July 4, 2015 - dancing on the titanic

On the morning of April 15, 1912, the ship named the Titanic struck an iceberg in the Atlantic Ocean during its voyage from the United Kingdom to New York City. At least 1500 crew and passengers lost their lives in a frigid watery grave that day.

Under the command of Edward Smith, the ship's passengers included some of the wealthiest people in the world, as well as hundreds of immigrants from Great Britain and Ireland, Scandinavia and elsewhere throughout Europe, all seeking a new life of personal freedom and prosperity in North America.

This is a story that has been told again and again in America since that fateful day and many lessons have been learned about the safety measures necessary to protect all who would travel by sea thereafter…

But the story few Americans know is how the ship’s Commander, Edward Smith, reacted to the news that his ship was indeed sinking and there would be nothing he could do to stop it or save more than 1500 of his passengers…

In short, Commander Smith instructed the band to continue playing. The band was to keep playing until the icy water consumed the dance hall, so that the passengers onboard would not panic. The band was to meet their fatal demise while playing on, as they watched the passengers dance on, knowing the entire time that they would all soon die…

The passengers knew nothing different for hours, dancing, drinking, celebrating and living it up, as if life could be no sweeter… The ship struck the iceberg at 11:40 PM the night before. But it wasn’t until 2:20 AM that the ship finally broke apart, capsizing and slipping to a watery grave in the depths of the Atlantic.

Today, our country is in equal distress and the band is still playing and the people are still dancing…

Continue . . . http://www.newswithviews.com/JBWilliams/williams306.htm