DELTA QUEEN exemption?

Well Bob, If what you heard is NOT true, now is the time and, here is the chance for MAL to so state, and bring us all up to date on just what the status is.

And IF it is true, can we, as individuals, request legislation for the exemption??

Thankfully, Bob, I have not heard that rumor. Personally, I don't see it happening that way either.

I don't think that MAL has the will, money, marketing sophistication, nor inclination to bring the MISSISSIPPI QUEEN back out. She is the one that I see falling on MAL's sword of ineptitude. I say this as a stockholder of Ambassadors International Corporation, a past director of The Steam Ship Historical Society of America, a current member of the Middle Ohio River Chapter of the S&D's Board, a part time travel agent, and long time student of the modern day cruise industry with numerous cruise experiences on both blue and brown water vessels. I am speaking with deep convictions. It is my opinions alone which I express here, and is not necessarily the opinion of any of the preceeding entities that I mentioned nor of the owners/operators of this forum.

I was told by a very reliable source that the MISSISSIPPI QUEEN started to take on water while sitting at the Perry Street Wharf in Algiers, LA. this past spring after returning from the shipyard in Mobile, AL. To find and repair the leak could take another expensive drydocking. There are questions as to if the MISSISSIPPI QUEEN, as she is now, will comply with the new 2010 SOLAS Regulations. The boats that are operating, except for an occasional trip, are not going out full. In last ditch efforts MAL is forced to discount to $100.oo per night per person plus port charges. Independent travel agents are not happy as it is taking nearly two months after their clients complete a trip before the agents' commissions are paid. When MAL took over last year, commissions were lessened and group policies were changed that in effect made independent travel agents work harder for less. For a travel agent not to be paid in a timely manner does not endear the company, and make an agent want to sell the product. Certainly not, if it is delaying bread being placed on their table.

The DELTA QUEEN has name recognition that none of the other boats do; valuable name recognition that was lost when the operating company's name was changed to Majestic America Line. The DELTA QUEEN was always said by past company officials to sell herself. MAL also is contending with the fall out of having the bad publicity, loss of revenue, loss of good will, cost of repairs, and legal problems resulting from the accident of the EMPRESS of the NORTH in Alaska last month. Passenger reports posted on other internet cruise bulletin boards are much less than glowing. Many past passengers, such as myself, are dissatisfied with the numerous changes made aboard the old Delta Queen boats that cheapen the cruise experience. MAL can not afford to lose the DELTA QUEEN and the good will she has left. My hope is that MAL and its parent company Ambassadors International realizes this and acts accordingly.

The DELTA QUEEN is threatened by The Safety of Life at Sea laws once again. Now, I must admit that the current campaign to "Save the DELTA QUEEN" is laughable compared to the fervor that Betty Blake was able to muster. (no pun intended) I have been told that print journalists whom have called MAL for an interview about the DELTA QUEEN's current perils have been referred to MAL's public relations company without any response back. One can only speculate why MAL's PR firm has not returned the journalists calls. Betty Blake would have been on the phone herself.

MAL seems to be operated by knee jerk reactions. They take off the eagle, because they say it's not in keeping with the image they want to project, and then put it back up. They originally replaced it with the fitting British symbol of the mute swan, swans in England are property of Her Royal Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II. That is what I think of when I see a swan, Her Majesty the Queen and not the majesty of America. They take away past passenger incentives, but now they have a watered down repeaters' party onboard. They take away certain foods and the picnic lunch, but eventually do restore them to the menu. The entertainment staff is cut, but they move long popular entertainers to the AMERICAN QUEEN from the DELTA QUEEN to assuage passenger complaints.

It doesn't appear to me that MAL's actions have been well reasoned from its inception. Even with Americans' propensity to use shortend speech, and the well known fact that past passengers of Holland America Line refer to that cruise line as HAL, the name Majestic America Line was still chosen as the new company's name. It can and is conveniently abreviated to MAL. Reports are that inter company memos threaten termination of an employee if they are heard saying, "MAL." Where were the marketing people, and why wasn't the name vetted? It doesn't take much deliberation to figure that the ill-advised abreviation will find frequent use, and now with MAL's fumblings, it has truly become a sad irony.

Other areas of MAL's marketing has been equally inept. The deluxe 2007 brochure has been so cumbersome to navigate it is of little use. Seeing the doctored photo of the DELTA QUEEN in front of Alaskan glaciers pop up in MAL's ads on my computer screen is a never ending source of befuddlement to me. Why be so disingenuous as to show the DELTA QUEEN in Alaska when the closest that she has ever steamed to those crystaline waters is Sacramento? Why use that ridiculously altered picture when there are so many wonderful photos of the DELTA QUEEN available? Infact, I allowed the old Delta Queen Steamboat Co. to use photographs that I took free of charge in their promotional materials. MAL's internet advertising in the Cunard room bulletin board of a very popular cruise enthusiasts web site is laughable. To me it screams that MAL does not have a grasp of its market nor of the savy passengers of Cunard. Passengers that savor the glorious history of that storied shipping company do not seem to me as if they would be interested in patronizing a company that fails to celebrate the eightieth anniversary of its most fabled asset.

Well, I see that I have said much. I don't know how many others feel as I do. Much of what I said has been festering inside me for a number of months. I'm upset that when all is said and done and the history books are written there may be fewer steamboats. It's not a thought that I care to ponder. Some readers may say that what I wrote may hasten that day. I say no. If MAL is not forced to respond to the needs and vagaries of the market, then that is what will cause the loss of this part of America and not my pen.

Amen, Frank! Your knowledge and expertise from so many areas of steamboating, cruising, and the cruise industry cannot be matched by anybody currently posting on this site.

Thank you Frank for posting that. Well said, you are telling the truth, and sometimes in the corporate world, the truth is the last thing someone wants to hear...

I just hope & pray someone listens, before it's too late.

Information from Thomas.gov ---The extension of the DQ is Bill 2830 - Sponsor Rep. James L. Oberstar and
Cosponsors are Rep. Elijah Cummings and Steven C. LaTourette
Latest Major Action: 6/28/07 bill is Markup - Sent to House Committee on Transportation & Infrastructure for Revision.
WRITE OR CALL YOUR REPRESENTATIVES.
Marian Nusekabel

THANK YOU, Marion. That is exactly what I had been wanting to know. Now it should be easier to follow and also we'll have something to tell our individual reps to look for and support. Could you help keep us posted please?

Frank, Thank you also for your expertise. I have been told by a couple individuals at Majestic America Line Seattle office that steamboats.org is read. Hopefully they will take your constructive suggestions into consideration and start acting upon them instead of following the process that has not worked for them up to this point.

S A V E O U R Q U E E N!!!

YES!! That's what we needed. I think the entire title would be HR2830 wouldn't it?
NOW EVERYONE WRITE OR WRITE AGAIN!! We have the legislation number, which will let our representatives know what we are in favor of!!!
GO GO GO GO!!!
Steamcerely,
David Dewey (who never thought I'd be writing these letters again after 37 years! )

I guess I need some help! That´s what I´ve found

http://www.thomas.gov/cgi-bin/query/C?c110:./temp/~c110EDilfx

Can anyone tell me which the part is concerning the DQ?

Carmen

Amen, and AMEN!! Excellently said! Although I will admit, I am counting on those "panic discount" rates to be able to take a trip next year, as I cannot afford the current rates (even the "discounted" rates).
And even thought I think she's a bit ugly, I sure hope the MQ doesn't end up as scrap.
S'
David D.

HOLD IT!! I looked through the bill and didn't see any mention of SOLAS or any exemptions. Please verify, as I could have missed something.
THANKS!
David D.

Marian Nusekabel;6816 wrote: Information from Thomas.gov ---The extension of the DQ is Bill 2830 - Sponsor Rep. James L. Oberstar and
Cosponsors are Rep. Elijah Cummings and Steven C. LaTourette
Latest Major Action: 6/28/07 bill is Markup - Sent to House Committee on Transportation & Infrastructure for Revision.
WRITE OR CALL YOUR REPRESENTATIVES.
Marian Nusekabel

How is this issue going in the Senate? Has a bill even been introduced yet to that august body?

Thanks, Marian. I did a search and found the following:
http://frwebgate.access.gpo.gov/cgi-bin/getdoc.cgi?dbname=110_cong_bills&docid=f;h2830ih.txt.pdf

I am sorry I do not know how to make this a hyperlink on a Microsoft OS computer.

The above-mentioned pdf document is 157 pages long, and contains several interesting things, at least for me as a licensed person. Being 157 pages, I did not read it in its entirety, but did feel I scanned it pretty well. However, I see nothing in the bill or markup that says anything at all about the DELTA QUEEN and her exemption from SOLAS. The document does mention some individual vessels in particular, with some special stuff; the DQ does not seem to me to be included. Is there someone on the board with more legislative/legal expertise who can either decipher this bill and its rider(s) and point these out to us? Also, in my ignorance, I'm wondering what is the process once the House version gets to the Senate? Is the DQ in fact included here and I am missing it?

I see my hyperlink came up in spit eof my ignorance! Here is another site I found this morning dealing with the same SOLAS issue; things don't look so great after reading this article:

http://www.cruisecritic.com/features/articles.cfm?ID=488

I think this link will get you directly to the bill--I hope it works!

http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/F?c110:1:./temp/~c110Zk9VFo:e0:

S'
David D.
PS Glad someone else also can't see any references to SOLAS in this legislation either.

Here's the quote about our beloved DQ (she even rates a picture!), which doesn't sound so bad--but does hint at what the real problem for the exemption MIGHT be.

"An unusual case is the sternwheeler Delta Queen, a cruise boat with overnight accommodations and wooden superstructure. Because it does not leave American waters, it is governed not by SOLAS but by the U.S. Coast Guard's own rules. When they first banned combustible materials for this type of vessel in the 1970's, the ship was expected to be withdrawn. It took a heap of lobbying, 250,000 signatures and an Act of Congress -- along with the president's signature -- to amend the new safety bill to exempt it from the then-new rules. The exemption, based on the steamboat's constant proximity to land, is an ongoing review process.

The next renewal comes up in 2008 and is expected to pass, though a dispute with former union members may complicate the picture."

Very interestink!! Here's my proposed button design
S'
David D.

From good sources:

MAL is assertively working to extend the exemption to allow the DQ to continue to operate.

Work on the MQ renovation is continues at a steady rate. The necessary demolition of portions of the interior structure is nearly complete.

That is the latest info I have and it is from trusted sources.

Dennis

Thank you, Chief! I was hoping you would chime in here. What you have posted makes me feel much better.

Thanks for your update, Dennis - sometimes the sternwheel telegraph gets a lot of unfounded rumors and speculation started. We do miss you very much on the DELTA QUEEN - you may be gone but not forgotten. Too many experienced people were lost, due to the break with the union. This has already proved to be costly, as in the accident with the EMPRESS.

Cheers!

Pat

I recently wrote to MAL through their website and received a response from "Amy Stonebraker, Majestic America Line - Marketing." Here is an excerpt of that response:

If you would like to be a part of this effort, you can contact the members of congress listed below! We also have letter campaigns in action, and lobbyists assisting us.

This was accompanied by the June 7th email that was received by many people. Make of this what you will - I find it somewhat disheartening that she neither lists the "letter campaigns/lobbyists" nor offers any more real insight into what steps the company is actively taking. Is this consistent with everyone's experience?

Jon-
Please list those members of congress provided by MAL.
If MAL wants outside help for this, why aren't they asking for it?
Perhaps they need us and don't know it.
-Jim Herron

Frank-
Well said, indeed. Thank you.
-Jim Herron

Thomas.gov (DQ Extension amendment maybe not posted to H.R. 2830 yet?) Go to website look on left side - click on House of Representatives - next screen, than click on Committee - click on Committee on Transportation & Infrastructure - when that comes up you will note James Oberstar of Minn. is the Chairman. Remember he is also the Sponsor of the DQ Extension!
The address, phone and fax numbers are given to contact Oberstar and the other members of the Committee.
Click on About the Committee and the rest of the members are listed.

Because the Amendment is now there for revision, time is not on our side. Contact Oberstar and ask where does the DQ exemption stand. I'm faxing today! SAVE OUR DELTA QUEEN!
Marian Nusekabel

Here's a list of all the committee members, maybe one of your representatives is one of them! ?BTW, what a huge committee, no wonder Congress takes so long to do anything!
S'
David D.

U.S. House of Representatives
110th Congress
Majority (2165 RHOB) - (202) 225-4472
Minority (2163 RHOB) - (202) 225-9446

James L. Oberstar, Minnesota, Chairman

Nick J. Rahall, II, West Virginia
Peter A. DeFazio, Oregon
Jerry F. Costello, Illinois
Eleanor Holmes Norton, District of Columbia
Jerrold Nadler, New York
Corrine Brown, Florida
Bob Filner, California
Eddie Bernice Johnson, Texas
Gene Taylor, Mississippi
Elijah E. Cummings, Maryland
Ellen O. Tauscher, California
Leonard L. Boswell, Iowa
Tim Holden, Pennsylvania
Brian Baird, Washington
Rick Larsen, Washington
Michael E. Capuano, Massachusetts
Julia Carson, Indiana
Timothy H. Bishop, New York
Michael H. Michaud, Maine
Brian Higgins, New York
Russ Carnahan, Missouri
John T. Salazar, Colorado
Grace F. Napolitano, California
Daniel Lipinski, Illinois
Doris O. Matsui, California
Nick Lampson, Texas
Zachary T. Space, Ohio
Mazie K. Hirono, Hawaii
Bruce L. Braley, Iowa
Jason Altmire, Pennsylvania
Timothy J. Walz, Minnesota
Heath Shuler, North Carolina
Michael A. Arcuri, New York
Harry E. Mitchell, Arizona
Christopher P. Carney, Pennsylvania
John J. Hall, New York
Steve Kagen, Wisconsin
Steve Cohen, Tennessee
Jerry McNerney, California
Vacancy

John L. Mica, Florida, Ranking Republican Member
Don Young, Alaska
Thomas E. Petri, Wisconsin
Howard Coble, North Carolina
John J. Duncan, Jr., Tennessee
Wayne T. Gilchrest, Maryland
Vernon J. Ehlers, Michigan
Steven C. LaTourette, Ohio
Richard H. Baker, Louisiana
Frank A. LoBiondo, New Jersey
Jerry Moran, Kansas
Gary G. Miller, California
Robin Hayes, North Carolina
Henry E. Brown Jr., South Carolina
Timothy V. Johnson, Illinois
Todd Russell Platts, Pennsylvania
Sam Graves, Missouri
Bill Shuster, Pennsylvania
John Boozman, Arkansas
Jim Gerlach, Pennsylvania
Shelley Moore Capito, West Virginia
Mario Diaz-Balart, Florida
Charles W. Dent, Pennsylvania
Ted Poe, Texas
David G. Reichert, Washington
Connie Mack, Florida
John R. “Randy” Kuhl Jr., New York
Lynn A. Westmoreland, Georgia
Charles W. Boustany Jr., Louisiana
Jean Schmidt, Ohio
Candice S. Miller, Michigan
Thelma D. Drake, Virginia
Mary Fallin, Oklahoma
Vern Buchanan, Florida