Captain's Log, April 30, 2014 from the Rebel Heart Blog

[Rustic Charm]

I'm somewhat flabbergasted at these posts and the personal nature of the posts to, when it is blatantly obvious that the subject of the posts are a part of this community. Is the intent deliberately trying to drive this family off these forums where they have been ( from what I can see) quite a regular contributor?

And NO, just because someone needs rescuing and it costs $ ,does not mean you are entitled to an explanation!

[Scottuk]

And NO, just because someone needs rescuing and it costs $ ,does not mean you are entitled to an explanation!

Can you explain why?

[boatman61]

Okay.. I have my own theories about this event, disaster, call it what you will.. these are based on past events that have happened to people I've met on the water over the years, their dreams and ambitions.. and what the results of their attempts were..
I've seen couples break up over much less and big guys break down and walk away whereas the 'little lady' stayed with the boat and 'lived the dream'... but that's a personal situation.. and unlike many I'm not into the reality show type of analysis like 'Kilroy' and other sicko's who make money outa sad people..
The problem seems to me that the focus of the thread has left the boat/seamanship side of the equation and 'Morphed' into a voyeuristic fascination of their personal life and relationship status etc.. its none of your damn business.. they owe no one on here a damn thing and if I was in their place.. when it comes to my personal life I'd tell you to sit on the Empire State and SWIVEL..
But.. I still think he made some maritime cock-ups..

[downunder]

Originally Posted by Scottuk

I think the piecemeal fashion of releasing information is what fosters distortions. Do they owe an explanation of all facets that might of lead to their situation? Damn right, if an estimated $663,000 in public funds was spent on their 'rescue'.

You need to get over it.

Meanwhile here in Australia we are still looking for the Flight MH370.

[GeoPowers]

My guess is that at least some of the posts here will make it to a book. The RH book "where all your burning questions will be answered". I see everything else this couple has publicly communicated (and held conspicuously held silent about ) post-rescue as supporting the book.

[Scottuk]

You need to get over it.

Touche'. What a well reasoned and presented argument.

Australia is not the only country to have spent money on the search for the airplane. I am sure one of the goals of the search is to NOT find out how it disappeared in the first place.

[Blue Crab]

I thought I was over it. The whole story is beyond annoying in some respects but this latest missive from Charlotte is OTT: When thirty-somethings start waxing philosophically after a disastrous, unsuccessful, and costly misadventure ... geez Louise.

Most of us had read Thoreau before the Kauffmans were born. Condescending is much too polite a term. 'Sounded like a wholly different author than the frightful and unskilled, far-too-personal blog-writing young lady of months past.

About time to "Hush Hush Sweet Charlotte," and for the apologists to stand down.

[colemj]

Particularly when you consider they were rescued by, and took a lot of free money and other donations from, those pitiful people leading "lives of quiet desperation" they have so much derision for.

Mark

[oldragbaggers]

Dumnmad, thank you for your blunt comments. I mean that sincerely. You are correct, I did not consider the hazing that might follow them revealing in errors. I don't know that the result would be as extreme as you think it would be, but if that's what they fear then I can certainly understand why they would be quiet.

And Boatman, I want no information about their private life.....at all.

I guess what I had hoped for was something for all those young dreamers who no doubt have been following them for a long time hoping to follow in their footsteps and do what they are doing, or tried to do. Do they owe it to anyone...technically, no of course they don't.

But they are the ones that have made it a mission for quite some time to put themselves out there as an example of the dream. They're young, they're charismatic, they are quite entertaining as writers, they're ballsy. It would be easy to see why a lot of aspiring adventurers, especially those in their age demographic, would be hanging on their every word and move. I had just hoped they would have offered something to them. To either caution them, or encourage them, to say what went right, what went wrong, what they would have done different. Should they have done it at all? Knowing what they know now would they do it again? Would they stick to the coast until the kids are bigger? Would they have done a more thorough deck repair? Would they have made sure to build better sea bunks for the kids? Would Eric have seen to it that Charlotte had more experience skippering the boat on her own? They were all about sharing every nuance of what they were doing when things were going well, why not do it now that things did not go well? That was my only thought.


It's not for me. I have no intention of doing what they did, and if I were it wouldn't be in the way they did it. And I am not judging them. I think it took a lot of guts and they accomplished a lot. It's just my personality to do things in a different way, and that's probably part of the reason why we never made the leap and cut the dock lines for good.

And I really do hope they take what they learned and make it back out there. And I hope they write honestly and openly about it, the good and the bad. I love to read a good sailing tome and they are both talented writers.

[Blue Crab]

Originally Posted by Scottuk

... Australia is not the only country to have spent money on the search for the airplane. I am sure one of the goals of the search is to NOT find out how it disappeared in the first place.

I think I see wot yer saying.

One thing I enjoyed recently was an email that circulated in the U.S. at least suggesting, in short, the pilot took out the co-pilot or vice versa, ascended to an altitude that took out the passengers, then headed for Diego Garcia.

The sats and other HIGH tec stuff protecting DG, calculated the flight pattern, scrambled assets toward airliner, closing let's say at 2,000+ MPH, and getting no visual or radio response did a boom boom. In the stunned week that followed, cleanup crews knowing the exact splash point, did their quiet work, and zipped up.

Lotta people don't like these kinds of theories but the US govt, IMHO, is more than capable of this kind of action and coverup.

[Scottuk]

I think you might have misinterpreted my sarcastic comment Blue Crab. The goal of the search would have to be to find information about what happened to the plane. Otherwise it would be pointless.

[Blue Crab]

Originally Posted by oldragbaggers

... I guess what I had hoped for was something for all those young dreamers who no doubt have been following them for a long time hoping to follow in their footsteps and do what they are doing, or tried to do ... I love to read a good sailing tome and they are both talented writers.

Yeah yeah yeah, me too. May I suggest to all those aspiring souls that they start reading the Pardeys, another nice, well-mannered and talented coupla writers with REAL sailing experience under their foulies to write about.

[Blue Crab]

Originally Posted by Scottuk

I think you might have misinterpreted my sarcastic comment Blue Crab. The goal of the search would have to be to find information about what happened to the plane. Otherwise it would be pointless.

Not so sure, Mate. The referenced "conspiracy" theory ties up some loose ends in a somewhat reasonable way. Obviously many would disagree with that assessment but something unusual happened out there, I suspect.

And with all the eyes in the skies, somebody is certain to know the location of the plane as it "left" radar/lazer/lens/whateverelsewegot coverage.

Now, back to Days of Other People's Lives. Over

[oldragbaggers]

Blue Crab....I couldn't agree with you more. My sailing library includes the Pardeys, the Hiscocks, the Roths, Don Casey, Bruce Bingham, Ferenc Mate, Herb Payson, Jimmy Cornell, Don Street, and many more of the same caliber and generation. That's who I was reading when we were learning to sail and those are the books I would still read today if I were looking for sound advice and instruction and a glimpse back into the way cruising used to be.

I personally would not be reading Eric and Charlotte if I were looking for real information.....but I found their blog to be entertaining mostly due to their writing style more than the actual content.

Unfortunately, mostly the younger set coming up today are going to be scouring the (free) internet looking for their information rather than spending their money on books written by authors who were using sextants for navigation and sailing without engines. For better or for worse, for at least some of them, it's likely they are reading Eric and Charlotte. Eric and Charlotte invited that following. Now they can use it for better or for worse, or they can not use it at all. I had hoped they would use it for better. But, of course, the choice is strictly up to them.

[letsgetsailing3]

Originally Posted by boatman61

The problem seems to me that the focus of the thread has left the boat/seamanship side of the equation and 'Morphed' into a voyeuristic fascination of their personal life and relationship status etc.. its none of your damn business.. they owe no one on here a damn thing and if I was in their place.. when it comes to my personal life I'd tell you to sit on the Empire State and SWIVEL..
But.. I still think he made some maritime cock-ups..

I mostly agree. Did you read the referenced article about the Kaufmans? It's about lifestyle choices, not about seamanship or the actual events. Charlotte is a bit hard on people who make "traditional" choices. Seems to me that's just going to stoke the fire, not put it out.

I'd rather know what actually happened, but it appears they'd prefer to reserve those details, at least for now.