@ Anonymous 13:25 By definition the Ady Gil did not ram the whalers, …

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@ Anonymous 13:25
By definition the Ady Gil did not ram the whalers, considering it was the Ady Gil that was rammed. The only matter of contention is if the Shonan Maru 2 *intentionally* rammed the Ady Gil, whether the Ady Gil intended to be rammed, or whether it was completely unintentional. I don’t believe it was intentional, the Shonan Maru 2 captain and crew probably expected the Ady Gil to move out of the way. The Ady Gil crew, meanwhile, did not expect the Shonan Maru 2 to sail on what was basically a collision course while the Ady Gil’s engines were off and they were not manoeuvring.

It is unsurprising that the Ady Gil’s engines powered up at the last moment – they would have been making a last ditch effort to evade when they realised the Shonan Maru 2 was bearing right down on top of them. It is possible that forward acceleration was applied at the last second, it wouldn’t be surprising if the person at the helm panicked under the circumstances and fumbled the throttle before hauling ass out of the cockpit. But regardless, suggesting that they intentionally wanted the boat to be rammed is still ludicrous.

The Ady Gil’s open deck area is quite small. It is the only place they could possibly relax in the open air, and it is quite obvious that that is exactly what they were doing. Claiming that the only reason they were there was because they intended to have the front of their boat rammed is a baseless conspiracy theory. People who claim that Obama isn’t a US citizen would like to hear from you.

You seem to accept that the Ady Gil was indeed not travelling under power until moments before the impact. The Shonan Maru 2 was some distance away when the Ady Gil’s engines were shut down with plenty of sea room between the two. By extension then, you must accept that it was the Shonan Maru 2 that failed to properly steer clear of a drifting vessel. Even without the apparent last-second acceleration, it seems as though the Shonan Maru 2 would still have clipped the bow of the Ady Gil.

Both parties were at fault to some degree, and neither party intended for the collision to occur.