is a non-immanent problem, in which case, you should fall back on the tried and true evasion method:
It's that easy, you can then go calmly analytic: Can you fix, solve or prevent it? If yes, then get to work. If no then go to routine B.
Routine B is is likely to morph, change or evolve in the foreseeable future? If yes, keep an eye on it. If no, forget about it, you have a life to live.
be well and have a good one
edit: would you believe that I had a typo to correct?
That, in its essence, is fascism--ownership of government by an individual, by a group, or by any other controlling private power. -- Franklin D. Roosevelt --
Hey everybody, what's the ruckus about ye olde MV Dali?
Where do you think they got the name?
be well and have a good one
That, in its essence, is fascism--ownership of government by an individual, by a group, or by any other controlling private power. -- Franklin D. Roosevelt --
The owner had a pet llama by that name
Hmmmm, hadn't considered that
Is the ship registered in Tibet, I wonder?
be well and have a good one
That, in its essence, is fascism--ownership of government by an individual, by a group, or by any other controlling private power. -- Franklin D. Roosevelt --
an idea?
So you don't think it was for the containers dripping off the side of the bow? Or what now looks like an excellent anatomical cross-section drawing of the forward internal parts of said bow, but which is the bow? All looks fairly Dali to me now anyway.
We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.
Look deep into nature, and then you will understand everything better.
both - Albert Einstein
The dripping containers, for sure. I was thinking about
before the wreck.
be well and have a good one
That, in its essence, is fascism--ownership of government by an individual, by a group, or by any other controlling private power. -- Franklin D. Roosevelt --
Big brother is watching!
Good morning...
I feel more disgust of our leadership (DC bubble) class than fear. I do fear what they might do when they realize they got their ass whooped. Like today, the Houthis sank four US and UK ships, two USN destroyers, and hit Israels Red Sea Port. US power of impotence.
Yemen Launches TRIPLE Attack on Israel, US, UK Targets in Red Sea (8 min)
Richard Medhurst reports on the Houthis launch of coordinated attacks on Israeli, American and British ships and ports in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, all in the span of 72 hours. The Houthis spokesperson Yahya Saree called it a "gift" to mark the 10th anniversary of the British, American and Saudi aggression against Yemen.
Bet you won't read about it in your evening paper.
Ray McGovern fears they'll use a mininuke when they realize they've lost.
Y'all have a good day. Thanks for the OT!
“Until justice rolls down like water and righteousness like a mighty stream.”
wow, that's fairly major
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will make a few admirals uncomfortable
thanks for the link!
HOLA QMS! I forgot to mention that I loved the
graphic, and that it, at least superficially, looks like a small chunk or segment of a fractal of some sort.
be well and have a good one
That, in its essence, is fascism--ownership of government by an individual, by a group, or by any other controlling private power. -- Franklin D. Roosevelt --