I was watching the Today Show and saw a report from Jeff Rossen about cruise ships and lifeguards. The premise of the story is that cruise pools are not safe and that it all boils down to money for the cruise lines. That the cruise lines care more about pushing drinks than passenger safety.
Watch the video
You can watch the piece here.
Commentary
Now, first off – I’m going to say that I don’t have kids – however, I do have two nieces and watched them grow up. I’ve spent a considerable amount of time with them around pools.
All the instances where the kids drowned or were in danger in the clips, the parents were no where near the kids or “turned their back for a second.”
I’m not trying to discount that accidents happen – they do.
Per the Cruise Line International Association, more than 1.5 million kids cruise per year. Per a Today Show report filed in 2014, more than 54% of Americans can’t swim well enough to save themselves. Can’t swim, stay out of the water – or keep your kids out of the water.
Right now Disney Cruise Line is the only cruise line with lifeguards.
Peanut Gallery Quote
“It’s all about money for them. Because there’s such a small amount of space on the ships, [whenever] they can either have a crew member or a passenger on board, they always choose the passengers, because the passengers are spending money,” said maritime attorney Mike Winkleman.
Final Thoughts
This seems more like common sense than a subjective argument.
So, I leave it with you: Should cruise lines hire lifeguards or should parents not take a vacation from being parents?
photo: Flickr Creative Commons
