Two years ago on this date, June 18, the OceanGate Titan submersible imploded in the North Atlantic Ocean. Th submersible was intended to take rich people on a trip to view the wreckage of the RMS Titanic. Except there was a huge problem – it wasn’t safe.
The implosion killed all five of its occupants including OceanGate co-founder and CEO Stockton Rush. The public’s response to the implosion was a lot different than what some people expected and for good reason. As horrible as it sounds, this could’ve very easily been avoided, just like the Titanic wreck itself. But while a lot of the people who died on the Titanic were just common regular folks, everyone in the Titan were wealthy.
They were also paying OceanGate a fee of $250,000. That’s more than what some double-income families make in one year. So, seeing some people spending money to take a trip to the wreckage where hundreds of people died doesn’t result in the best sympathy. To be honest, I think it’s morbid as it is to take a trip to Auschwitz or Alcatraz but some people do it.
Rush is the main focal point of both Implosion: The Titanic Sub Disaster and Titan: The OceanGate Submersible Disaster. Implosion is on Investigation Discovery and streaming on HBO Max and Titan is currently streaming on Netflix. Both docs portrays Rush as a narcissistic businessman who had two ways of doing things – his way or the highway.
Rush fired David Lochridge, who was the director of marine operations for OceanGate. Lochridge had questions about the carbon fibre hull of the submersible. It’s obvious from watching both documentaries OceanGate, like a lot of companies, hired qualified, skilled people but presented them with an ultimatum – either they find a way to do it the way the bosses want or they hit the road.
This comes as we hear reports of the problems with the Tesla Cybertruck and the Space-X rockets crashing. You also see parallels with Elizabeth Holmes and the Theranos blood testing machines. The saying is “Fake it until you make it,” but these businesspeople are just faking it to get the money and attention.
I’m no where near a claustrophobic as I know people who can’t even sleep in tents or have problems in elevators. But seeing the tight space of the submersible, I don’t think I would want to get in it, especially if it was going a mile deep into the ocean. The Titanic is located approximately 12,500 feet below sea level. That’s quite a deep level when it’s over two miles down under billions of gallons of water with a lot of pressure can be very dangerous.
Rush was a very arrogant man. But I think it’s telling of our American society believing that anyone who could be a rich business owner of a science-related company is a very intelligent person. That’s not the case. John Oliver made the argument on Last Week Tonight that people have built Elon Musk up as the real-life Tony Stark. Yet we know that’s not the case.
During the 2016 Presidential campaign, I had a lot of people argue that Donald Trump only had a few of his hundreds of businesses fail. But how the hell do you bankrupt a casino? You don’t have to have a degree from Harvard Business School to be a good business owner. I trust my auto mechanic more than I trust any Ivy League business grad. Why? Because my auto mechanic is honest. And he’s honest about what he can’t do. As frustrating at it might sound, you need a mechanic to look at your vehicle and tell you that it’s not something they can fix so you can seek other mechanics.
Rush like Holmes, Trump and so many others surrounded themselves with “Yes people” and when they couldn’t say “Yes,” they got the boot. Even Dr. Jeffrey Wigand, a biochemist, decided he enjoyed the big paychecks from Brown & Williamson to make cigarettes more addictive. History is filled of people who walk away before major success happen. Look at Stuart Sutcliffe who left The Beatles.
Both documentaries look at the investigations that happened in the aftermath and the lack of accountability on OceanGate’s part. It’s mentioned that when they would head out to the North Atlantic, they wouldn’t fly any flag of any nation. And there’s a reason. Rush knew that if something happened, it could tie up which nation would be in charge of the investigation. The U.S. Coast Guard has investigated it, but there’s no charges filed as of yet.
I think part of the problem is that it’s impossible to convict a dead person of something others did willingly. You’re not supposed to drive long on a “donut” spare tire. But if you have a blow-out and change it and while on the way to the tire shop, you get in an accident and your passengers die, are you really responsible? You knew it wasn’t safe to drive but accidents happen like implosions happen.
Sidonie Nargeolet, daughter of Paul-Henri Nargeolet, the pilot of the Titan, says she hasn’t heard anything from OceanGate since the death of her father. If I had to say which is the better, I’d give it to the Netflix version mainly for its more in-depth interviews and candid footage. There’s a scene where David Pogue, a science and technology reporter for CBS News, talks about the event with a scared relief as he was intended to take a dive in the submersible, but it didn’t happen.
The ID documentary focuses a lot on Josh Gates, host of Expedition Unknown, and how he was concerned about the safety of the submersible. The ID focuses more on Rush while the Netflix doc balances the design and its flaws as well with Rush’ arrogance. One of the most chilling moments in the Netflix doc is when Rush says “There’s really nothing that happens that requires an immediate response. OK, so if you hear an alarm, don’t worry about it. The best thing you can do is don’t do anything.”
It’s amazing how science and technology is supposed to be about trial and error. But Rush wanted to be the one who made it where others would fail. Yes, you can drive on a donut for some time, but it’s not intended. I’m sure someone like Rush would try to claim a car could travel coast to coast on a donut tire.
But what’s more puzzling about these documentaries is that we all know Rush isn’t going to be the last one to do something like this. Somewhere at some time, another tech CEO bigwig will try to “reinvent the wheel” and it will cost lives. And because our government authorities are too afraid to put a stop to it exemplifies the slogan, “Money talks and bullshit walks.”
What do you think? Please comment.
Zane Says 