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[Rottweiler]

At between 8pm and 9pm this evening, it will be 30 years to the day that the Penlee Lifeboat,the "SOLOMON BROWNE", was lost with all her crew,in the most horrendous of conditions. Attempting to rescue the crew of the ship the "Union Star" which had broken down and heading ever nearer to the rocks off the coast of Cornwall. In one instance the Lifeboat had been thrown up onto the deck of the cargo ship,and slid off again. A message on the radio from the Coxswain of the Lifeboat stated "We have gor four off,and we are going in again" NOTHING more was heard of the Lifeboat.The American Helicopter Rescue Pilot,on scene at the time,said "They were the most Heroic men I have ever seen"  At the small village of Mousehole, and of nearby Newlyn, from where the Valiant crew came,most if not all either knew or were related.
In these hard times, with the RNLI,not generating the donations needed to keep this wonderful service going, I ask that you please remember these brave men, and perhaps donate a little more to a much needed Service.
 We Will Remember Them.
Thank You.   
Mick

[nhp651]

there is a documentary about the disaster on BBC4 tomorrow night at 22.00 hours about it..........compulsive but very sad watching...........say a prayer for them all including the 8 crew lost from the UNION STAR. tonight

neil.

[DickyD]

We appear to have two topics running on this subject, could we not get a moderator to combine the two ?

[Rottweiler]

does it really matter that I posted this in two seperate places ? The whole point is to get it over to one and all,WHY we need the RNLI. I would have thought the subject matter,would have been of more interest than moderation.
Thank you to all who have responded in good stead. PLEASE watch the documetary on BBC4 tonight,and I hope this comment does not get moderated for advertising!!!
The RNLI raised over £50 million pounds from donations in the last year,but had to spend £64 million on neccessary replacements and upgrades. MY point, was to raise awareness of the need for this wonderful service,and perhaps bring it to the minds of the good public,of just what the RNLI do for all who go to sea.
Thanks.
Mick

[DickyD]

Keep ypur hair on, I wasn't asking for it to be moderated.

I was interested to see other peoples comments on your topic, half of which I initially missed because you decided for some reason to have two topics with the same heading when one would have done the same thing.

I shall be watching the documentary and our club donates regularly to the RNLI.

Moderated, c'mon ! Wake up !!

[Rottweiler]

quote     "We appear to have two topics running on this subject, could we not get a moderator to combine the two ?"
woken up, put on my wig,teased my hackles into place and re read the comment. If you were not trying to get it moderated then what does the above quote mean? I shall make no further comment,apart from to state that thank goodness a lot of people donate and or raise funds for the RNLI,without whom we cannot  exist and leave all to make their own opinion,and hopefully encourage others to do so.

[DickyD]

MODERATED

How do I explain without using drawings.

Lets try this

I DO NOT WANT THE TOPIC MODERATED. What I suggested is that a moderator [being the only person that can move topics] could combine your two topics to make them

easier to follow by us lesser mortals. THIS IS NOT MODERATION.

[CJ1]

Calm down guys.

Mick,

I think you may have misread what's happened here or perhaps are being oversensitive. DickyD just made a sensible suggestion to have all the very valid comments about an important subject available to us all in one topic. That makes it easier for us all to read and gives the whole story.

He wasn't having a go at you nor asking for the topics to be moderated, just combined.

As a Governor of the RNLI, I want to see as much publicity for the guys as possible. We should all be on the same side and pulling together here on Mayhem, and DickyD is not trying to change your postings, just making a very practical suggestion.

Chris.  

[DickyD]

Thanks Chris, nicely put, exactly what I meant. 

[irishcarguy]

Hi Mick, I am not aware of any fund raising for the RNLI on this side of the Atlantic, is there such a thing happening ?. It is a sad state when such a wonderfull & necessary service has to beg for money to keep running, yet we have no trouble finding money for wars & other stupid things like the Olympics. Mick B.

[Colin Bishop]

It is a sad state when such a wonderfull & necessary service has to beg for money to keep running

It's not like that at all. The RNLI, and indeed the British and Irish Nations take great pride in the fact that is it 100% funded by donations and receives no taxpayer's money with the governmental control that entails. The RNLI has a very efficient fund raising operation which is widely supported, not least by boat modellers and also the sailing fraternity.

Colin

[john s 2]

Yes i support the RNLI . But im increasingly concerned about the way the service is used.If my car breaks down then i should have a rescue service that i pay for. Sadly i feel that the Rnli is being used as a breakdown ,recovery service. Paid for by myself and others who genually want to save peoples lifes.So a fishermans boat fails. Is it not about time some charges are made? I do realize there are to sides to this. What do other members feel?

[Colin Bishop]

What do other members feel?

This has been previously debated at great length on another thread. Put RNLI in the search box on the main forum page and you will probably find it.

Colin

[john s 2]

Have already read previous threads. Thanks Colin. I thought that a further discussion might be in order. As it seems that now there should be changes? Thanks John.

[Colin Bishop]

As it seems that now there should be changes?

Why do you think that John? I agree that there are argumentsin favour of charging for rescues, especially when people have been particularly stupid, but that would rather undermine the ethos of the service as you would need to charge everyone as it would be impossible to fix the dividing line between an unfortunate accident (which can always occur at sea) and people who have been culpable. I wasn't aware of any impending moves towards charging for the service - have I missed something?

Colin

[john s 2]

Times change. In general money is becoming tighter. The cost of new and more sopisticated lifeboats can and will increase. By how much has the fuel bill alone increased? Thankfully Because of the many volantears the staff costs remain low. Yes i do not know what changes should be made. People like yourself Colin no doubt have far more knowledge and understanding than me. I just feel there could possibly some way of Better funding. How charging would work is an emotive subject i know. But if for instance a fishing boat is towed in at no cost . How much did this cost the Rnli? No doubt at Queenies Regatterthe life boats will be there at whos cost. A possible misuse of funds? Money given to save lives John.

[Colin Bishop]

John, you make some perfectly valid points and I know there are people who would agree with you although they would be in a minority at present. Just because people get rescued for free doesn't mean that they don't pay anything. Although there are some people who actually resent being rescued, believe it or not, most people who benefit from the RNLI's services do make a significant contribution in gratitude. When I used to have my own boat I took out RNLI Offshore Membership as I felt it was only right to contribute to an organisation that might one day save my life. I still have it although I no longer sail. Most right thinking leisure boaters are also RNLI members on a voluntary basis which is a sort of insurance premium if you care to look at it that way.

To me, the big plus of the RNLI is that it works without the need to put an overt price on rescues which I happen to think is quite a noble thing. The crews give their time for nothing and are prepared to put their lives at risk in doing so which reflects the highest altruism and is something to be celebrated. In return, all right thinking seafarers respect this attitude and are more than happy to contribute on a voluntary basis. You will always get some who take advantage but don't let that detract from the bigger picture - after all the NHS still treats drunks however undeserving they may be.

Charge if you wish but beware the bureaucracy that will go with it. And if the RNLI were Government funded, just how many lifeboat stations would have been closed in order to make financial cuts just as we have lost Coastguard facilities plus withdrawal of the strategic on station rescue tugs which I fear will be something that we will bitterly regret before very long.

as for the Queen's Jubilee Pageant on the Thames, I would see this as an excellent opportunity for the RNLI to promote its presence and thereby encourage support for its services.

Colin

[Rottweiler]

Whatever your thoughts,the RNLI are doing their best to cut costs .They are there to protect our seas,no matter whoever,or whatever is concerned. thank ,God the government is not involved,because it would soon be involved in some drastic cost cutting,by closing stations,or buying Lifeboats from foreign manufacturers and cutting crews even to bare minimum.Goodness knows if elf n safety were brought in,wouldn't there be someone sat in an office saying "launch?? of course you cant launch! the sea is much too rough tonight,and it may put lives at risk if the lifeboat were to launch in these conditions.lets wait to sea when it calms down and then send them out" As far as charging for the service goes,would YOU like to pay for an ambulance,or fire brigade,well a Lifeboat is all these and more,and you don't pay for land based rescue.
Personally I would love to charge the yellow welly brigade,as it seems like a good many of them think "its blowing a gale,ideal sailing conditions.Lets go have some fun" They then go out,passing the professional boatmen,such as fishermen,coming IN to escape the storm.
 Most who live by the sea,learn to appreciate the conditions that can come up suddenly.Lifeboatmen ARE aware,and are still prepared to go out and attempt to rescue these people. Let us keep the service as it is,and let the people who run it,cut costs where they SAFELY can.I have learnt just today that just one simple cost cutting item will save £25000.00 a year .
Mick

[Colin Bishop]

Well said Mick. The RNLI may not be perfect but it's streets ahead of what any Government funded organisation would be like.

But don't tar all the 'yellow welly' brigade alike. Most leisure sailors are sensible enough but you will always get the small irresponsible minority that hits the headlines - some of these are even in command of Italian cruise ships!

Colin

[john s 2]

What can i say? Do agree. John.

[dpbarry]

It's not like that at all. The RNLI, and indeed the British and Irish Nations take great pride in the fact that is it 100% funded by donations and receives no taxpayer's money with the governmental control that entails. The RNLI has a very efficient fund raising operation which is widely supported, not least by boat modellers and also the sailing fraternity.

Colin

And long live the RNLI for not having any input from the government.  If they (Government) ever get their hand on the tiller then we are done for - I'm an ex-coastie.  Don't get me wrong. Coastie's do a great job as well but the interference from government is a disgrace with all the cutback etc.

Declan

[dpbarry]

What can i say? Do agree. John.

Ere..  I'm a yellow wellie!!! I'm RNLI crew.  Moved over from coasties

Declan