Why The US Merchant Marine Is Failing

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You are welcome. Please enjoy the Persimmons.

If you find anything i said that is not true, factual or downright lies, please let me know and I will admit and correct it.(If YOU are tight, that is)

With brotherly love from a fellow “official gCaptain dunce”

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You’re not a dunce yet just in the running.

And just because it’s true doesn’t mean it’s on-topic and helps promote the specific conversation that is being discussed. It’s certainly true that Kim Kardashian is married to Kayne West but WTF does that have to do with MARAD??

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110

Stop derailing threads…your commentary is not germane to the topic

Just for once sit on the sideline with you huge bazoo in silence mode

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111

Sorry, I posted my reply today (Sunday, 6/03/2018) without first checking for earlier posts. If you wish to move that reply to this thread, I agree entirely.

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I just checked and ALL my post here in this thread have been in direct reply to things posted by others.

PS> Who the hell are these two people you mentioned and what is their relevance??

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It’s our old friend argumento, for the sake of argument.

The question is (my understanding) “why isn’t U.S. maritime policy more effective”. Your augment is that you don’t agree with U.S. maritime policy, which is fine, but when it’s every other post in this thread it makes it difficult to follow arguments that are on topic.

Start a new thread.

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116

Sorry, wrong. Moved

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What does this have to do with marad?

119

You mean ME, a non-American??
Maybe better YOU do the heavy lifting.

120

Believe me I’m trying to… except you keep bringing irrelevant information into the thread.

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122

I replied to a direct question.
You have the ability to split the thread if you don’t like the way it is developing.

127

How about I just delete them.

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128

I’m not sure where that came from…I don’t believe I’ve every said or implied anything of that sort on here (mostly because I’ve had no reason to believe that it’s true).

As far as the rest of the goals of unseating Kongsberg and Maersk and other industry leaders, I think those are certainly worthy goals, just not at the point where we are right now. Kind of like focusing on which chandelier to buy when the house’s foundation is cracked and falling apart. My belief is that we need to focus on revamping our shipbuilding capacity and job base before pursuing those lofty goals.

If your position is that we will never be able to bring back shipbuilding and/or increase the job base due to lower cost options overseas and thus should shift our focus, that’s fine and I’d say you’re right based on the current (lack of) regulations to support it.

129

Come on now…a little bit of comparing apples and oranges here aren’t we? A highly cyclical market like drillships vs. trying to get jobs on containerships trading worldwide isn’t quite a valid comparison. Plus, Americans were able to get those drillship jobs without doubling KP’s budget, so once again, how does that further your point?

Actually this brings up an interesting point…why did the drill companies hire Americans at very high wages during that time when they could have gotten much cheaper options from other countries?

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Amen to that. That is why I advocate that ANY increase in the budget that MARAD can squeeze out should go towards that mission statement and not to KP.

131

let’s try again here

this what I believe MarAd should do in the next two years if it really wants to see positive change come to the industry

  1. directly solicit all stakeholders not for regulations that should be “streamlined” but instead ask how the Merchant Marine Act of 1936 should be rewritten for 2020. I believe it is abundantly clear that the maritime world today hardly resembles the maritime world of 8 decades ago. The new Act should include in word of law MarAd’s total budget cannot be greater than the money appropriated for the MSP
  2. if MarAd is gutsy they can also solicit all stakeholders for opinions on the Jones Act as well including the part which makes all seaman wards of the Federal courts.
  3. MarAd needs to open discussions with the large offshore companies in the GoM to see how they (MarAd) can get involved in fully Americanizing the industry there.
  4. explore changing the current and no longer functioning program at the USMMA to make it a Center for Maritime Studies and Technology Research in addition to a much smaller training program which will need to focus on a highly technical education for all students where all will graduate with an engineering degree. Make all students serve 4 years active duty in the military after graduating or 8 years with MSC (yes KP grads will get all hiring preference at MSC over State school grads and basically be guaranteed a job with them after graduation. Most all KP cadet time should be on MSC ships. State school students will get preference to cadet ship in the commercial fleet.
  5. get more professionals from within the industry involved with policy making. the Administrator should get out to sit down and talk with actively working mariners or at least solicit their views and bring those with the most valuable insight to Washington to meet with him. I would be happy to myself if he would invite me to come.
  6. find out every member of Congress who does give two shits about the Merchant Marine and Maritime industry in the US and get them into a Congressional Maritime Coalition. MarAd then needs to work with the Coalition to craft new legislation to bring the US industry up to the same standards of the remainder of the planet. Maybe after that happens, the US can be a leader again instead of a back of the pack follower.
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in the GoM at least the drilling companies are required by the OCSLA to hire American mariners and drilling hands (and stewards too)

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Why don’t you??

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Personally, I think you should be banned. The trolling you continually engage negates your wealth of valuable knowledge. You could be such an asset to the forum save for your penchant for patronizing commentary in a part of the world you have never lived or worked in (the U.S.) You beat this horse so much there are not even bones left.

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So are you speaking with Admiral Busby today John? We are very anxious here to learn what he tells you.