Talk:United States Merchant Marine/Archive 1
Page contents not supported in other languages.
This archive was created as per Wikipedia:How to archive a talk page. With the exception of grouping some comments together and making slight modifications to section headers, I believe it's a faithful representation of the state of the prior talk page. Haus42 13:35, 27 March 2007 (UTC)
I learned a bit about the US Merchant Marine writing this article. I discovered that a Merchant Marine is a member of the US Merchant Marine and that the term Merchant Marine is frequently and incorrectly used to identify both the organization and a member (or worker) of said organization. Also, it's Merchant Marine not Merchant marine. vudu 08:04, 29 Aug 2003 (UTC)
Why "merchant marine" (lower case) rather than "Merchant Marine"? All these "sailors" belong to a Merchant Marine organization, whether American, Russian, or Japanese. Just interested in the logic. vudu 20:50, 31 Oct 2003 (UTC)
So far I have been the primary author of the Life at Sea section. Little by little, based upon feedback, I have upgraded the content from what originally was described as "docu-drama." Subsequent re-writes still earned me a Wikipedia "Tone" template warning that the tone was not appropriate for an encylopedia. But I am making progress! Now the latest comments merely reference the text as "overly sympathetic." At least no one disputes the facts as I write them. Life at sea: Isolated? Check. Occupational hazards? Check. Bemoaning? I don't think so.
My own critque is that the Life at Sea text narrative is weighted towards the difficulties of life at sea. So far the account does not include much about the upside of living a life at sea, such as travel, nature, teamwork, adventure, and more. Rakasta1, or others, care to join in to add balance to the text?Fishdecoy 00:54, 8 October 2006 (UTC)
Is it me or do parts of the Life at Sea section sound like a docu-drama? Info about watch routines is good, but other material is less informational and more sentimental. Pesco 16:23, 1 May 2006 (UTC)
Fishdecoy 01:02, 10 May 2006 (UTC)
-- This life at sea section is far too empathic. You don't see the Army page bemoaning how difficult being in the infantry is. I am a merchant marine (Chief Mate) and I've sailed with private and MSC ships in the past. If anyone needs current info on the state of the industry let me know. Rakasta1 08:00, 7 October 2006 (UTC)
Here are some paragraphs I drafted. Let me know what you think.
Life at sea for the Merchant Mariner of the 21st century is a both a physically demanding and technologically challenging profession. Careers are highly specialized and require a great commitment to gaining on the job experience as well as constant post graduate education to maintain proficiency in a rapidly evolving industry. Ships no longer possess the heterogeneous characteristics of the Yard & Stay or Break Bulk ships of the past. They have been supplanted by specialized ships with unique cargo systems and propulsion methods. The modern sailor finds they must devote much of their career to becoming competent in the ship class with which they take employment.
Method of employment is also a major factor that affects the life of a Merchant Mariner. A common option is to join one of the sailing unions. These unions operate as a supplier of licensed mariners to ship owners who contract with them. Ship assignments are based upon seniority. Much of the US container ship and tanker fleet is manned by unions. Another option is the Military Sealift Command. MSC hires “civilian mariners” to operate US government ships in support on military operations all around the world. A majority of these ships are ammo, food and fuel ships that underway replenish Navy battle groups. Although, MSC does operate missile tracking ships and hospital ships as well. The third option is to seek employment with a private company that mans its own fleet. Much of the oil exploration operations in the US are staffed by non-union / non-government mariners. These include jobs aboard drill ships, semi-submersible platforms and off-shore supply vessels.
Licensing plays an important role in a mariner’s career. The license is issued by the U.S. Coast Guard and is broken down into 2 departments, engine and deck, each with 4 corresponding levels of competency culminating with Master for the deck department and Chief Engineer for the engine department. The minimum crew of a ship is dictated by the Coast Guard on the ship’s Certificate of Inspection. The COI lists the number and class of licenses that are needed to safely man a ship. Thus, employment requires having the correct license for the mandated position aboard a ship. Obtaining a license begins with attending one of the 6 state maritime academies or the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy which is a federal institution. Upon graduation you will be issued a 3rd Mate or 3rd assistant engineer license and may apply with a company or union. In order to upgrade your license you will need to gain more sea time and attend Coast Guard mandated classes and finally passes a raise in grade exam. Rakasta1 08:43, 7 October 2006 (UTC)
It was my understanding that the United States Navy Armed Guard, not merchant mariners operated the weapons on armed merchantmen. Hence the disputed tag on the image. --J Clear 23:39, 23 September 2006 (UTC)
--It is my understanding that Navy hands were assigned to merchant marine ships to handle the weapons since civilian mariners have no formal weapons training. When I attended the Merchant Marine Academy there is one particular painting of a mariner manning a gun after all the Navy gunners are killed. The name of the painting escapes me now but it was a noteworthy event becuase an untrained mariner was able to take over for Navy and fight on. I will try to find the pictures name.Rakasta1 08:00, 7 October 2006 (UTC)
-Found it. The painter is W.M. Wilson. It depicts Edwin K. O.Hara, a cadet, manning the ship's gun after the Navy Armed Guard is killed. No title is listed but here is a web site that will tell you more...http://www.dvrbs.com/Monuments/Camden/CamdenNJ-AmericanMerchantMarineMemorial.htmRakasta1 08:00, 7 October 2006 (UTC)
I suggest putting the picture back in but add a more generic caption, for example, gun crew on US Merchant ship or similar. KAM 23:09, 28 October 2006 (UTC)
Somebody put him in as a Mariner. Are riverboat people mariners? Lou Sander 17:21, 21 October 2006 (UTC)
The service should never be referred to as the Merchant Marine"s".
I'm not sure what it typo and what id ment to be said, but it doesn't really stand alone very well. Perhaps if it is cleaned up and explained it can go back in. Carptrash 14:37, 3 November 2006 (UTC)
There is a missing person from the list of Noted U.S. Merchant Mariners: Paul Teutul, Sr., who is the well-known host of American Chopper. He is cited as being a merchant marine in the POW/MIA Bike episodes, mentioning it in passing during one of the episodes[1]. Jaerune 09:17, 5 November 2006 (UTC)
The article begins The United States Merchant Marine comprise the merchant ships that are used to transport ... ". But there is nothing in the about the number of ships that are in the program today (or, for that matter, any sense of the history of the service since WWII). Are there still ANY U.S.-flagged merchant ships? Heavily subsidized? Cost? And why no mention of the National Defense Reserve Fleet? John Broughton | Talk 01:07, 3 December 2006 (UTC)