Hmmm, is the mythological overtone of the Titan disaster the story behind the story?
The desperate search for the Titan submersible, which descended into the Atlantic Ocean with five occupants to view the wreck of The Titanic, was the leading news story this week. Search and rescue crews from Canada, the United States, Britain and France – with ships, airplanes and remotely controlled vehicles (ROV) – participated in the search and rescue mission.
As you probably know, the search has ended as debris found in the search area matches the Titan construction. The assumed fate of the Titan is a catastrophic loss of air pressure resulting in an implosion.
A controversy raged on social media, while the search was underway, concerning whether or not we should sympathize with the five occupants. Four were billionaires who paid $250,000 each for the privilege. The fifth was the billionaire CEO of the company who operated the vessel. A few examples culled from Facebook:
Rich idiots do something stupid by spending an exorbitant amount of money to go somewhere dangerous where human beings aren’t meant to go, all because they want to see a century old shipwreck that means absolutely nothing in the grand scheme of things, and now find themselves in peril. Play stupid games, win stupid prizes.
I can’t believe how quick people are to celebrate the gruesome deaths of those billionaires. Think for a second about what you’re doing. They haven’t even been confirmed dead, so don’t jinx it. Wait to celebrate until we know for sure.
There’s a small group of homeless people in my town. I give them food when I can – money is tight. Maybe billionaires should do that over creating tax shelters or building subs.
The question of the day is: Should we feel sorry for the wealthy people who paid handsomely for the privilege of being in the Titan for the ill-fated voyage or declare that their wealth and indulgent lifestyles sealed their fate?
From my perspective, any loss of life is tragic no matter the circumstances. I cannot get totally on board (excuse the pun) with the They got what they deserved point of view. The five people died a horrible death the likes of which we can only imagine.
On the other hand, there is merit to argument that it was a blatant example of rich people indulging their whims while the growing number of poor people struggle to survive. The one million dollars that the four billionaires collectively paid to be on the Titan could have made an immeasurable difference in the lives of countless poor and disadvantaged people.
In Greek mythology, the Titans were a generation of pre-Olympian gods who betrayed their father. They were subsequently overthrown by another generation of gods and vanquished from the Upper World. Accordingly, the fate of the occupants of the Titan can be seen as mythological karma at a time when the gap between the wealthy and the poor is steadily widening.
As the saying goes: Karma is a bitch!
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their father.
Tags: karma · metaphor · Michael Robert Dyet · OceanGate · Titan disaster · Titan submersible · TitansNo Comments