to wonder if titanic sank in 2012 would it be women and children first

[McHappyPants2012]

or would sex discrimination and equal rights mean first came first served.

Women and children first belongs to an era when women and men generally respected each other and men were considered to be protectors. This isn't the case now, so it's every man and woman for his/her self.

Suprising how many people expected the women and children thing to apply to the Concordia tragedy. You reap what you sow.

I think it should be children first, personally.

I think children should be put in the lifeboats right at the start... and towed along like that for the duration of the cruise. Ropes can just be cut then should something untoward happen.

"I can understand that men should have equal rights with women, but why shouldn't children be put first? I'd give up my place for a child."

Because if I'm being completely honest with myself I reckon in a life or death situation I'm going to value my life a hell of a lot more than a childs who is a stranger to me. If others think they'd give up their life to save a strangers then fair play to them, they're better people than me.

The trouble with children first is who is going to look after them and make them sit still in the lifeboat so it doesn't capsize, mummy would have to go too and I can see some men objecting.
My DH wouldn't, he'd let all of the women on first.

I really don't think you can know what you'd do - or anybody else would do - if some kind of disaster were actually happening. It's easy to say, "I'd do this, he'd do this", but you can't know.

I know people who have worked on liners have posted here after modern disasters, and they have all said that the quickest way to get everyone off the ship is not to put certain passengers like children first.

I like what another poster once said: if I was on a lifeboat watching the ship go down I'd feel marginally better watching an adult clinging onto the railings than a child.

Really MayorQuimby?

I would put a child's life above my own, even if that child was a stranger. I'm not a martyr or anything, I just think it is instinctive to want to protect children.

I'd put my children and DH in alifeboat and find myself a nice wardrobe door and a whistle.

It is, but at the same time I think if it was life or death then my survival gene would kick in. no way of knowing if this is the case or not having never been in the situation. I'd like to think I'd risk my life instinctively to protect anothers but not so sure I'd be able to make a decision to sacrifice myself for another.
Put it this way, if you told me now you were some evil overlord with two buttons in front of you, and pressing one button meant I'd die and the other meant a child I had no connection to would die.
and you left the decision up to me as to which you were going to press, then I'd be saving my own life.

We might not know for certain what we would do, but I think I can have a fairly good idea. If I didn't freeze with fear I'd want to know my family were safe before I did anything to help anyone else. It might sound callous, but my husband is more important to me (and my children) than anyone else's child.

I think I coud put my own life above that of a child, even if I couldn't do it with my husband, but I couldn't put my child's need for a mother behind anyone else's child.

I feel horrible writing all that, so it's good to know that getting people off quickly is given more priority than who goes first. All human life is equal, and apart from people who are wheelchair bound, I don't think anyone should be prioritised above anyone else.

I guess we could argue all day what if the child had cancer and weeks to live, what if the woman was a murderer. I'd just like to think we have learn to takeouts of life boats and avoid ice burghs

If Iwas to put a stranger child before me I would have to issue them with a quick written exercise on morals and ethics - it they pass then fine. If not...

I read a little while ago that many of the women who survived with their children from the Titanic went on to live in poverty as their husbands stayed behind and perished.

It's not a transatlantic cruise it's a crossing! (rolls eyes)

Seriously though I'd have my family away quick sharp. When ever we've cruised the children always have their muster bands if they have to go straight there if not they all go to one station and the patents collect them from there before proceeding to their allocated muster.

We have always done lifeboat drill prior to sailing with one exception ad that was due to extraordinary circumstances due to 9/11.

Simples. I wouldn't go on a ship to start with. Problem solved.

who said they would save the musicians? wallace hartley was the band leader on the titanic, im from the same place as him and we have a memorial to him, all the children learn about him and we have held memorials and visited his grave (as a town) as part of the 100 year aniversary things we have going on, we also have a titanic museum :)

This is a bit OT, but this list is heartbreaking

Bizarrely, this has reminded me of an accident I was involved with years ago. I can go into massive details as it was part of my job but I was on a craft nice and vague which hit something. Our lives were in danger and most people, including the other staff member, were useless, panicking and so on. A young man who was on the trip, offending background, one of those people on here delight in calling a 'chav' came into the galley to get me. I was cooking at the time and would, at the least, have got badly burnt if he hadn't warned me we were going to hit. In the end, the craft didn't sink but at the time he was aware it could.

My point is that you never know who is a 'hero' until you are in that situation. I like to think that the tearful and slightly hysterical praise he got may have helped him change his life.

I think it'd still be the rich who felt entitled to survive over others.

Just been reading the list headfairy put up, it is heartbreaking. Body recovered Nu 17 of John Chapman a 2nd class passenger - when I read it I wondered why he was found carrying a lady's purse. Turns out he was on his honeymoon & his wife decided not to get on a lifeboat as she wouldn't leave him, and they both died. So guessing the purse belonged to her. Very sad.

MrGin - I think you're right. Sadly.

I was going to say Mercedes drivers.

This thread makes for uncomfortable reading.

We were watching the Costa C footage when it was on and it literally made me feel ill - imagining us with 3 children trying to all get off safely in the dark in all that panic. DH just said 'well, you couldn't pay me to get on one of those ships anyway, they're so unsafe' and later on there was an article on the BBC about how cruise ships do have safety issues, as they are built so tall above the water line that they tip sideways ever so easily. Or something like that.

Best stay on dry land.

Nini reading the full list of victims is awful, whole families died. There's one family with the mum, dad and their 9 children listed as victims, ranging in age from 18 to 2 years old :(