SILLINESS FROM BARACK OBAMA

Former President Barack Obama criticised the 4 days news blitz re the Titanic sub drama compared to the relative silence on the circa 500 mainly Pakistani migrant lives lost in the crowed fishing boat off the Greek coast. The clear inuendo was racism.

That was bloody silly. First, the migrant tragedy was done and dusted when the sub issue arose, but there was a much more important reason why the media became obsessed with the sub issue and that was its drama.

5 men were trapped, somewhere deep in the ocean when the story first broke, with four days of oxygen available. Thus time was of the essence and the drama increased as the search continued and the oxygen dead-line date neared. In the event it was irrelevant when it was found the sub had exploded.

An identical, much more dramatic similar event occurred a few years back with the Thai boys in the cave drama. With the water rising, time was of the essence and the world stopped and held its collective breath. Readers will recall the acts of great heroism and danger which eventually saw the boys rescued.

Yet while that was going on, further south in the Gulf of Siam, a sight-seeing Bangkok cruise launch sank resulting in the drowning deaths of a large number of elderly Japanese tourists. That was a fait accompli thus there was little more to be said but no-one was silly enough to imply racism.

As an aside, when the sub drama first arose it flashed back a memory from over 70 years ago when my mother had me accompany her to a 5pm matinee film, or movie as they’re now called.

It was called “Morning Departure” and recounted a British sub on the ocean floor with an engine failure and several days of oxygen left. In the event they weren’t saved, they opened the hatch opting for a quicker drowning than gasping for non-existent oxygen.

I Googled it and noted the famous actors and the general praise accorded to the film.

A final thought on subs. The Aussies are currently spending circa 500 billion dollars building nuclear submarines. It’s insanity.

Their sole attribute is they can stay underwater for about 9 months by dint of being nuclear powered. As they take years to build I’ll wager by the time they’re finished sub-locating and destroying technology will have been devised.

That aside, the bloody things only carry half a dozen torpedoes which once fired requires a return to port anyway.

I also wonder about the problem their navy will have finding buggers happy to theoretically spend 9 months underwater.

This is a recent years unexpected staffing difficulty which has arisen with container ships. Such is the roll-on, roll-off speed loading and unloading containers, the tiny 3 or 4 man crews now needed, solely to do look-out stints, are effectively permanently at sea. It’s the world’s most boring job. The nine months underwater on subs will surely be worse.