I live in Florida. Most, if not all, other tourism sources have been open since last July. Cruising is the only large tourism center not allowed to open. If the 10% number is accurate, try taking 10% from any economy and see how much it hurts. While this may not affect someone living in Delaware, it most certainly affects someone living in Florida and especially those who rely on that part of the economy to make a living, whether they are American or not.
No one here has written that Florida would not be hurt by the continuing suspension of cruising.
If you go back to the beginning of the thread though, what infuriate me the most is the cavalier attitude of the first few posters with their "bye bye" and "see ya" posts.
That's me! I still believe it. I think cruising is still *not safe*, and the cruise industry "health panel's" and other groups they've created in order to improve their PR after the 2020 debacle that has scared away many from cruising can only be assumed to have been done as a marketing effort in order to not go bankrupt. I don't blame the cruise industry for using their PR and marketing teams to improve perception, but ultimately I have read little about actual, factual, changes on board ships which have improved air flow and circulation (I've read a lot about this, and it's predominantly marketing). Videos and pictures from cruises which have operated in the last year show little adherence to social distancing (in fact, I distinctly recall a video where ships officers were shaking hands and hugging (!!) passengers).
Yet, I still have five cruises booked and intend to book more, though some of those I have will likely be canceled or rebooked for a later date.
I'm still of the opinion it's too early for cruising to resume. Much of my opinion is due to my significant and regular cruising over the last number of years where I have seen first hand the indifference of crew following health guidelines carefully. Instead, they sort-of follow guidance...and most crew have an inability to correct a passenger when the passenger flaunts health guidance (washy washy), etc.
There are many, many companies that move their facilities outside of the US due to tax/regulation concerns (all of the big car makers/Nike/etc...) with nary a word about it.
Um...no. Lots of people notice when these companies move abroad. You're now attempting to rewrite history. Do a few searches and you'll see numerous references to the response of companies moving abroad, what that means to our economy, and the long-term anticipated impact such changes will have on our economy (some of which are already occurring).
Also, other cruise lines (Royal and NCL) stated prior to Carnival's media release that they were going to start operations outside of the US with not a peep being made.
Once again, you're rewriting history. Lots of peeps were made, mostly in favor of their decision (especially by the cruise fanatics).
So is it just a general disdain for Carnival, the largest, most successful of all of the cruise lines, or a disdain for the entire cruising industry? In either case, such flippancy is uncalled for as Carnival is just a business, like Disney/Universal/Seaworld that is trying to figure out how to keep it's head above water and keep a business alive during these times that so many people count on for employment and pleasure.
Now you're asking us to respect businesses because...they're a business. Huh? Sorry, nope. Businesses need to earn my trust, earn my respect, and earn my $$. I don't want the cruise industry to fail (once again, I currently have five booked cruises) but they need, can, and must do better.
I suspect this will all be solved in the near future once every cruise line commits that every person on board must be vaccinated and all countries the ship visits are doing well in terms of Covid vaccination. Over time I think this would be relaxed so those who are medically unable to be vaccinated (and those are very few, from what I understand) would also be able to cruise. For myself, as of now I do not want to be on a ship in the next year or so with anyone who has not been vaccinated, and if that means I must cancel my trip so be it. Guidance changes over time, so as new info is released my opinion will no doubt also change.
While I don't work for the cruise line industry, I certainly can empathize with those who do and how their lives, both in the US and overseas, have been utterly disrupted, and in many cases, destroyed, by the actions of the CDC.
You seem to think those of us who do not believe it is yet safe to cruise have a fundamental issue with the cruise industry. Untrue. I also empathize with those who work in the cruise industry and am personally concerned that their livelihoods have been impacted by this pandemic (as many of us have been, regardless of industry). I do not believe this is strictly due to the CDC. You are blaming the agency responsible for our collective health when you should be blaming your neighbors, your community, your State, your political leaders and other Americans for not following medical advice when this pandemic was first discovered. We could have had it under control had we followed guidance but that was too difficult. And now you want to blame someone and the CDC is an obvious target for your rage.
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