Video and audio Surveillance on board New Coast Guard Policy 23-05

No. I’m the US right now the ones trending towards “authoritarian, despotic, totalitarians” are also the ones opposed to political correctness and egalitarianism.

Yuuup.

Random drug and alcohol tests are conducted in Australia and New Zealand.

1 Like

Cruise ships have had cameras all over the place, including crew areas, for years. Nobody squaks about that, but put them on a tanker or container ship and people want to get upset about it? Get bent.

3 Likes

I think it would be more accurate to say the CG was mandated under the provisions of the James M. Inhofe National Defense Authorization Act (H.R. 7776)

1 Like

It’s not a CG Rule, it’s a law codified in the US Code (46 USC 4901) and it applies to US Documented vessels, so no, all ships visiting US ports will not have to comply.

I’ve yet to be on a ship where the equipment raped someone…assaulted perhaps, mentally confounded maybe.

The only problem I see with more cameras is the hassle of installing them and maintaining yet another piece of IT equipment with a short end-of-support lifespan.

I worked on worked on one of those drillships John was likely referencing, that installed hallway cameras quite a few years back after being mandated by the lawyers following a crewmember’s lawsuit, then it went fleet wide. I don’t recall anyone feeling it was totalitarian, its a freakin security camera. Except in this case now, by law, it can only be accessed for use in a criminal or civil action. So I really don’t understand the view that this is some massive invasion of privacy.

2 Likes

There is one MLL ship aboard which the master records and saves footage from the bridge to his cabin and even reviews what’s happening aboard ship from home when he’s on vacation — it’s his own camera system, not company ordered.

On top of being a fucking loser I’d also chalk that up as kind of creepy.

Cameras recording in passageways and common spaces though? Doesn’t bother me. If you have nothing to hide it’s a great countermeasure against people who would attempt to weaponize false accusations for personal gain or revenge — or just to cover your ass if others choose to play stupid games off watch that you want no part of.

Yes You are right. As per below attachments and underlined in red ink

ACP( alternative compliance program ) does not apply to foreign flagged vessels but surely will apply to foreign owners like Mearsk and Happag LLoyd having their vessel flagged in US . But I may be wrong of course.

Foreign Flags including FOC and owners are always on alert as to what shit is originating from Port States especially like US and are not so interested in who is the controlling mind but who is the EXECUTIONER and who will milk them with financial penalties and other restrictive measures.

What shocked me a bit is the item regarding KEYS CONTROL what was part of ISPS regime , which also originated in US and was imposed forcefully on the whole world wide fleet. We had ( foreign flags) Key management plans since the inception of the ISPS and it was an item checked during inspections and audits.

But it confirms again the double standards CG has for US flag and foreign flags , what was conspicuously revealed after EL Faro tragedy and confirmed during inspections, when USCG was asked about the onerous and more then frequent inspections . The answer always was : you have been randomly selected for our training purposes.

And on the question why , well maintained and spick and span foreign flagged vsls are under such carefull scrutiny and US flagged ( photographed as evidence) look like shit the answer always was : US ships are done by the " OTHER DEPARTMENT"

Anyway USCG is doing an excellent job and were always my good friends and helped me a lot in kicking some bad ass owners from so called " cover up and pathological cultures" . They never ever failed me . And what I appreciated most is that even if I arrived on really shitty vessel , they always appreciated a positive attitude and efforts to make it better by master and crew , giving us clean bill of health and discussing in privacy of my office the list of items they expected me to improve untill next visit. That means a lot.

CVC-PL-23-05-Surveillance.pdf (290.1 KB)

MA_120123_USCG_Policy_Letters_Combating_Sexual_Assault_Harrassment_Maritime_Industry.pdf (154.3 KB)

Cheers my Dear Chief Engineer.

1 Like

George Orwell wrote both Animal farm and 1984
Animal farm was about an animal led revolution on a farm and its evolution into a totalitarian state run by the Pigs
Hence the term “Pigs” as opressors was added to popular vocab.

1984 was set in a totalitarian state run by “Ingsoc”, Orwells take on “English Socialism”, it introduced the idea of continuous propaganda and re-education and monitouring via a tv screen in every dwelling. This indroduced the character of “Big Brother” which also entered popular vocab. The ideas of “The Anti-sex League” and “Thought Crime” were also introduced in this novel.

Brave New World written by Aldous Huxley presented a totally controlled birth to death dystopia as viewed by The Savage who originated from outside the system. Eugenics, pre-birth manipulation and a population sedated to maintain compliance were themes in this book.

State control, manipulation, surveillence and ultimately the destruction of the individual for the benefit of the State, are major themes in all of these books.

Interestingly, Orwell himself had socialist leanings but saw the worlds socialist states at the time collapsing into totalitarian regimes.

2 Likes

Yep, you are. Don’t let that stop you though.

1 Like

OK then. So pls be so kind and tell me why , as we learn as we go and it is never too late to learn sth.

I know from other thread you are doing internal audits and was considering asking you some questions regarding lenght of prep work before audit but since you were so kind to spell your opinion i am all ears and would be only happy if You care to explore.

Thank you to you and @tugsailor… the misattributions and comparisons by everyone else were starting to raise my blood pressure there.

3 Likes

I got Brave New World confabulated with 1984. It’s been a long time since I’ve read them. Time to do it again. They are as relevant today as they were in the 1930’s and 40s, maybe more so.

2 Likes

Getting Brave New World mixed up with ‘1984’ makes more sense than confusing ‘1984’ with ‘Animal Farm’, which is what I did.

Anyway, in '1984 the protagonist, Winston Smith interacts with the state through a ‘telescreen’.

The telescreen in the novel serves as a two-way communication device. It not only broadcasts propaganda and party messages but also allows the Party to monitor the actions and even the facial expressions of citizens constantly. This surveillance is a key element in the Party’s control over the population, as it creates a sense of constant observation and enforces conformity and loyalty to the Party. The telescreen is a symbol of the intrusive power of the state in the lives of individuals in the dystopian society depicted in ‘1984.’

2 Likes

This is it. As a master of a vessel I have no issues with cameras recording in passageways and common spaces. On my vessel every crew member has their own stateroom, and we have instituted the master key controls. I never want to be in that situation where someone did something stupid, harmful, illegal for whatever reason, and saying in hindsight gee maybe we should have done a better job of protecting the crew we are responsible for.

11 Likes

You are waisting your time . Read carefully :

Do You honestly think, that an animal born in the cage or zoo knows or is longing for the smell of the jungle or savannah . ?

Forget about it , they will never understand those who lived in the cage and were released into the wild. Never ever.

2 Likes

I know that feeling! When I was working off-shore aboard a 100 ft (30 meters) tug, with 5 crew members. Working and standing watch aboard that tug I felt like a panther, stealthy, moving unobserved through the jungle in search of my prey! :face_with_diagonal_mouth:

1 Like

So what youre saying is, younger folks would never understand because we never experienced unrestricted degenerete behavior onboard? Im perfectly content runbbing one out in my bunk. No need to do that in the hallway to feel free.

4 Likes

Negative . That is not what I am saying .

In order to understand what I am saying one needs to have 30 years experience of living in a totalitarian regime behind the Iron Curtain. And because we have totally diferent experiences, what is rather obvious we have different point of views on surveilance.

So we need to " tune", adjust “gain” and " Sea/rain clutter " manually in order to fine tune and have a clear picture, because in my opinion ( it is my OPINION!!!,), You have your radar on 'AUTO", as most young people do irrespective of nationality. Trust yiou feel comfortable with my references to radar, as what I gather from your posts you are an “ECDIS” ace.

So to clarify I am not saying cameras are not needed. What I am saying is that placing them in alleyways is a pure NONSENSE.

i have explained in detail why , in a bit sarcastic way and my post was removed and wisely so , as I set a trap for moderators in order to verify if they are not discriminating some members, allowing others to trade abuse and insults with impunity . They passed the test and performed excellently.

If I was a decision maker in US ( and consider yourself very lucky I am not) i would strongly advocate cameras , but not in the alleyways but in the cabins if the PURPOSE of such cameras is to help establish beyond reasonable doubt criminal liability of the predators.

And this process is not a walk in the park as some may think it is.

I may be willing to continue , but I need to stop as some audience may find it exhausting to scroll long inputs on their Iphones and get irritated instead of interested , and flag me with great fury and passion. So my effort will be wasted.

Meantime pls open the link below and read it carefully keeping in mind that there is always a flipside to every coin and accept the fact , that when you look at something long enough , there is always something to be seen and not everything is, what it seems.

CAMERAS EVERYWHERE: Examining the Conflict Between Technology and Human Rights - All Together (swe.org)

1 Like

Many people in this thread telling on themselves with their over-the-top persecution fetish reaction to the thought of having hard evidence of their behavior onboard. More than a little bit hilarious for anyone to feel like a camera in a public hallway (to help mariners feel safe from sexual predators, no less) is somehow comparable to a dystopian surveillance state. Lets get you to bed, grandpa.

5 Likes

I disagree with many trying to downplay this. It’s another knee-jerk reaction to an issue.
But hear me out…

I have heard about this for a while in the form of cameras outside cadet rooms. I think that would be a step in the right direction. It would alleviate many crew concerns in any dealings with cadets.

Currently, any cadet, especially FEMALE, are treated as a leper. It is not the right atmosphere or experience for them and creates a high-anxiety environment for all involved. This is the unfortunate truth today.

You may disagree, but this is my experience. I have had upwards of 30+ cadets on vessels.

Video surveillance in the working spaces is one thing, but in the accommodations is another. There needs to be a balance.