Ammonite,

What is your particular beef?

I'm not trying to construct antipathy between the genders. I like to look at things from an anthropological perspective - to see patterns in society and how they affect the roles of gender.

You deliberately misrepresented my comment about women working and GDP - as if I was stating that it "only goes up when women work"...puerile in the extreme.

My last comment about paying for domestic chores was an example of how GDP is calculated...but I think you knew that.

You seem to strive to take offence, either on behalf of yourself or your principals - so be it.

Lexi I think you've missed a key point to the question Anti is asking. There are no others more or less vunerable than yourself, anybody in the water dies, those in the boats may survive.

If you are making a choice between yourself and a baby there is a good chance that the baby will die a lot quicker and suffer less. You may also consider that a number of baby's can fit into the lifeboat instead of you. If it's between you and a disabled or ill person you don't know theirs and your chances of survival are not part of the equation.

I agree that it's hard to tell in advance what we'd do in a particular crisis. I know my social conditioning is that I'm supposed to give my life in those situations.

R0bert

Dear RObert,

I understand what you're saying.
But I don't think that when it came
right down to it - I would bother to
analyze things. I would simply
go with what I felt was the right
thing to do at the time - without much
thought for anything else.

I would simply act as I've been
brought up to do.
And that probably means giving up my life
for others.

Poirot

Not at all offended. I post to draw people out.

:)

It is you who have called me disingenuous - I explained why I thought you wrong.

Robert

Agreed there would be people more helpless than Lexi in the Titantic scenario - which was my point about healthy strong women who can take care of themselves. And was what I experienced in the Black Saturday bush fires a couple of years ago. I would rather a man carry out a child than worry about me, I am very capable, being female does not and did not make me helpless.


Nor does class make such huge distinctions as it did at the time of the Titantic. What happened to the working class people was reprehensible.

We have progressed a little since then, some more than others.

Antiseptic

...My experience in boat roll overs tells me, when the chips are down its every man for himself! So maybe if the titanic rolled over immediately, then a different statistical outcome would have resulted.
But in event of a life boat launch, one would need a tillerman; I'd take that job if I could; naturally, along with my misses and my own kids!

Ammonite,

I beg to differ about huge class distinctions not being as pertinent as they once were. Perhaps they're a little better disguised in ordinary day-to-day activities these days, but they are likely to reveal themselves during a time of crisis.

One only has to cast one's mind back to all the poor black people that were left behind in New Orleans as Katrina wrought her havoc....a similar metaphor for what happened on the Titanic, perhaps.