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Sins at Sea
Ross A. Klein, Gabriola Island, BC: New Society Publishers, 2002.
Reviewed by Chris Roberts
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If Ralph Nader had targeted the cruise industry rather than General Motors, he might well have written the sort of expose that Ross Klein has given us. Peeling away the slick promises of a care-free and luxurious cruise vacation at sea, Klein reveals an industry characterized by profit-driven corner-cutting, questionable safety standards, exploitative labour conditions and a dismal environmental track record.
The cruise industry is one of the fastest-growing sectors of an already rapidly-expanding tourism industry. This is perhaps unsurprising, given the advantages that cruise ships enjoy relative to on-land resorts and vacation spots. Cruise ships carry an average of 2000 passengers (with the largest accommodating 5000), giving cruise lines a rich and captive supply of vacationers; passengers are frequently confined within a total commodified environment replete with additional moneymaking opportunities (notwithstanding the advertisements of an "all-inclusive vacation").
At the same time, cruise ships sail in international waters under flags of convenience from countries prepared to ignore labour and international maritime standards, providing opportunities...