MLLG

Titanic Myths

Setting the record straight

Titanic Myths

GEORGE NOGA – APR 16, 2023

Although Titanic sank 111 years ago yesterday, many Promethean myths (Prometheus was a Titan) reverberate even today. Most accounts (especially the DiCaprio film) are ignorant, dishonest and politically motivated. This post sets the record straight.

Myth: Capitalism (Greed) Caused the Loss of Life

The PC narrative is White Star Lines (WSL) did not have enough lifeboats due to greed (cost) or aesthetics. The real blame lies with inept government regulation by the British Board of Trade (BOT). The designer, builder and WSL all deferred to the BOT about the number of lifeboats, as it was the unchallenged authority. However, BOT regulations were 20 years old and enacted when 10,000 tons and 20 lifeboats was the norm; Titanic was 46,238 tons. Bureaucrats were rewarded for issuing new regulations, not updating old ones. No one challenged the BOT. Once government becomes involved, common sense and personal responsibility disappear.

Myth: First Class Passengers Got Preferential Treatment

Dissecting the data, 74% of women and 20% of men survived. However, 44% of first class passengers were women versus 23% third class. When adjusting for gender, the survival rates between first and third class were about the same. A third class female was 41% more likely to survive than a first class male. Third class passengers were more reluctant to leave the ship and part with baggage; also, their location aboard ship made survival more problematic. When third class passengers reached the boat deck, they were accorded the same treatment as all others. Survival was not about class; it was about women and children – nearly all of whom were saved.

Myth: Male aggression Hurt Survival of Women and Children

The number of men who survived is cited as evidence of male aggression. There was lifeboat capacity for all women and children and 550 men. There were many more men than women on board. If one man were loaded onto a lifeboat for each woman and child, all women and children would have been saved. Moreover, lifeboats would have been loaded quicker and with less fear, keeping families together and saving more lives. Male behavior, far from being aggressive, resulted in more than 200 fewer men surviving than should have been the case.

Myth: The Media – Then and Now – Fairly Report the Facts

Most contemporaneous media accounts were tainted by laziness, i.e. the failure to properly understand the data. Present day media stories hew to a politically correct narrative of blaming capitalism, greed, class warfare and male aggression for the calamity. The movie Titanic falsely depicted third class passengers forcibly barricaded to keep them from reaching lifeboats. Nor was anyone shot. The crew and passengers were stereotyped in the worst possible way, despite acting heroically and fearlessly in the fact of near-certain death. Note: Fox (which made the movie) has since apologized to families of those falsely portrayed in the movie.

Enduring Lessons of Titanic

First and Foremost, the Titanic disaster was a failure of government, not of capitalism. The media are feckless and lazy; it is far easier and more dramatic to blame the ship’s designer, builder and owner rather than an amorphous, faceless gaggle of bureaucrats. Nearly without exception, the media falsely portrays a politically correct narrative that blames capitalism, class warfare and toxic masculinity.

Source Note: Data for survival rates were taken from the formal investigation conducted by the British government as reported on several websites.

© 2023 George Noga
More Liberty – Less Government, Post Office Box 916381
Longwood, FL 32791-6381, Email: mllg@cfl.rr.com

Titanic Myths – 105 Years Afterward

An iceberg caused the Titanic to sink but not the deaths of 1,513 people. For 105 years we have gotten it wrong; this post shatters Titanic myths. 
Titanic Myths – 105 Years Afterward
By: George Noga – April 16, 2017
     Yesterday marked the 105th anniversary of the sinking of the Titanic. In addition to being an enduring and compelling human interest saga, it continues to yield lessons that resonate today. This post debunks the five biggest myths surrounding Titanic.
1. Capitalism (greed) caused the loss of life. No one died when Titanic hit the iceberg; the deaths occurred much later when the ship sank. The media blame White Star Lines for not having enough lifeboats – either because of added cost or aesthetics. The real blame was inept (government) regulation by the British Board of Trade (“BOT”) that regulated shipping. The designer, builder, and White Star all deferred to the BOT about the number of lifeboats as the BOT was the unchallenged authority.
     BOT regulations were enacted 20 years previously when 10,000 tons was the norm and 20 lifeboats adequate; Titanic was 46,238 tons. Regulations had not been updated because government was lazy, inept and rewarded for issuing new regulations and not updating old ones. Once government becomes involved, common sense and personal responsibility disappear; hence, no one seriously questioned the BOT regulations.
2. First class passengers received preferential treatment. When dissecting the data, we find 74% of women and 20% of men survived. However, 44% of first class passengers were women versus 23% third class. After adjusting for gender, it is incandescently obvious the survival rates were about the same between first and third class. A third class female was 41% more likely to survive than a first class male. Also, third class passengers were more reluctant to leave the ship and part with baggage. Survival was not about class; it was about gender and children, nearly all of whom were saved.
3. Male aggression impacted survival of women and children. The number of men who survived is cited as evidence of male aggression. There was lifeboat capacity for all women and children and 550 men. There were many more men than women on board. If the crew had loaded one man for each woman and child, all women and children would have been saved. Moreover, lifeboats would have been loaded quicker, with less fear, keeping families together and saving more lives. Male behavior, far from being aggressive, resulted in 200+ fewer men surviving than should have been the case.
4. The Media fairly report the facts. Most media accounts (then and now) are ignorant and/or dishonest. The DiCaprio film in particular contains egregious errors. It depicts third class passengers forcibly barricaded to keep them from reaching lifeboats; that didn’t happen. Nor was anyone shot. The crew and passengers are stereotyped in the worst possible way despite acting heroically and fearlessly in the face of certain death.
Note: Fox has since apologized to families of those falsely portrayed in the movie.
 
5. There is no taint of political correctness. Au contraire. Titanic is rife with PC. Capitalism is hammered with greed, hubris and indifference to human life while government is unscathed. First class passengers are portrayed in a demeaning manner while others are elevated in dazzling displays of class warfare. Males are bashed.
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    Titanic’s unnecessary loss of life was a failure of government regulation, not of capitalism. It is easier to blame prominent individuals such as the ship’s designer, builder and owner rather than amorphous bureaucrats. The media still get it wrong after 105 years; they return to their leitmotif of shamelessly flogging politically correct class warfare, assaults on masculinity and, their favorite whipping boy, capitalism.
     The enduring lesson of Titanic is not to repose trust in government or media. The damage government can wreak in an age of terrorism and with North Korea, Pakistan and (soon) Iran as nuclear powers is exponentially worse. Instead of 1,513 deaths on Titanic, the toll could be unspeakable. Oppenheimer’s words (from the Gita) upon the first successful nuclear test are poignant: “I am become death, the destroyer of worlds”.

The next post April 23rd contains a collection of MLLG short takes

Titanic Myths Debunked

Sinking Was 102 Years Ago Today
By George Noga – April 15, 2014
       Although Titanic sank 102 years ago today, many myths survive intact. Everyone knows the impact with the iceberg sank the ship, but that was not the cause of the death of 1,513 souls. Books and movies (including the DiCaprio film) lay blame on the greedy capitalism of White Star Lines for not having enough life boats. This is myth. Another myth is that first class passengers received preferential treatment resulting in a much higher survival rate than for lower class passengers. Finally, was male aggression truly responsible for throwing women and children under the bus – – err, boat?

Myth #1: Capitalism and Greed Caused the Loss of Life

       No one died when Titanic hit the iceberg; the deaths occurred much later when the ship sank. Historically, most have faulted White Star Lines for not having enough lifeboats – either because of their added cost or objections to their aesthetics. These accounts are either lazy, ignorant, dishonest or politically correct. The real cause was inept (is there another kind) government regulation by the British Board of Trade (“BOT”) that regulated shipping. The designer (Andrews), the builder (Carlisle) and White Star (Ismay) all deferred  to the BOT on the decision about the number of lifeboats. No one questioned the government; after all, they were the unchallenged responsible authority.

         The BOT had not updated its regulations in 20 years. Its regulations were promulgated at a time when 10,000 metric tonnes was the norm and 20 lifeboats were adequate. That Titanic was 46,328 tonnes did not seem to occur to government. Nothing much has changed in 102 years regarding government regulation – except that we perhaps understand its pathology much better – thanks in part to public choice economics which teaches us:

  • Once government becomes involved, common sense and personal responsibility disappear and everything focuses strictly on regulatory compliance.
  • Regulated entities (White Star) as well as the ship’s designer and builder are conditioned to comply with the diktats of rules and regulations and not with their goal or intent.
  • Government bureaucrats are lazy and inept. They prefer new regulations to updating existing ones. There is little glamour or political benefit in simply maintaining existing regulations.

Myth #2: First Class Passengers were accorded Preferential Treatment

       Most Titanic stories flog the class stratification issue; this is a myth as well. In fact, the difference between first class and third class survival rates was slight. Anyone with basic numeration skills and a modicum of analytic ability can quickly cut through the numbers. The relevant fact is that 74% of women survived and only 20% of men. However, 44% of first class passengers were women compared to 23% for third class. After making the appropriate adjustment to account for that difference, it is incandescently obvious the variation in first versus third class survival rates virtually disappears.
         Moreover, the slight remaining difference in class survival rates is attributable to third class passengers’ greater reluctance to leave the ship, to part with their baggage and difficulty related to their location aboard ship. When third class passengers reached the boat deck they received the same treatment as anyone else.

Myth #3: Male Aggression was a Key Factor in Male Survival

      The number of men who survived via the lifeboats usually is portrayed as evidence of male aggression and as coming at the expense of women and children. But the facts are stubborn. There was enough lifeboat capacity to save all women, children and 550 men. Remember, there were far more men than women on board. Indeed, if the crew had loaded one man for each woman and child, all women and children could have been saved. Furthermore, this would have resulted in loading the boats more rapidly, reducing the fear level, keeping families together and ultimately saving many more lives. Far from being villainous, male behavior resulted in far fewer men surviving than should have been the case.

Lessons of Titanic

       The Titanic’s loss of life was, first and foremost, a failure of government, not capitalism. It is far easier to place blame on prominent individuals such as the ship’s designer, builder and owner rather than on an amorphous, faceless gaggle of bureaucrats. The enduring lesson of Titanic, just as in most disasters, is not to place faith in government.
       Another lesson is not to repose trust in the media; 102 years later they still get the story all wrong. They continue to portray the loss of life as caused by capitalism, greed and hubris. They also continue to shamelessly flog class warfare and to bash males – all politically correct story lines.
       The death toll of 1,513 was tragic. Today however, government is creating disasters affecting hundreds of millions and perhaps billions of people. Government run amok is bankrupting our nation of 313 million and also much of Europe. Government fecklessness has placed the entire world at grave risk by appeasing aggression by Russia, Syria and Iran and encouraging tyrants everywhere. As always, the state sycophant media is  government’s handmaiden. The only thing that has changed in 102 years is that the grave harm government causes now affects exponentially more of us.