I AM ALL IN. I am only one man and not a man of great means but I will take up the battle standard if others are willing to organize.
[QUOTE=Kennebec Captain;167614]It’s hard for joe nobody to get heard. However even a small advocacy group multiples your voice. If even four people can agree on an issue and take action that is more then four times more powerful than four like-minded individuals writing letters or whatever on their own. With a group there is a presumption of some expertise in the matter.
I’m no expert but I’d start with one or two like-minded individuals with a facebook page or the like. Nothing to lose really by trying.[/QUOTE]
No need for a Facebook page. This topic has been covered many times right here on this forum. I am sure Jon will give you the number of hits this website gets each day, month or year. You can also look this up yourself. This kind of exposure matters to political animals. Send an email to your congress critter and link to the threads or send them a letter and send them the links. Put your own two cents worth in and see what happens.
If you send them a bribe…’'campaign contribution" you will get a quicker answer from a higher level staff person but even without that you should get some response.
[QUOTE=tengineer1;167618]No need for a Facebook page. This topic has been covered many times right here on this forum. I am sure Jon will give you the number of hits this website gets each day, month or year. You can also look this up yourself. This kind of exposure matters to political animals. Send an email to your congress critter and link to the threads or send them a letter and send them the links. Put your own two cents worth in and see what happens.
If you send them a bribe…’'campaign contribution" you will get a quicker answer from a higher level staff person but even without that you should get some response.[/QUOTE]
Nothing within reason is going to hurt.
[QUOTE=Kennebec Captain;167616]The internet and social media make it easier for small, specific, single issue groups to form, change, dissolve, re-form etc.[/QUOTE]
but you need a leader to be the face and voice of the effected mariners and that calls for a man with impeccable stature and media access. John has all this and more. I will serve as his chief of staff, speechwriter and hired goon if needed.
[QUOTE=tengineer1;167603]If the DPO or marine manager for Vantage is not a USA citizen then they would naturally have no problem filling positions with non USA citizens.
Like many other drilling companies I doubt Vantage is a USA incorporated company anyway. Probably Bermuda or Cayman Islands. Transocean was famously Swiss for awhile but perhaps they moved to the City of London which is not to be confused with the UK or England. The only people that could force this issue is the USCG who winks, nods and says “we’re on it.” Try complaining to your senator and see how much they care or do about the situation. You’ll get a nice letter back saying they will look into to or they support the US merchant mariner or some BS but no investigation will be launched or hearing held. They have been bribed…er got campaign contributions. The GOM merchant mariner has no lobby and the OMSA is not going to push too much lest they bite the hand that feeds them. Unions which have a bit of a lobby though probably not enough to make a difference are not allowed in the GOM therefore GOM mariners’ concerns are of little consequence.[/QUOTE]
My statement was a rebuttal to someone else complaining about this situation.
I’m not complaining, just relaying specific information on the current situation. Admittedly, I look at the whole thing with a tinge of schadenfreude.
[QUOTE=c.captain;167621]but you need a leader to be the face and voice of the effected mariners and that calls for a man with impeccable stature and media access. John has all this and more. I will serve as his chief of staff, speechwriter and hired goon if needed.[/QUOTE]
People confuse the elements of a thing for the thing itself. For example, we misunderstood the nature of a taxi cab company. We all thought it was a company that owned, drove, maintained and dispatched cars. Turns out that was not true, the essence of a cab company was the phone number in the Yellow Pages for the dispatcher who had access to the radio system to contact the drivers. That all changed with smart phones. Turns out that lots of people with time on their hands own and can drive working cars. We did not understand what the essence of a cab company was. It wasn’t drivers and cars, it was the dispatch system.
In this case you need unemployed mariners that are qualified to take those jobs and are pissed off. If your plan needs John to do something already you’ve given yourself a difficult and unnecessary task. That of convincing someone else to do something for you.
Just as an example; a web page with a phone number or a link to gcaptain resumes. Call this number and you will be put in touch with a qualified mariner. Then it’s not a specific group of people and not even a cell phone, just an out of work mariner with a specific sim card.
That’s just an example, it really about leverage. What’s the most benefit for the least effort?
EDIT: people could post their resumes on gcaptain. I would just start with a facebook page. One proplem with using the forum is the names. ("hello, my name is bloodyshitcakes and I’m calling to…)
[QUOTE=Kennebec Captain;167627]That’s just an example, it really about leverage. What’s the most benefit for the least effort?[/QUOTE]
what are you proposing here? a means to make American mariners known to be available to client vessel owners? There are plenty of those sites. gCaptain and RigZone both have resume databases however these particular vessel owners do not have any incentive to hire American mariners for their vessels operating in the GoM if there is no demand for them to by the USCG and right now there isn’t.
or do you propose an association of US citizen mariners with leadership to lobby the Congress and USCG to enforce the statutes which demand US citizen mariners for vessels working in the GoM or to close the loopholes in the statutes which allow them to keep using foreign nationals in contravention to the intent of the law. This is what I want to see formed and implore John to be that leader we need. He has the venue to reach the mariners and the credibility to get their support. I would do it but I do not believe I have the “right stuff” to be that face although I could be a very valuable man behind the man offering advice, writing position papers and speeches and performing other support functions but we need a person who can get the support of the maximum number of stakeholders and get the pinheads in Washingtoon to be forced to hear us even as they try desperately not to.
John, please do this for all of us.
[QUOTE=c.captain;167630]what are you proposing here? a means to make American mariners known to be available to client vessel owners? There are plenty of those sites. gCaptain and RigZone both have resume databases however these particular vessel owners do not have any incentive to hire American mariners for their vessels operating in the GoM if there is no demand for them to by the USCG and right now there isn’t.
or do you propose an association of US citizen mariners with leadership to lobby the Congress and USCG to enforce the statutes which demand US citizen mariners for vessels working in the GoM or to close the loopholes in the statutes which allow them to keep using foreign nationals in contravention to the intent of the law. This is what I want to see formed and implore John to be that leader we need. He has the venue to reach the mariners and the credibility to get their support. I would do it but I do not believe I have the “right stuff” to be that face although I could be a very valuable man behind the man offering advice, writing position papers and speeches and performing other support functions but we need a person who can get the support of the maximum number of stakeholders and get the pinheads in Washingtoon to be forced to hear us even as they try desperately not to.
John, please do this for all of us.[/QUOTE]
After years of placating some sort of association, I have not seen or heard of anything substantive, and doubt there ever will be. Maybe John does not have the time.
[QUOTE=c.captain;167630]what are you proposing here? a means to make American mariners known to be available to client vessel owners? There are plenty of those sites. gCaptain and RigZone both have resume databases however these particular vessel owners do not have any incentive to hire American mariners for their vessels operating in the GoM if there is no demand for them to by the USCG and right now there isn’t.
or do you propose an association of US citizen mariners with leadership to lobby the Congress and USCG to enforce the statutes which demand US citizen mariners for vessels working in the GoM or to close the loopholes in the statutes which allow them to keep using foreign nationals in contravention to the intent of the law. This is what I want to see formed and implore John to be that leader we need. He has the venue to reach the mariners and the credibility to get their support. I would do it but I do not believe I have the “right stuff” to be that face although I could be a very valuable man behind the man offering advice, writing position papers and speeches and performing other support functions but we need a person who can get the support of the maximum number of stakeholders and get the pinheads in Washingtoon to be forced to hear us even as they try desperately not to.
John, please do this for all of us.[/QUOTE]
IF I was a motivated, laid-off Tranocean DPO (for example) and I was concerned that jobs that should by law go to Americans were going to foreign mariners I would seek like-minded individuals. Facebook is good becasue people use real names, it’s free and takes all of 30 secs.
The reason I mention the gcaptain resume site is in anticipation of the objection that no qualified mariners are available.
I don’t have a dog in this fight, people can do whatever they want.
The point is to do something, if it doesn’t work, try something else.
[QUOTE=anchorman;167633]After years of placating some sort of association, I have not seen or heard of anything substantive, and doubt there ever will be. Maybe John does not have the time.[/QUOTE]
I’ve exchanged a couple emails etc with John, he’s for sure an asset for mariners but the purpose of this site, I assume, is to make money.
An unemployed mariner with more time then money is going to have more motivation then anyone. If my hypothetical Transocean DPO goes back to work for Transocean someone else can become the spokesman. I’m just thowing shit out there, point is to be flexible , think about incentives etc.
[QUOTE=anchorman;167633]After years of placating some sort of association, I have not seen or heard of anything substantive, and doubt there ever will be. Maybe John does not have the time.[/QUOTE]
Placating? Who is placating any party here?
advocating for certain, but no placating. happening
My thought is that someones emails or calls their representative or senator and says I represent a group of concerned mariners (GCM). I have a list of available jobs and a list of qualified out of work mariners. Do you believe in putting unemployed people to work or is that a line of bullshit? Only say it nice.
It wouldn’t hurt if, when they google the name of your organization, something substantial looking come up.
For giggles, I am going to try it. It will at least let me know how much poo fits in a 4 pound bag, and get a response.
I know! Lets get Max Hardberger to do it…he knows everything!
.
He can captivate, bloviate and pontificate congress into submission with a philandering, pharsical, philibuster. If you can’t dazzle em with brilliance baffle em with bullshit.
[QUOTE=Fraqrat;167652]He can captivate, bloviate and pontificate congress into submission with a philandering, pharsical, philibuster. If you can’t dazzle em with brilliance baffle em with bullshit.[/QUOTE]
Max is a maritime troll that no one takes seriously except Max.
If everyone in the USA GOM would write their congress critter, send a link or two to the gCaptain forums expressing concerns of having foreigners in jobs meant for qualified USA mariners; then compared responses on this forum it would educate all of us.
I have done so, again.