Something for the campaign.... Experience V Judgemrnt
Titanic's Captain Edward John Smith had forty years of experence, but under pressure lacked the judgement to steer a safe course.
"Experience alone is no insurance that the right decisions will be made.... see quote below:
"When anyone asks me how I can best describe my experience in nearly forty years at sea, I merely say, uneventful. Of course there have been winter gales, and storms and fog and the like. But in all my experience, I have never been in any accident ... or any sort worth speaking about. I have seen but one vessel in distress in all my years at sea. I never saw a wreck and never have been wrecked nor was I ever in any predicament that threatened to end in disaster of any sort."(Quote by: Edward John Smith, 1907, Captain of the RMS Titanic)
The British and American press portrayed Captain Smith's conduct as heroic and self-sacrificing. In the past few years, questions have been raised about his ability and judgement. It is after the collision that Smith's behavior and decision making became questionable. For the next two hours and twenty minutes, he would only be a shadow of his former self. He isolated himself on the bridge, failing to pass on critical information to his Senior Officers and Senior Seamen, acting and reacting slowly to reports and rapidly changing circumstances, and giving half hearted orders, some of which the crew would openly defy.
Google - Captain Smith.
Comments are closed for this post.
