# Sean Penn brings personal photog on rescue mission
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sean-penn-brings-personal-photog-on-rescue-mission/320193
**Category:** The BBQ Pit
**Created:** [September 5, 2005, 1:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sean-penn-brings-personal-photog-on-rescue-mission/320193 "2005-09-05T13:16:31Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 9
### Author:  [@Contrapuntal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Contrapuntal)
#### Post date: [September 6, 2005, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sean-penn-brings-personal-photog-on-rescue-mission/320193/161 "2005-09-06T16:44:11Z")
> [@Hentor the Barbarian](#):
>
> So, to update:
>
> Sean Penn is a self-aggrandizing bastard who once played a role in _Fast Times at Ridgemont High_, and has handed cash to victims, and should be objective as a journalist, and is a media whore, and should have followed proper channels to volunteer, and may have only spent 15 minutes for a photo op, **and who has actually rescued others**.
>
> Still looks rather favorable for Sean Penn, in my opinion. I suspect he’ll be able to sleep fairly well at night. I also suspect that he still has rescued at least one more person than any poster in this thread. Or perhaps all of us.
>
> [http://people.monstersandcritics.com/article\_1046215.php/Sean\_Penn\_rescues\_some\_Katrina\_victims\_despite\_boat\_problems](http://people.monstersandcritics.com/article_1046215.php/Sean_Penn_rescues_some_Katrina_victims_despite_boat_problems)
>
> [http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/news/articles/PA\_NEWA12843661125997597A0?source=PA%20Feed&ct=5](http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/news/articles/PA_NEWA12843661125997597A0?source=PA%20Feed&ct=5)
If he was pulling drowning people out of the water I withdraw all my objections.
He still deserves the pitting for bailing with a beer cup. 🙂
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### Author:  [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)
#### Post date: [September 6, 2005, 4:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sean-penn-brings-personal-photog-on-rescue-mission/320193/162 "2005-09-06T16:50:27Z")
> [@Contrapuntal](#):
>
> What isn’t apparent is that Sean Penn is helping the profesionals. As I have pointed out, there is a proper way to do that. Civilians need to stay out of the way. Almost before he got started he was almost in need of rescue himself. He’s a doofus. He’s not a bad guy. I never said fuck him. I did say he is an object of ridicule.
>
> Handing out cash is grandstanding and making a spectacle of himself, whether or not the donees had need of it. It’ just so … Hollywood.
Actually, it IS apparent that Sean Penn is helping the professionals. He took a number of people out of the flood waters. I hardly think he threw professional rescue people out of the way to get a photo op. The citizens wouldn’t have been there doing rescues if the professionals were doing a good job. They were (and are) overwhelmed and NEED ALL THE HELP THEY CAN GET. The Red Cross is still asking for help. All kinds of help. He got up off his ass and did what the professionals DIDN’T do. He rescued a handful of people who wanted to be rescued.
As far as grandstanding goes, plenty of people have been handing out money and anything else that will help. He’s not alone in his efforts.
There is a proper way to do it. You have to actually DO it.
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### Author:  [@Contrapuntal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Contrapuntal)
#### Post date: [September 6, 2005, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sean-penn-brings-personal-photog-on-rescue-mission/320193/163 "2005-09-06T16:54:35Z")
Psst. **Kalhoun**. Look up.
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### Author:  [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)
#### Post date: [September 6, 2005, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sean-penn-brings-personal-photog-on-rescue-mission/320193/164 "2005-09-06T17:12:51Z")
> [@Contrapuntal](#):
>
> Psst. **Kalhoun**. Look up.
If you’re implying I need to follow my own advice, I have. With money and actions.
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### Author:  [@Contrapuntal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Contrapuntal)
#### Post date: [September 6, 2005, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sean-penn-brings-personal-photog-on-rescue-mission/320193/165 "2005-09-06T17:17:27Z")
> [@Kalhoun](#):
>
> If you’re implying I need to follow my own advice, I have. With money and actions.
No, I’m implying you need to quit fighting after you’ve won. See my post above yours. To see it you would look up. Not literally, of course. Just higher on the page.
I’m thinking it might be that arrogance problem again. Aways right, always gotta have the last word … it’s yours!
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### Author:  [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)
#### Post date: [September 6, 2005, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sean-penn-brings-personal-photog-on-rescue-mission/320193/166 "2005-09-06T17:22:58Z")
> [@Contrapuntal](#):
>
> No, I’m implying you need to quit fighting after you’ve won. See my post above yours. To see it you would look up. Not literally, of course. Just higher on the page.
>
> I’m thinking it might be that arrogance problem again. Aways right, always gotta have the last word … it’s yours!
Thanks! Always a pleasure. :rolleyes:
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### Author:  [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)
#### Post date: [September 6, 2005, 6:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sean-penn-brings-personal-photog-on-rescue-mission/320193/167 "2005-09-06T18:22:31Z")
Question about the beer cup–did he have anything else on hand to bail with? Got any links to photos?
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### Author:  [@Contrapuntal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Contrapuntal)
#### Post date: [September 6, 2005, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sean-penn-brings-personal-photog-on-rescue-mission/320193/168 "2005-09-06T18:29:22Z")
> [@tdn](#):
>
> Question about the beer cup–did he have anything else on hand to bail with?
Presumably not.
> [@tdn](#):
>
> Got any links to photos?
[You betcha.](http://www.drudgereportarchives.com/dsp/links_recap_picture.htm) Scroll down to #10.
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### Author:  [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)
#### Post date: [September 6, 2005, 6:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sean-penn-brings-personal-photog-on-rescue-mission/320193/169 "2005-09-06T18:40:42Z")
Thanks for the link.
> [@Contrapuntal](#):
>
> Presumably not.
In which case I’m wondering why people think it’s so ridiculous that he used the only tool he had aboard to do what needed to be done. Of course, one could make the case that if he were a competent boater he would have had something better to begin with. But the fact that he had to bail at all–being an amateur boater myself, I can attest that sometimes water gets into the boat. You bail. That’s SOP.
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### Author:  [@Contrapuntal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Contrapuntal)
#### Post date: [September 6, 2005, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sean-penn-brings-personal-photog-on-rescue-mission/320193/170 "2005-09-06T18:50:58Z")
> [@tdn](#):
>
> Thanks for the link.
> In which case I’m wondering why people think it’s so ridiculous that he used the only tool he had aboard to do what needed to be done. Of course, one could make the case that if he were a competent boater he would have had something better to begin with. But the fact that he had to bail at all–being an amateur boater myself, I can attest that sometimes water gets into the boat. You bail. That’s SOP.
Let’s see if I can dance around this without stirring up Hurricane Kalhoun. (This is from the linked article, by the way.)
He had to bail seconds after launching, because he forgot, or did not know, that the drain plug (the one that drains the boat while it is on the trailer) had not been replaced. This was not "sometimes water gets in the boat. " This was like opening a fire pressure hose into the boat. That’s two big mistakes (drain plug, no bailing equipment) before a minute has passed in his mission. Then, the engine failed. (Mistake three. Forgot to make sure engine is serviceable).
THe general assumption is that this was no place for an amateur boater.
The red beer cup was just the cherry on top. Of course, he was better off bailing with it than not, it goes without saying. It was still funny looking.
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### Author:  [@Contrapuntal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Contrapuntal)
#### Post date: [September 6, 2005, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sean-penn-brings-personal-photog-on-rescue-mission/320193/171 "2005-09-06T18:52:05Z")
I meant pressure hose, not fire pressure hose. He was taking on water real fast.
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### Author:  [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)
#### Post date: [September 6, 2005, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sean-penn-brings-personal-photog-on-rescue-mission/320193/172 "2005-09-06T19:17:07Z")
> [@Contrapuntal](#):
>
> He had to bail seconds after launching, because he forgot, or did not know, that the drain plug (the one that drains the boat while it is on the trailer) had not been replaced. This was not "sometimes water gets in the boat. " This was like opening a fire pressure hose into the boat.
Yeah, I got that bit. Even so, I’m willing to cut him some slack on that. It may be that he wasn’t familiar with that particular model of boat (I’m not sure where he got it, or if he brought it in himself). It may be that with the media circus, he couldn’t concentrate on doing things by the book. It could be any one of a million things.
Not that it’s any excuse, but I (as a VERY amateur boater) have made more than my share of colossally stupid and embarassing mistakes. And never when no one was watching. In fact, when all eyes are off me, I’m a regular Jack Aubry, I am.
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### Author:  [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)
#### Post date: [September 6, 2005, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sean-penn-brings-personal-photog-on-rescue-mission/320193/173 "2005-09-06T20:26:39Z")
So what this thrad has devolved to is a pitting of Sean Penn for not knowing to check a drain plug in his boat before he went to rescue people, bring them to the hospital and give them money.
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### Author:  [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)
#### Post date: [September 6, 2005, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sean-penn-brings-personal-photog-on-rescue-mission/320193/174 "2005-09-06T20:31:30Z")
That’s right. Even though the professional rescue people managed to fuck up the operation for five days, let’s rip him a new one for getting in the way as he successfully rescued people.
Fuck. This place makes me sick.
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### Author:  [@Hentor\_the\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hentor_the_Barbarian)
#### Post date: [September 6, 2005, 11:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sean-penn-brings-personal-photog-on-rescue-mission/320193/175 "2005-09-06T23:12:29Z")
> [@Diogenes the Cynic](#):
>
> So what this thrad has devolved to is a pitting of Sean Penn for not knowing to check a drain plug in his boat before he went to rescue people, bring them to the hospital and give them money.
Well, and the plastic cup. Don’t forget that.
Plus, he was in _Fast Times at Ridgemont High_. Let it be marked. Let it be membered.
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### Author:  [@flickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/flickster)
#### Post date: [September 7, 2005, 1:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sean-penn-brings-personal-photog-on-rescue-mission/320193/176 "2005-09-07T01:26:16Z")
> [@Contrapuntal](#):
>
> The photographer was in the boat, along with other people. It’s not so much the fact that a photographer was along as that he was taking the place of a potential rescuee, as were the others in the boat.
Bingo
AFAIK that was the reason for the pitting. Leaving the dock with a boat already full of people doesn’t bode well for the ability to rescue anyone.
The forgotten drain plug was just pure humor 😃
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### Author:  [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)
#### Post date: [September 7, 2005, 1:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sean-penn-brings-personal-photog-on-rescue-mission/320193/177 "2005-09-07T01:44:05Z")
He didn’t set out with a goal of rescuing people, you fucking numbskulls. He was out to write a story for Rolling Stone (and not as an objective journalist, it was to be a subjective opinion piece). Once he got out there he tried to help some people. There is nothing to pit here. How about giving some credit for a guy who did a nice thing and actually saved some people?
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### Author:  [@Rilchiam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rilchiam)
#### Post date: [September 7, 2005, 2:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sean-penn-brings-personal-photog-on-rescue-mission/320193/178 "2005-09-07T02:41:52Z")
I’m not sure what post to use as a springboard for this, so I’ll just start without a quote.
I can name two celebrities who made contributions after 9/11, who didn’t get any publicity from it, and were by no means a hindrance. Steve Buscemi, who was FDNY before he was an actor, borrowed someone’s gear and joined in the efforts to shovel out the wreckage of the WTC, looking for survivors and bodies. I believe he was there for several days, until union regulations kicked in again, and since he was no longer a union member, he quietly left when they asked him to. Kathleen Turner went to a clinic to donate blood, saw how overwhelmed the staff was, and offered her services in taking down names, affixing wristbands, and doing data entry. And presumably she also quietly left when they told her they’d gotten caught up.
Neither of them got any publicity from this; I heard about it through word of mouth. Buscemi even made an appearance on a 9/11 special **without** adding “And I was there” to his comments. And, not to be catty, but it’s possible that the clinic staff didn’t recognize Turner as a celebrity; not right away, anyway. At any rate, Buscemi knew what he was doing, and Turner was only doing generic tasks that don’t require qualification, thus freeing up the professionals to do what they had to do more efficiently. So they were genuinely helpful, and didn’t get in anyone’s way.
* * *
And Penn handing out cash to victims reminds me of the anecdote about Sir Cosmo and Lady Duff-Gordon, who survived the Titanic. They were in the same lifeboat with some of the ship’s firemen, who were grumbling about their unemployment status. Duff-Gordon gave them most of the cash he had on hand, but it nearly backfired on him when observers took this to mean that he’d bought his and his wife’s places in the boat.
* * *
And this:
> [@](#):
>
> Thankful Johnnie Brown, 73, who was picked up by Penn, told his sister over the phone: “Guess who come and got me out of the house? Sean Penn, the actor. The boys were really nice.”
reminds me of **Sampiro** ’s anecdote about his aunt or whatever she is, whose imaginary friends are celebrities, and was heard to say, “Guess who was in my bathroom last night! Sandy Duncan from the teevee!” Honestly, if a 73 y/o man told me what that guy said, I would smile, nod, and then get him tested for Alzheimer’s. 😉
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### Author:  [@DarkPrince](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DarkPrince)
#### Post date: [September 7, 2005, 3:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sean-penn-brings-personal-photog-on-rescue-mission/320193/179 "2005-09-07T03:06:28Z")
I’m sure he’s just lucky he happened to have cash to hand out in front of the cameras. Unless the MO for opinion columnists nowadays is to stuff their pockets with dollar bills before heading out into the field or something. Or maybe he was just giving out whatever he had on him, “Hey guys, here’s a crisp fiver and a couple bright shiny quarters. Now don’t spend it all in one place and keep looking tired and dirty while we take your photo here.” :dubious:
Either way…
> [@Diogenes the Cynic](#):
>
> How about giving some credit for a guy who did a nice thing and actually saved some people?
Hmm…
> [@Diogenes the Cynic](#):
>
> I agree with Jesus. Just give your money and keep your mouth shut about it. Is it going to kill you if no one knows how wonderful you are?
> …
> They aren’t being judged for giving, they’re being judged for boring the rest of us with their self-congratulations.
In case you forgot what you were agreeing with:
> [@Matthew 6:1-4](#):
>
> “Take good care not to practice YOUR righteousness in front of men in order to be observed by them; otherwise YOU will have no reward with YOUR Father who is in the heavens. 2 Hence when you go making gifts of mercy, do not blow a trumpet ahead of you, just as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may be glorified by men. Truly I say to YOU, They are having their reward in full. 3 But you, when making gifts of mercy, do not let your left hand know what your right is doing, 4 that your gifts of mercy may be in secret; then your Father who is looking on in secret will repay you."
From [this](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=333582&page=1&pp=50) shitfest.
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### Author:  [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)
#### Post date: [September 7, 2005, 3:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sean-penn-brings-personal-photog-on-rescue-mission/320193/180 "2005-09-07T03:19:14Z")
> [@DarkPrince](#):
>
> I’m sure he’s just lucky he happened to have cash to hand out in front of the cameras. Unless the MO for opinion columnists nowadays is to stuff their pockets with dollar bills before heading out into the field or something. Or maybe he was just giving out whatever he had on him, “Hey guys, here’s a crisp fiver and a couple bright shiny quarters. Now don’t spend it all in one place and keep looking tired and dirty while we take your photo here.” :dubious:
> Either way…
> Hmm…
>
> In case you forgot what you were agreeing with:
>
> From [this](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=333582&page=1&pp=50) shitfest.
What is your point? Did Sean Penn go on a message board and brag about saving people?
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