# It's No Pit yet of the captain of the Concordia? Allow me **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [January 20, 2012, 2:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-no-pit-yet-of-the-captain-of-the-concordia-allow-me/610089 "2012-01-20T02:33:41Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2012, 1:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-no-pit-yet-of-the-captain-of-the-concordia-allow-me/610089/81 "2012-01-21T01:22:20Z")
He saved 3,000 people. Too bad there were 4,000 people on the ship. ---
**Author:** ![Patch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a183cd/32.png) [@Patch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Patch)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2012, 1:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-no-pit-yet-of-the-captain-of-the-concordia-allow-me/610089/82 "2012-01-21T01:51:00Z")
> [@friedo](#): > > This dude sounds more and more like Zapp Brannigan with every new piece of information. > > “Here’s a course with some chest hair!” I’m going to be laughing about that all weekend. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Balance](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ccd318/32.png) [@Balance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Balance)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2012, 1:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-no-pit-yet-of-the-captain-of-the-concordia-allow-me/610089/83 "2012-01-21T01:57:52Z")
> [@Boyo\_Jim](#): > > He saved 3,000 people. Too bad there were 4,000 people on the ship. “Failed to kill all the passengers” is not the same as “saved some of the passengers”. ---
**Author:** ![Larry\_Mudd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f14d63/32.png) [@Larry\_Mudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Mudd)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2012, 2:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-no-pit-yet-of-the-captain-of-the-concordia-allow-me/610089/84 "2012-01-21T02:30:13Z")
> [@Boyo\_Jim](#): > > I know Homer was briefly a submarine commander – was he ever a ship’s captain? In my head, he’s Zap Brannigan. Closer match, IMO. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2012, 3:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-no-pit-yet-of-the-captain-of-the-concordia-allow-me/610089/85 "2012-01-21T03:06:16Z")
> [@ralph124c](#): > > Compare the Costa Line captain, with Captain Smith (of the RMS Titanic): > -Capt. Smith stayed on his ship-till it sank > -Caot. Smith told the radio operators to leave-when it was obvious that nothing more could be done > -Smith continued to supervise his officers-even as the bridge was submerging > Capt. Schettino took off, and ignored the Coast Guard order to return to his ship When asked about this, Captain Schettino responded, “So what happened to this Captain Smith?” “He died with his ship.” “So who looks like a smarter captain now?” ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2012, 3:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-no-pit-yet-of-the-captain-of-the-concordia-allow-me/610089/86 "2012-01-21T03:25:30Z")
> [@Larry\_Mudd](#): > > In my head, he’s Zap Brannigan. Closer match, IMO. I didn’t think of it at first, but since Zap’s name appeared, I have to agree. Blowhard, self-styled Lothario, and… careless, to put it mildly. ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2012, 3:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-no-pit-yet-of-the-captain-of-the-concordia-allow-me/610089/87 "2012-01-21T03:33:55Z")
[Here you go](http://knowyourmeme.com/photos/235929) **ralph**. ---
**Author:** ![Sitnam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Sitnam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sitnam)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2012, 5:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-no-pit-yet-of-the-captain-of-the-concordia-allow-me/610089/88 "2012-01-21T05:00:25Z")
It’s odd to me what we demand of sea captains doesn’t translate at all to CEOs. The fuckers that sent USS Enron up on the rocks destroyed far more lives than Schettino. ---
**Author:** ![waterj2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/858c86/32.png) [@waterj2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/waterj2)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2012, 5:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-no-pit-yet-of-the-captain-of-the-concordia-allow-me/610089/89 "2012-01-21T05:12:48Z")
> [@Voyager](#): > > In any case, this just goes to show that you can never rely on central government, even on a ship. If the passengers were true Randroids, they would have shown their independence and self-reliance by learning how to steer the ship and run the lifeboats. > Now, wouldn’t you? It’s been years, but I’m pretty much certain that _Atlas Shrugged_ establishes that a Fransisco D’Aconia level genius can jump into a motorboat and pilot it expertly, at top speed, immediately upon stepping behind the helm. Cruise ships might take a couple minutes. ---
**Author:** ![Steve\_MB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steve_mb/32/5339_2.png) [@Steve\_MB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steve_MB)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2012, 6:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-no-pit-yet-of-the-captain-of-the-concordia-allow-me/610089/90 "2012-01-21T06:17:22Z")
> [@Biggirl](#): > > The transcripts between him and the coast guard would be hilarious if people hadn’t died because of this cowardly asshole. My favorite moment, after Schettino starts making excuses and Coast Guard captain De Falco apparently loses what little patience he has (and is perhaps trying a calculated attempt to shame this Chicken of the Sea into growing a spine): > [@](#): > > **Schettino:** But do you realize it is dark and here we can’t see anything… > **De Falco:** And so what? You want go home, Schettino? It is dark and you want to go home? Get on that prow of the boat using the pilot ladder and tell me what can be done, how many people there are and what their needs are. Now! Mentally, I hear De Falco’s lines delivered by R. Lee Ermey. ---
**Author:** ![Sitnam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Sitnam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sitnam)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2012, 6:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-no-pit-yet-of-the-captain-of-the-concordia-allow-me/610089/91 "2012-01-21T06:36:23Z")
De Falco had been dealing with Schettino though intermediaries for hours, he had enough and got him on the radio and started recording it. If you listen to the entire conversation you can tell even in the beginning of the recording De Falco knows the kind of man he is dealing with and makes it clear to Schettino the consequences of cowardice. Any creeping doubt of just simple panic on Schettinos part evaporates with that recording, the man sounds comfortable, together and intransigent. ---
**Author:** ![Dendarii\_Dame](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bbce88/32.png) [@Dendarii\_Dame](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dendarii_Dame)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2012, 4:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-no-pit-yet-of-the-captain-of-the-concordia-allow-me/610089/92 "2012-01-21T16:07:41Z")
> [@jjimm](#): > > There’s an unconfirmed rumor that once on shore he hailed a taxi and asked to be taken “as far away from here as possible”. I wait to see if that is confirmed. Unfortunately, I don’t think a taxi could take him all the way to Ringworld. What he should have done, had it been possible, was to hail a time machine, to make himself make better decisions. ---
**Author:** ![DarrenS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/977dab/32.png) [@DarrenS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DarrenS)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2012, 5:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-no-pit-yet-of-the-captain-of-the-concordia-allow-me/610089/93 "2012-01-21T17:09:43Z")
> [@Sparky812](#): > > Or even better from the Bruce Willis movie \*The Last Boy Scout (1991) \* > > “_It was an accident, right? You tripped, slipped on the floor and accidentally stuck your dick in my wife. 'Whoops! I’m so sorry, Mrs. H. I guess this just isn’t my week_.'” First thing I thought of when I heard that quote from the cap’n was a skit from the old comedy series [Alas Smith and Jones](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alas_smith_and_jones). It was something like the boys turned up at the emergency room, one bent over and the other standing behind him, obviously “coupled”. They came up with increasingly implausible explanations - “I was at home…doing some housework…erm, vacuuming the floor…when I, erm, _fell_ upon this person…” Wish I could find the video clip but this is a tough one to search. ---
**Author:** ![Kenm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/bc79bd/32.png) [@Kenm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kenm)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2012, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-no-pit-yet-of-the-captain-of-the-concordia-allow-me/610089/94 "2012-01-21T18:45:59Z")
The still pictures make it look like the ship was about to hit a lighthouse head-on. The first thing I thought of was [**this myth**](http://www.snopes.com/military/lighthouse.asp) and its final line: This is a lighthouse. Your call. ---
**Author:** ![Mighty\_Girl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7bcc69/32.png) [@Mighty\_Girl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mighty_Girl)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2012, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-no-pit-yet-of-the-captain-of-the-concordia-allow-me/610089/95 "2012-01-21T19:51:08Z")
> [@Huerta88](#): > > I’ve been mostly to the functional parts, which when they function, are quite nice, but you definitely get the Latin flavor of casualness toward professional punctilio. Our problem was never the shops that shut down for 2 1/2 hours for lunch – it was that they’d be fifteen minutes late coming back from **that**. FTR, I was there when the Euro was at its possibly-delusional high, which made me particularly rabid about sloppy customer service. That was about the time we visited. We spent nearly a month traveling by train and staying in B&Bs and eating in mom and pops restaurants. I had a grand time, not so my Scandinavian husband who could not understand why the trains were late and had a weird ticket -selling system, that our planes (we flew out to Switzerland at some point and then flew back) were late, the crew unhelpful, Airtalia personnel and food awful, and the traffic… chaotic, to say the least. Specially in the south. Before our trip he had been skying several times in northern Italy, which everyone knows is really southern Austria. Since I come from a developing country and have humble expectations I found the whole thing frankly refreshing and highly entertaining. In fact I fell in love with southern Italy and plan to go back with or without my husband. ---
**Author:** ![slumtrimpet](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5e925/32.png) [@slumtrimpet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slumtrimpet)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2012, 11:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-no-pit-yet-of-the-captain-of-the-concordia-allow-me/610089/96 "2012-01-21T23:39:23Z")
Whoot! [30% off their next cruise with Costa](http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/italy/9030212/Costa-Concordia-insulting-cruise-offer-to-survivors.html). You gotta envy those lucky passengers (or at least the ones that survived - I don’t suppose the dead ones will be entitled to any future discounts). I’m thinking the infamous captain isn’t the only one with masses of chutzpah at Costa Cruises. ---
**Author:** ![Nobody](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/94ad74/32.png) [@Nobody](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nobody)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2012, 11:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-no-pit-yet-of-the-captain-of-the-concordia-allow-me/610089/97 "2012-01-21T23:43:33Z")
I hope he gets manslaughter or negligent homicide charges for every dead body they find and that he spends the rest of his life in prison. Yeah, I know, I’m being really controversial here. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2012, 12:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-no-pit-yet-of-the-captain-of-the-concordia-allow-me/610089/98 "2012-01-22T00:21:34Z")
> [@slumtrimpet](#): > > ,I don’t suppose the dead ones will be entitled to any future discounts). > … Not at all! The dead will get their next trip for free! They’ll have to travel as ballast, but still, what a deal. ---
**Author:** ![Sitnam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Sitnam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sitnam)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2012, 1:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-no-pit-yet-of-the-captain-of-the-concordia-allow-me/610089/99 "2012-01-22T01:05:16Z")
Claiming you saved lives as a sea captain by getting closer to land is like an airline pilot telling his passengers he’s going to help them by flying closer to mountains. ---
**Author:** ![Frank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Frank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frank)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2012, 1:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-no-pit-yet-of-the-captain-of-the-concordia-allow-me/610089/100 "2012-01-22T01:13:13Z")
> [@jjimm](#): > > There’s an unconfirmed rumor that once on shore he hailed a taxi and asked to be taken “as far away from here as possible”. I wait to see if that is confirmed. Why does this thread keep reminding me of popular culture that’s different from other people’s popular culture? Harvey Korman: “Get me out of this movie.” [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-no-pit-yet-of-the-captain-of-the-concordia-allow-me/610089.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-no-pit-yet-of-the-captain-of-the-concordia-allow-me/610089.md?page=6)