Mark Steyn: No more ‘women and children first’
We are beyond social norms these days. A woman can be a soldier. A man can be a woman. A 7-year-old cross-dressing boy can join the Girl Scouts in Colorado because he "identifies" as a girl. It all adds to life's rich tapestry, no doubt. But I can't help wondering, when the ship hits the fan, how many of us will still be willing to identify as a man. The Costa Concordia isn't merely a metaphor for EU collapse but – here it comes down the slipway – the fragility of civilization. Like every ship, the Concordia had its emergency procedures – the lifeboat drills that all crew and passengers are obliged to go through before sailing. As with the security theater at airports, the rituals give the illusion of security – and then, as the ship tips and the lights fail and the icy black water rushes in, we discover we're on our own: from dancing and dining, showgirls and saunas, to the inky depths in a matter of moments. Today the wealthiest nations in human history build cruise ships rather than battleships, vast floating palaces dedicated to the good life – to the proposition that, in the plump and complacent West, life itself is a cruise, sailing (as the Concordia's name suggests) on a placid lake of peace and harmony.Posted by gerardvanderleun at January 20, 2012 8:28 PM
Meh. Methinks we've been here before. The SS Arctic disaster of 1854, for example. Of the 109 women and children aboard, NONE survived, having been shoved aside by the men. And of the men who survived, the overwhelming majority were crew.
"Vanity, vanity, all is vanity, saith the preacher, and there is nothing new under the Sun."
Posted by: Hale Adams at January 20, 2012 9:43 PMNever underestimate the feral desire to survive at any cost.
Posted by: Peccable at January 21, 2012 3:14 AMSteyn is a decent and entertaining writer but his relentless harping on about the demise of the west and its values is becoming tedious.There are still plenty of decent people who work hard and who contribute to the wealth and knowledge base of the world as a whole, why reinforce the beliefs of our enemies that view us as finished and decadent?
Posted by: Thud at January 21, 2012 8:11 AMIf and when it all comes crashing down, let this be the epitaph for feminism
"They won the vote, but lost the boat"
Posted by: Callmelennie at January 21, 2012 8:50 AM1) Two wrongs do not make a right.
2) Fear is not the absence of fear, but rather the judgement that something else is more important than fear.
3) The worst part of living through the decline of a great civilization is knowing that you are.
Besides, if we can convince everyone that dishonoring one's self is the norm, it doesn't look so bad when we do it too. Sad.
Posted by: Snackeater at January 21, 2012 9:11 AM"Never underestimate the feral desire to survive at any cost."
A capable Captain and crew should be professionals at marshaling the passengers. Loss of control or outright cowardice in an emergency by the crew is fuel for this "feral" response. A.K.A. panic.
It's good to see Mr Steyn reference the "Birkenhead Drill". I have not read any reference to HMS Birkenhead in American Media about this event, only in UK souces.
Posted by: Firecapt at January 21, 2012 10:14 AMLate in his life, Sir Winston took a cruise on an Italian ship. A journalist from a New York newspaper approached the former prime minister to ask him why he choose to travel on an Italian line when the Queen Elizabeth under British flag was available.
Churchill gave the question his consideration and the gravely replied:
"There are three things I like about Italian ships. First, their cuisine, which is unsurpassed. Second, their service, which is quite superb. And then -- in time of emergency -- there is none of this nonsense about women and children first".
"The Wit and Wisdom of Winston Churchill: A Treasury of More than 1000 Quotations" By James C. Humes, Harper Perennial (1995), Chapter 5 -- Escapades and Encounters, Page 209
Posted by: Fat Man at January 21, 2012 10:16 AMFirecapt---as an American, one aspect of this discussion is very disturbing to me: Titanic and Birkenhead were both British, while the Arctic was American. Not quite sure what to make of that but judging from some of the other comments posted here, maybe I shouldn't be that surprised.
Posted by: Snackeater at January 21, 2012 1:04 PMLate in his life, Sir Winston took a cruise on an Italian ship. A journalist from a New York newspaper approached the former prime minister to ask him why he choose to travel on an Italian line when the Queen Elizabeth under British flag was available.
Churchill gave the question his consideration and the gravely replied:
"There are three things I like about Italian ships. First, their cuisine, which is unsurpassed. Second, their service, which is quite superb. And then -- in time of emergency -- there is none of this nonsense about women and children first".
"The Wit and Wisdom of Winston Churchill: A Treasury of More than 1000 Quotations" By James C. Humes, Harper Perennial (1995), Chapter 5 -- Escapades and Encounters, Page 209
Posted by: Fat Man at January 21, 2012 6:05 PMWhere have all the adults gone?
Posted by: pdwalker at January 24, 2012 8:35 AM"It is impossible to speak in such a way that you cannot be misunderstood." -- Karl Popper N.B.: Comments are moderated to combat spam and may not appear immediately. Comments that exceed the obscenity or stupidity limits will be either edited or expunged.
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