PREDICTABLE RESPONSES

Congresswoman Calls For Investigation of Cruise Ship Fiasco

Suggests the federal government could do more to prevent future mishaps

Feb 18, 2013 by David Mark

Editor-in-Chief t

Image: AP.

That didn't take long. The Carnival Triumph cruise ship had barely docked in Alabama when member of Congress said the federal government should get involved.

Rep. Doris Matsui (D-Calif.) is calling on her colleagues to investigate an engine fire on the cruise ship, which left 4,000 passengers and crew members stranded at sea in squalid conditions for four days.

In a letter to the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, Matsui cited safety concerns for the passengers, who lacked access to food and working toilets after the ship lost power and some rooms flooded.

"The cruise industry forcefully defends itself as being a provider of safe, luxurious vacations. Yet the experience on board the Triumph was anything but," Matsui wrote. "We owe it to the people who lived through this nightmare a swift and thorough investigation into what went wrong and why."

Some suggest the cruise fiasco has already received more attention that it deserves. Uncomfortable as it was for passengers and crew, everyone made it home safely, noted New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof (@NickKristof). He tweeted, "We journos were all over the cruise ship.Can we provide equal attention to the billions who always lack food & sanitation?"

Via The Sacramento Bee, and Politix reporting.

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?	Should politicians be getting involved with this?

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Comments (view in Forum)

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Feb '13

culinary

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#$ it happens. Get over it.
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Feb '13

lawnmowrman

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Redundancies should be built into the ships without Congressional meddling.
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Feb '13

NormalFlora

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Exactly. Who the f*** builds a 4000 passenger ship with only one engine room and generator room?
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Feb '13

jaybebo84

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@NormalFlora

Carnival Cruise Lines....
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Post @jaybebo84
Feb '13

harold_lloyd

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Rep. Matsui's investigation will mostly reveal how little congress can do to affect foreign-flagged vessels.
I just hope she doesn't waste too much taxpayer money on her posturing.
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Feb '13

Neo_NtheMatrix

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Rep. Doris Matsui is a California Democrat. Is anyone surprised that a politician from the party of big government wants to get the government involved in still yet another situation? Some people don't believe we're in debt to the tune of $17T.
- B9 • Vote Up r36 Replies
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Feb '13

dances-weebles

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you know, i keep reading your posts in hope that someday i'll be able to read something intelligent, or to the point. nobody is talking about california, democrats, or even big government... what the article is discussing is one silly woman who is afraid that if she takes a cruise someday she may have to crap in a paper cup. she also can't recognise a freak happening when she sees it.

maybe she should take a lesson from the religious entities of the world who coined the phrase,'shit happens' in its various forms.
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Post @dances-weebles
Feb '13

dances-weebles

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Taoism: Shit happens.
Confucianism: Confucius say, "Shit happens."
Buddhism: If shit happens, it isn't really shit.
Zen Buddhism: Shit is, and is not.
Zen Buddhism #2: What is the sound of shit happening?
Hinduism: This shit has happened before.
Islam: If shit happens, it is the will of Allah.
Islam #2: If shit happens, kill the person responsible.
Islam #3: If shit happens, blame Israel.
Catholicism: If shit happens, you deserve it.
Protestantism: Let shit happen to someone else.
Presbyterian: This shit was bound to happen.
Episcopalian: It's not so bad if shit happens, as long as you serve the right wine with it.
Methodist: It's not so bad if shit happens, as long as you serve grape juice with it.
Congregationalist: Shit that happens to one person is just as good as shit that happens to another.
Unitarian: Shit that happens to one person is just as bad as shit that happens to another.
Lutheran: If shit happens, don't talk about it.
Fundamentalism: If shit happens, you will go to hell, unless you are born again.(Amen!)
Fundamentalism #2: If shit happens to a televangelist, it's okay.
Fundamentalism #3: Shit must be born again.
Judaism: Why does this shit always happen to us?
Calvinism: Shit happens because you don't work.
Seventh Day Adventism: No shit shall happen on Saturday.
Creationism: God made all shit.
Secular Humanism: Shit evolves.
Christian Science: When shit happens, don't call a doctor - pray!
Christian Science #2: Shit happening is all in your mind.
Unitarianism: Come let us reason together about this shit.
Quakers: Let us not fight over this shit.
Utopianism: This shit does not stink.
Darwinism: This shit was once food.
Capitalism: That's MY shit.
Communism: It's everybody's shit.
Feminism: Men are shit.
Chauvinism: We may be shit, but you can't live without us...
Commercialism: Let's package this shit.
Impressionism: From a distance, shit looks like a garden.
Idolism: Let's bronze this shit.
Existentialism: Shit doesn't happen; shit IS.
Existentialism #2: What is shit, anyway?
Stoicism: This shit is good for me.
Hedonism: There is nothing like a good shit happening!
Mormonism: God sent us this shit.
Mormonism #2: This shit is going to happen again.
Wiccan: An it harm none, let shit happen.
Scientology: If shit happens, see "Dianetics", p.157.
Jehovah's Witnesses: >Knock< >Knock< Shit happens.
Jehovah's Witnesses #2: May we have a moment of your time to show you some of our shit?
Jehovah's Witnesses #3: Shit has been prophesied and is imminent; only the righteous shall survive its happening.
Moonies: Only really happy shit happens.
Hare Krishna: Shit happens, rama rama.
Rastafarianism: Let's smoke this shit!
Zoroastrianism: Shit happens half on the time.
Church of SubGenius: BoB shits.
Practical: Deal with shit one day at a time.
Agnostic: Shit might have happened; then again, maybe not.
Agnostic #2: Did someone shit?
Agnostic #3: What is this shit?
Satanism: SNEPPAH TIHS.
Atheism: What shit?
Atheism #2: I can't believe this shit!
Nihilism: No shit.
Narcisism: I am the shit!

And of course we must add...Alcoholics Anonymous: Shit happens-one day at a time!
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Post @dances-weebles
Feb '13
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Feb '13
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Feb '13
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Feb '13

Keyjo

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This is a legitimate case of actually letting the market govern itself. First the fiasco in Italy last year, now this. They'd better remedy things or faith will be long lost for Carnival Cruise Lines. No bat in the sky calling Congressional crusaders into action!
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Feb '13

Real4WheelDrv

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Leaping Lido Deck Batman!
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Post @Real4WheelDrv
Feb '13

DerivePI

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Actually, I was thinking now would be a good time to book a cruise.
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Post @DerivePI
Feb '13

PNWest

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@DerivePI You are probably right. I'll bet you can get a SMOKIN' good deal on a Carnival Cruise these days.
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Post @PNWest
Feb '13

DogLady_1

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The beauty of our system is that we don't need the gov't to come do some billion dollar investigation to officially declare what we already know... Then, all that would ahppen is they pay a small fine and continue to do exactly what they've been doing... This is a capital enterprise that needs to be sued by those injured... Make their errors public and make them pay in a way that makes them prefer to keep their ships in good shape so they don't have to go through all that again.
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Feb '13

DerivePI

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You forgot about the potential graft they will need to pay to make sure the fine is small. Just think of those poor hungry congresswomen.
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u
Feb '13

ctc

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No doubt members of that committee will need to go on a couple of cruises to bone-up for the investigation.
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Feb '13

Thunderchicken

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Governor William J. Le Petomane: "Holy underwear! Sheriff murdered! Innocent women and children blown to bits! We have to protect our phoney baloney jobs here, gentlemen! We must do something about this immediately! Immediately! Immediately! Harrumph! Harrumph! Harrumph!"
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Feb '13

Dan_Tien

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If anyone should investigate what happened to the ship, shouldn't it be the Coast Guard?
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Feb '13

WMCOL

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What's so disgusting here is Carnival had two ships ready to begin cruises that they could have cancelled and sent those ships to get these stranded cruisers, and except for the loss of revenue, would have been totally justified and those consequences would have saved the company a half-billion-dollars. It would have cost them maybe a million-dollars. Now they are gonna be sailing for many years to pay off their liability.
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Feb '13

stepped_in_it

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No offense there, but, you just don't pull these monsters along side each other and everyone jump from one ship to the next! Especially when one of them has lost power. The best they could have done is ferry them from ship to ship, which could have a high injury rate for the passengers not "able" to board in that way!
There should have been better back up generators and the tugboats dispatched immediately.
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u
Feb '13

Knight80

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Really? Your going to pull another super ship next to another one with NO power, which means NO control, in choppy waters and expect to transfer passengers? And those headlines would of been, "The death toll today from transferring passengers was ____." Yes the situation was bad. Yes I think they should had at least some other type of back up generators to use for electricity. But NO you can't try to transfer passengers unless it's a last ditch resort.
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Post @Knight80
Feb '13

WMCOL

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@stepped_in_it
Well you're right if it is only thought through to that point. You and that other fella can fight the sea and plank connection from ship to ship. I was thinking of a half-dozen UH60's. Each can carry 2500lbs., and weather is not much of a factor for them, nor would dead ship effect rescue. 30 to 40 trips by six UH60's would have gotten just about all of passengers off and onto waiting ships. With vessels that big it would have been easy to create helipads for the choppers. No more than a half tank of fuel for each chopper and a total cost of no more than $40,000 expense each. Quarter-million and rescue/transfer is done.
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Post @WMCOL
Feb '13

stepped_in_it

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@WMCOL Sure.....cutting decks off to create a (safe) landing pad (on each ship, mind you) would be a piece of cake! I'm sure the cutting torches and cranes to lift the heavy pieces were right there on the ship. Might have only taken 3-4 weeks at best to do all that! Next idea!
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Post @stepped_in_it
Feb '13

WMCOL

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@stepped_in_it
No need to cut anything. There is plenty of room on the bow for landing. Some lines may have to be taken down on some ships. Some Carnival ships have a helipad. There can be some problems with up and down motion of the ship and static electricity, but still safer than side by side transfer of passengers. Military pilots can put a CH60 down on a dime in a storm.
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Feb '13

DARSB

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Hull breeches, engine fires, norovirus... They call these "vacation" cruises. Sound more like the Hunger Games.:-)
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Feb '13

stepped_in_it

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Does anyone believe that nothing will go wrong when a mechanical device is used for your enjoyment. No one's ever broke down on the side of the road, motor died in the middle of a huge lake, ATV craps out in the woods.....etc? They had to pee and poop in an unaccustomed place......BFD. Hell, if I was the captain, I would have called for men on the port side, women on the starboard side......lower deck only and watch for wind direction! Hang it out far and always have a buddy to hold your ankles/wrists......
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Feb '13

Keyjo

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Your first sentence reminded me of those women in the commercial, "I'll blow your hair back!"
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Post @Keyjo
Feb '13

Keyjo

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@Keyjo
Those Trojan Twister commercials, that is!
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Feb '13

Neo_NtheMatrix

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I worry about you sometimes.
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Post @Neo_NtheMatrix
Feb '13

stepped_in_it

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@Neo_NtheMatrix Me too! Sometimes my mind even amazes me! LOL
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Post @stepped_in_it
Feb '13

bsking

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And where was Doris when she should have been calling for congressional hearings on Ben Ghazi? Typical Democrat
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Feb '13

Fitz

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Does anyone realize how nice everything in this country would be if our government officials would get there f ing nose out of private business?
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u
Feb '13

Wooky

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Congress needs to stay out of the private sectors business they will handle this themselves! Everything our federal government touches it goes to poop!
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Feb '13

wonka45ACP

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Doris, keep the goverment money out of this you idiot ! you will get your investigation
when the lawsuits begin .
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u
Feb '13

Realthinker

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The ship is registered in the Bahamas, not the US. Carnival will tell the Congresswoman to mind her own business.
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Feb '13

JustTheFacts

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Typical government response ... lets waste more taxpayer dollars on something they can't fix and enact regulation to drive up consumer cost to take a cruise!
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u
Feb '13

Meanie

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Why do these idiotic politicians think they need to parent the nation especially since it is they who are f*cking up this great nation.
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Feb '13

Nautilus

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I think the fiasco is in Washington DC , try working on that one first than head home to Cali, a real sinking ship
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Should politicians be getting involved with this?

Should politicians be getting involved with this?