by Barista Uno | Aug 16, 2013 | Manning and Training, Seafarers' Rights and Welfare
So much has been written about ILO Maritime Labour Convention, 2006 – the so-called ‘bill of rights’ for seafarers – that maritime folks must be exhausted by now. Still, we couldn’t help but tweet about MLC 2006 in the runup to its enforcement date on Tuesday, the 20th of August. The best thing about Twitter is its 140-character cap on text messages (with the option to attach photos). This makes for brevity, which Shakespeare called ‘the soul of wit’. Enjoy reading: (more…)
by Barista Uno | Jan 14, 2013 | Marine Accidents and Safety, Media, Communications and Language
We made a short blast on Twitter on the first anniversary of the Costa Concordia cruise tragedy, 13th January 2013, and the day after. We couldn’t help it. The whole Costa Concordia affair makes us twitch and think aloud – about the value of human life; how some misguided souls could be so quick to defend the ship captain; the state of the maritime press; the ugly reality behind the glamour world of cruising; and why the world is seeing no end to fatal accidents at sea. (more…)
by Barista Uno | Apr 15, 2012 | Announcements and Events, Marine Accidents and Safety, Media, Communications and Language
To relive the Titanic tragedy, we followed US-based RMS Titanic Inc on Twitter. The company, a subsidiary of Premier Exhibitions Inc, is the exclusive steward of the RMS Titanic dedicated to preserving the legacy of the ship, wreck site and all her passengers and crew through educational, historical, scientific and conservation based programs. We post here part of the series of tweets from RMS Titanic Inc on the events, as they happened, leading up to the actual sinking at 2:20am, 15th April 1912: (more…)
by Barista Uno | Apr 11, 2012 | Media, Communications and Language
Of late, we’ve been more active on Twitter. This social networking and microblogging service not only lets our readers stay tuned to Marine Café Blog. It also allows us to share spur-of-the-moment thoughts on any subject through text-based messages of up to 140 characters called “Tweets”. We’re not surprised that Twitter now has 140 million-plus active users: it’s both a source of information and an outlet for self-expression. Here’s a look at what we’ve been tweeting: (more…)
by Barista Uno | Sep 12, 2010 | Manning and Training, Media, Communications and Language
The authorities have shut down the recruitment booths. Still, Manila’s Rizal Park, better known by its old name “Luneta Park,” endures as the place to solicit Filipino seafarers. You see them every day: young lads wading through the crowd of seafarers, holding up small pieces of cardboard or bond paper with hastily scribbled details of job openings. This system of hiring is crude, inefficient and so Third World. In the 21st century, there must be a better way. (more…)
