Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Former Hawaii Superferries fulfill their destiny—now transferred to the US Navy
by Larry Geller
Alternative media repeatedly pointed out early in the Superferry game that the two Hawaii Superferries could have been placed in service to demonstrate the seaworthiness of the design for future military service. And now the two vessels are officially in Navy hands, according to a January 29 article on MarineLog.com. What more could Austal, their Australian manufacturer, possibly want? Well, they were hoping for a few more contracts at least.
It appears that the vessels will be used mostly in calm, near-shore waters. In service in Hawaii they faced conditions that resulted in such severe sea sickness among passengers that reports escaped occasionally into the commercial media.
So I was wondering if sea sickness pills might ever be issued to Navy sailors. We might usefully clue in the Okinawa sailors to pack a little Dramamine in their kit before getting on board. In an idle moment I did some Google research—and struck gold on the first hit. Check out this ad:
Yup, Dramamine Baby Formula Coupons.
I didn’t know babies could take Dramamine. They get sick and throw up kind of spontaneously, don’t they? It’s their nature. Or maybe it’s just worse if they are flying or on board a ship. But does Dramamine baby formula make sense?? I think the entry is the result of the website reacting to the search criteria that brought the user to the site. You can’t trust the web anymore, it’s rigged in every way imaginable. No, the link isn’t clickable.
Former governor Linda Lingle might have ordered up a supply of Dramamine Baby Formula to be provided no charge to parents taking their babies on board while the ships were still here. It would have been a useful gesture.
My son and his friends rode the Super Ferry to Maui during December. I believe it left Honolulu at 6:30 am to arrive in Maui at 8:30 am. I received a call from him at 9:00 am still on the Super Ferry. He said the swells were about the same height as the top of the Super Ferry, food was tossed all over the Ferry's floor, the Ferry was going up and down at a 45 degree angle making it impossible to walk, all this combined with the smell of vomit. They promptly cancelled their return ride and flew back to Honolulu a few days later. The EIS did not kill the Super Ferry, the business model did. It was not designed for year around use in Hawaiian waters, hence it's demise.
: January 31, 2012 at 11:11:00 PM HST That's the part that seldom, if ever, was reported in the newspapers.
Also, sanitary conditions aboard the Superferry were the responsibility of the FDA, but the FDA refused to investigate. On the other hand, I can imagine a local inspector trying to put a ferry trip to Maui on her expense account.
Larry, you may be pleased to note that a little blurb in today's Star Advertiser, noted that "alternative" sources have long said that the Superferries were meant to be prototypes for military use, so that now the Navy's purchase is no surprise. Go Larry!
: February 1, 2012 at 9:38:00 AM HST Yes, thanks, I noticed that.
If only the papers hadn't sucked up so much Superferry ad money while it was still running, we might have had some honest news.
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