Ellison, whose writing I admire tremendously, was very unlikely to have included this in his calculations.

https://notthebee.com/article/atomic-scientists-say-the-best-way-to-keep-nuclear-arsenals-secure-is-to-queer-them

My guess is “Yes” and “For a while.”

I think these deaths were criminal and the passengers were extraordinary fools, foolishness which often accompanies wealth .

Why is it other people’s responsibility to protect us from ourselves? Why *should* there be “official standards and regulations for this sort of thing?” What business is it of the government, or society in general, what risks people choose to take in their lives?

Freedom means not just the freedom to make good choices and live a risk free life. Freedom means that we are also free to make stupid choices and take ridiculous risks if we so choose.

Freedom also comes with the responsibility to accept the consequences for those choices and actions.

“Did the waiver that had to be signed by the clients/tourists actually say, “OUR SUB IS NOT CERTIFIED”? And then—perhaps—go on to explain, in detail, the why it wasn’t certified and the risks involved?”

Have you watched the video uncovered where Mr. Rush said, very clearly and explicitly, exactly that? He was leafing through the waiver form reading parts of it and, yes…it explicitly said that his vessel was not certified by any agency or body, that it was experimental and that its use could result in death.

I don’t believe that any of them “deserved” to die for their folly. But with the possible exception of the 19 year old, I don’t feel “sorrow” over their deaths. They weren’t innocent, they chose to undertake those risks freely and willingly. The risks in an undertaking such as this are obvious and clear, there’s no amount of “but Rush insisted it was safe” that’s going to convince me they didn’t understand the dangers they were undertaking.

I have enormous empathy for their families and loved ones…especially the mother of the 19 year old. They are the innocent victims of this tragedy, not the people who willingly put their lives at risk for a thrill.

If the reports that the 19 year old only agreed to go on the voyage to please his father are true, then I do have some sympathy for him. He felt pressured and wasn’t mature enough to resist that pressure. While he was a legal adult and technically responsible for his decisions, he wasn’t willingly accepting the risks, he was pressured to do so and that is worthy of empathy.

Hell, I’d think that because this submersible was an “experimental” one, it would be subject to all sorts of requirements— even more than the normal ones—before anyone, much less paying passengers—was allowed to do any kind of diving in it.

But, apparently that was not the case.