MarEx Mailbag: Reader Response to Last Weeks MarEx Editorial and other Articles
MarEx readers weigh in on last week’s piece, entitled “A Shapshot into the Future: Voyage 231 of the Containership “Compliance,” and two other recent articles.
In last week’s edition of the MarEx e-newsletter, our lead editorial actually took the form of a work of fiction, which I crafted around several ongoing regulatory efforts which will eventually shape and profoundly affect the world ocean commerce. Let me repeat, it was a work of fiction. We had a couple of people weigh in on the article, but to be honest, the mailbag was light this week. That’s a curious statistic, though, since the piece garnered more e-traffic than any other MarEx article in the past couple of months. Go figure. You can read last week’s editorial by clicking HERE. You can also see what our readers thought about the article below:
Sir,
You have excelled even your own high standards. M/V Compliance is just awesome. Wonderful. I hope to find it framed on the wall at IMO. (Well, I can hope).
Many thanks,
Brian Sherwood Jones
MarEx Editor’s Remarks: Great letter, don’t you think? Brian, seriously, I appreciate the note and your kind words. I’m not sure that the IMO will appreciate my insight, but then, I don’t think any of the events occurring in that article, were, by themselves, unbelievable. All in one voyage? Maybe not. But, as we used to say on a ship I was assigned to, “This could only happen to us.” And, I predict that every event in that work of fiction will occur at one time or another, in the future. Count on it.
The next letter could be addressing either our lead fiction piece or another article entitled, “Speed Restrictions to Reduce Threat of Ship Collisions With North Atlantic Right Whales to Take Effect.” This piece is essentially a press release announcing new regulations and you can read it by clicking HERE. Read on to say what one industry observer thinks about it:
Joe:
The announcement specifically recognizes that national security & lifesaving missions may require governmental vessels to exceed the required 10 knots. The announcement does not cover what happens to a commercial vessel responding to some kind of an emergency.
So consider the following: A commercial vessel is within one of the 10-knot zones and receives a mayday from another vessel a few miles away.
Case 1: The commercial vessel accelerates to full-ahead, collides with a whale. While the commercial vessel is a mile away, a Coast Guard Cutter arrives on scene.
Question: will the enforcing agencies recognize that the commercial vessel was responding to a SOLAS situation and not bring charges? After the headlines about arrested Ship's Masters, will a prudent mariner rely on the responsible federal agencies to do the right thing?
Note: if the federal agencies DO bring charges, the cost of defending yourself is substantial and, I'll bet, not reimbursable by the Feds.
Case 2: The commercial vessel recognizes that there are lots more human beings than there are Right Whales and proceeds at ten knots. As a result, someone on the distressed vessels dies.
Question: does the Coast Guard agree that they will NOT charge the Master of the commercial vessel for not following SOLAS and the 'regular practice of seamen?’ If the family of the deceased brings charges or a suit against the commercial vessel, who will pay the defense fees?
I'm just sayin'.
Name withheld by Request
MarEx Editor’s Note: We didn’t have permission to use this individual’s name, but these were all good questions. Maybe someone from NOAA or the Coast Guard will weigh in and set policy on those parameters. Maybe not.
The next letter addresses a press release that we published in our September 16th e-newsletter from Congressman Cummings (D-MD) office. You can read that press release by clicking HERE. Read on to see what our reader thought:
Dear Joe:
I'm a member of the Propeller Club at the Port of Houston, and one way I stay on top of issues is to read Maritime Executive.
Your recently expressed confidence in Houston coming back post-Ike is well placed. While there are certainly areas which have not yet fully recovered, such as Galveston and other places along the coast, most of the region has returned to business and life as usual.
On another front, I expect sentiment and in time consumer spending to be buoyed by the market-driven (not artificially driven) decline in the price of gasoline. In my mind the decline is one more illustration that we don't need Congress or the bureaucracy to get involved in order for the markets to efficiently work. That is, we need fewer rules and restrictions, not more.
Which begs a question I have about an article I saw in the Sept. 18 issue of MarEx which appeared to be nothing more than a press release from Rep. Elijah Cummings. When I hear a politician claim we don't have enough regulations I become wary and skeptical. I wonder what part of the story he is leaving out, and if he is just pandering in an election year.
Thanks for your work. I enjoy being a regular reader.
Regards,
Jamie Walter
Shamrock Equity Advisors, Inc.
MarEx Editor’s Remarks: We appreciate the kind words about our publication. Not too long ago, I wrote an editorial entitled, “Politicizing Marine Safety – Never a Good Idea.” That article, appearing in our July 17th online edition, talked about the harbor pilot situation in the port of Boston, but it could just as easily been referencing any sort of federal regulatory oversight. Congressman Cummings and his office issue many, many press releases, and sometimes we pick them up and put them on line, especially if it references a current event. Cummings is an active participant in the regulatory process and, I am quite sure, he also likes the bright spotlight. He is an important player with regard to maritime policy in Washington. I read the copy that comes out of his office and I’m sure that the folks at Coast Guard headquarters do the same, since they tend to be on the sharp end of Cumming’s sword, more often than not. When we publish a press release, it is usually identified as such. We don’t always agree with the Congressman and sometimes, we make comment on that. In this case, we let the release stand on its own merits.