this post was submitted on 21 Jun 2023

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The Guardian view on danger at sea: The contrast between the frantic hunt for a missing submersible and the failure to save migrants drowning in the Mediterranean is illuminating (www.theguardian.com)

submitted 1 year ago by alyaza@beehaw.org to c/news@beehaw.org

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A massive operation is under way to find and save a stricken vessel and its passengers. As time passes, anxious families and friends wait with growing fear. The US coastguard, Canadian armed forces and commercial vessels are all hunting for the Titan submersible, which has gone missing with five aboard on a dive to the wreck of the Titanic in the north Atlantic. The UK’s Ministry of Defence is also monitoring the situation.

It is hard to think of a starker contrast with the response to a fishing boat which sank in the Mediterranean last week with an estimated 750 people, including children, packed onboard. Only about 100 survived, making this one of the deadliest disasters in the Mediterranean. Greece and the EU blame people smugglers, who overcrowd boats and abuse those aboard them. But both have profound questions to answer about their own role in such disasters. Activists say authorities were repeatedly warned of the danger this boat faced, hours before it went down, but failed to act.

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[–] someguy3@lemmy.ca 5 points 1 year ago (11 children)

One's legal and one's illegal?

[–] alyaza@beehaw.org 53 points 1 year ago (2 children)

i fail to see why one being legal and one being illegal[^1] should have any bearing on the response or treating the people with basic human dignity. committing a crime also does not make one worthy of death--and especially not when that crime is one without a victim like illegal immigration.

[^1]: and i don't think the latter should be illegal (certainly not meaningfully so), to be clear. i am morally opposed to the idea of hard borders.

[–] Scribbd@feddit.nl 14 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (1 children)

I agree with you. And I do understand why, and I don't like it:

I think it is more about the profile of the people in need.

Wasn't there a billionaire on board of that vessel? Their family probably got some influence to force this massive operation. And we idolize these big money havers.

And what money do the immigrants have? It is an ongoing issue for the EU (as an example). It looks like the EU doesn't even want these people. Sure, they begrudgingly accept people, when they arrive. Sure there is an effort to safe them... But if some are lost on the way. Less mouth to feed.

Once again: my pessimistic observations. Personally, I feel ashamed of this whole thing.

[–] cnnrduncan@beehaw.org 13 points 1 year ago

The Titan sub has a dude who went to space with the Amazon guy along with two members of one of Pakistan's richest families who are heavily involved in a petrochemical company.

[–] kool_newt@beehaw.org 2 points 1 year ago

Fucking agree so hard.

[–] ag_roberston_author@beehaw.org 25 points 1 year ago

It's not illegal to seek asylum.

[–] ptz@dubvee.org 21 points 1 year ago

I think you mean one is full of rich people the other not.

[–] QHC@kbin.social 16 points 1 year ago (1 children)

What law did the migrants break?

Does the Coast Guard do a thorough investigation of anyone that is in need of their services and establish everyone is innocent of any potential crime before rescuing people

[–] cykablyatbot@lemmy.fmhy.ml 2 points 1 year ago (2 children)

The US Coast Guard doesn't do a whole lot in the Mediterranean.

[–] slouchy@beehaw.org 4 points 1 year ago

They never said "US". Other countries have Coast Guards too.

[–] wackyusername@kbin.social 4 points 1 year ago

The US isn't the only country with a Coast Guard.

[–] kindenough@kbin.social 16 points 1 year ago

Is it really a crime to be human based on geo location and net worth? To me it doesn't make any sense.

[–] burningmatches 15 points 1 year ago

How can a human be illegal? And which law governs the Titanic sub’s operation?

[–] lysy@szmer.info 14 points 1 year ago (2 children)

The Earth belongs to every being. No one is illegal anywhere here.

[–] kool_newt@beehaw.org 8 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

Beau (of the fifth column) has a cool shirt that says something like "Beyond these borders do not lie a lesser people."

[–] kool_newt@beehaw.org 13 points 1 year ago

People aren't illegal.

[–] azureeight@beehaw.org 12 points 1 year ago

So you should just be left to die if you get shot while committing a crime?

[–] insomniac_lemon@kbin.social 8 points 1 year ago

The submarine venture may have been legal on paper but they definitely committed some crimes, at very least negligence. $250K ticket price is a giant red flag and if it's allowed at all it should increase their liability, with the talk of the ignored concerns it sounds like an outright grift.

[–] keeb420@kbin.social 6 points 1 year ago

Regardless people deserve to be rescued if possible.