Hello everyone,

I recently came by a coastie who made an interesting statement. He said that construction ships, such as the buoy tender that he worked on, were often referred to as slave ships by crew members.

I believe that this is simply a jest made on the part of those involved with shipboard life, but I got to thinking about the implications behind the stated metaphor:

White on the top... like a slave ship, the officers or, the white people in this case, are on the top of the ship - the comfortable, cared for, and more controlling part of the vessel.

Black on the bottom... like a slave ship, the working crew or, those intended to be sold as slaves, are on the bottom - the area meant to be dinged up, dented, used, and abused.

Now, I suppose my initial reaction - that this was simply a humorous metahpor - was soon followed by concern. Are these ships really painted this way with any express purpose in mind? Is this a way to keep the crew in line through mental subversion?

I believe this is a metaphor with far reaching implications.

I think you read WWWAAAYYYY to much into this. First of all, buoy tenders are black with a red bottom, not white over black. This is because it would be a pain to keep a white cutter looking good while bouncing buoys off the side doing work.

Also, the black/red paint used on the hulls of our partol, or white cutters, is a special paint that prohibits sea growth, but not all. When a cutter has been in the water for a while, it develops a scum-line from all the junk in the water. So if the bottom of the hull is painted black/red the scum line is less visable, keeping the cutter looking sharp.

Your post reminds me of that scene from the movie "Boomarang" where Martin Lawrences character is claiming that the game of pool is racist, stating that the green table top represents the earth, and the meaning of the white ball being used to knock out all the other colored balls, until only the black ball is left, and then winning the game by knocking out that black ball is a racist game.

You know what thats a good point, perhaps you should e-mail your idea to www.whogivesacrap.com. Maybe they do it because nasty *** buoys bouncing off the hull of a white boat tends to make the ship look like crap therefore lets paint it black and save thousands of dollars a year on paint and supplies. Thats just me though.

I was talkin to Kempnauk not Duckcop

quote:

Originally posted by BOSOX05:
You know what thats a good point, perhaps you should e-mail your idea to www.whogivesacrap.com. Maybe they do it because nasty *** buoys bouncing off the hull of a white boat tends to make the ship look like crap therefore lets paint it black and save thousands of dollars a year on paint and supplies. Thats just me though.

I clicked on your link just to see what would happen, and there really is a site Whogivesacrap.com. That's funny, right there.

Also I didn't know that whogivesacrap.com was a real site

You guys need to think a little deeper ... this delves into the spiritual yin/yang of the universe ... the perpetuation of the master/slave mentality ... the primal urge of the alpha male to emerge ... and ultimately, who conquers the universe!

quote:

Originally posted by duckcop:
First of all, buoy tenders are black with a red bottom, not white over black.

Buoy tenders have a white superstructure with black hull which I believe the original poster is referring to when they discuss white on top/ black on bottom.

quote:

Originally posted by CgShipmate:

quote:

Originally posted by duckcop:
First of all, buoy tenders are black with a red bottom, not white over black.

Buoy tenders have a white superstructure with black hull which I believe the original poster is referring to when they discuss white on top/ black on bottom.

After I re-read the original post, I think you may be right. Still, quite a stretch to think it has anything to do with "mental subversion". I was on a 180, and the only person who "lived in the white part" was the CO. The wardroom is even in the "black part". Again, quite a stretch.

Having served on a buoy tender as well as having been in the CG for 24 years I can honestly say I have NEVER heard that term used. Sorry to play the TROLL card but for someone to come here and make such an outlandish statement just to stir people up, well I can think of other things to call you but don't want to violate any of the rules. I know we aren't supposed to say anything about unanimous posters but yours goes into the realm of false. I don't believe your active duty CG, those of us serving or having served wouldn't say, "I recently came by a coastie" We would say something like "I ran into a FELLOW coastie, or "shipmate". I guess with a statement like, "on the part of those involved with shipboard life" you could be an airdale but I'll stick to my earlier assessment.

Seven years of my life has been in the bottom of a ship (cutter) and I'm white as snow. Next.

chapwood......

I am kinda tan from painting, does that count?

Come to think of it, they used to use the terms master and slave in LORAN. Hmmmm, maybe there's something to all this...

(Now where'd I put my fishing pole?)

quote:

Seven years of my life has been in the bottom of a ship (cutter) and I'm white as snow. Next.

Yet, you're part of the Black Gang. Rise up, and throw off your shackles and chains ... oh wait, that would be deck force.

quote:

Originally posted by Brian_Jordan:
Come to think of it, they used to use the terms master and slave in LORAN. Hmmmm, maybe there's something to all this...

(Now where'd I put my fishing pole?)

What about "plugging the MALE end of the plug into the FEMALE end..." I think your on to something there Brian. But this gets into being PC. Some things just FIT (no pun intended) but lack of better words or clear term.

Saw this somewhere, can't remember where. May have been here. But a great definition of Political Correctness:

THE DEFINITION OF
POLITICAL CORRECTNESS

"A doctrine fostered by a delusional, illogical Liberal minority, and rabidly promoted by an unscrupulous Left-stream media, which holds forth the proposition that it is entirely possible to pick up a turd by the clean end."

Soooo, does that mean a white superstructure with a Red hull could indicate the crew is in Hell? Or a White over White perhaps you are in heaven? Nahhhhh, to many shipmates are raising hell to be riding in heaven.

T

If someone really did refer to a buoy tender as a "slave ship" as originally stated by the poster I think it would have more to do with hard work, long hours, and little recognition compared to some other units in the coast guard. I can't fathom someone thinking it had anything to do with the ship itself.

quote:

Originally posted by JBjunior:
If someone really did refer to a buoy tender as a "slave ship" as originally stated by the poster I think it would have more to do with hard work, long hours, and little recognition compared to some other units in the coast guard. I can't fathom someone thinking it had anything to do with the ship itself.

I concur 100%.

I'm On the only 225 in D7, we joke around with the whole white/black paint on the boat being that half the time we are doin aton like a black hull(like were suppose to) the other half were doing Migrants/LE or some other White Hull Mission! were half WLB and Half WMEC.

I guess thats what you get for being in D7 though!