Ooph

My military career was split between two services, the United States Coast Guard and the United States Navy. Beyond that, I’ve spent a lot of personal time on things which float. It doesn’t matter what you’re running or piloting, there are a few simple rules one must follow to avoid disaster. One of those might be expressed as “keep the vessel where the water is deep enough.” Others might include, “when the wind blows, your ship is a giant sail,” and “it takes less power to run aground than it does to refloat.” All of which leads to this article from Reuters. Short version: A 400 meter container ship has run aground and is completely blocking the channel of the Suez Canal through which flows 12% of the world’s total global trade goods. Removing the ship and re-opening the canal could take weeks. The economic impact is likely to be “significant.” Words fail me to express just how bad this is.

I cannot imagine the absolute nightmare of being the officer on the bridge during such a majorly FUBARed evolution. If you have the background, just thinking about being that person will induce feelings of nausea. Job? Gone. License? Gone. That’s just the good part.

Damn.