27 April 2012
Recently there has been a spate of TV programs on the Titanic in commemoration of the centenary of the sinking of the 'unsinkable' ship. One in particular focused on the selflessness of White Star employees as the ship was sinking. Both engineers and stokers in the boiler room worked desperately to slow the onrush of water so more passengers could be saved. Electricians re-routed the system so the passengers could see their way out to the lifeboats. The wireless operator kept sending messages until the end, hoping help would come soon.
All these people knew they would die and could have left their posts and attempted to save their own lives. Yet, apologists for capitalism keep telling us that no one is motivated by altruism and therefore socialism, a cooperative society, could not work. The above observation of the Titanic disaster is merely one of the many examples history gives to prove such a theory does not hold water.
