Tight fit at the Panama Canal

[Admiral Rockwell Tory]

They are already doing it all over South America. They have a large footprint in Panama now as well, in part due to the US's negligence.

How so? Yoru beloved Jimmy Carter gave the canal back to Panama and they contracted with the Chinese to operate it. Was giving it back the Panama negligence in your opinion?

 

[Harpy Eagle]

How so? Yoru beloved Jimmy Carter gave the canal back to Panama and they contracted with the Chinese to operate it. Was giving it back the Panama negligence in your opinion?

No, that was the right thing to do.

The negligence is in ignoring the country afterwards.

The US went 4 years without an ambassador to Panama, spanning both the Trump and Biden admins. During this time China got closer to Panama, filling the void we left.

Panama puts out open contracts, anyone can bid. It is not Panama's fault China did and the US did not. Oh, and they do not operate the canal, just the ports on either side of it.

 

[Maxdeath]

perhaps a temporary fix when the canal is backed up more than normal.

When we were there in Feb there was a long line of ships waiting. Could see them flying into the airport

Not even close to a backup. If you offload on to a railway you still have to wait 6 to 10 days to get through the canal or sail around the cape then reload. Or you have to send an empty ship to load the cargo at the end of the rail. Both are not a good idea.

 

[Harpy Eagle]

Not even close to a backup. If you offload on to a railway you still have to wait 6 to 10 days to get through the canal or sail around the cape then reload. Or you have to send an empty ship to load the cargo at the end of the rail. Both are not a good idea.

That is sort of what I was thinking, one ship offloads on one side and a different ship gets loaded on the other.

Not a great alternative that is for sure.

If Panama can get out of the drought cycle it will help a lot.

 

[Zincwarrior]

All I can say is....damn...

View attachment 1025454

Oy veh!

 

[Maxdeath]

That is sort of what I was thinking, one ship offloads on one side and a different ship gets loaded on the other.

Not a great alternative that is for sure.

If Panama can get out of the drought cycle it will help a lot.

They still need more water than they have now which means artificial lakes. They need bigger and deeper locks. They need better equipment. I could go on. Not a lot of help if the drought cycle ends but with drought the wait time for traversing the canal goes up to 14 to 20 days which does hurt.

 

[Grumblenuts]

Why were the ships flying into the airport?

They were airships.

 

[Maxdeath]

You also have to realize that using a rail system has major drawbacks. One way is move the freight then wait on the ship to reload. You are going to spend money to move the cargo and in storage.
If you have an empty ship waiting for the cargo when it arrives then you are needing two ships. An additional cost. Also you are adding logistical costs. And possibly storage costs.
If you have a ship bring in a load and pickup one up then you increase costs because you have a need of two ships. You increase logistical costs again and you may still have storage costs.
All in all it is better in the long run to create a new canal as you only have one ship inolved in transportation. You have less storage costs, less wait time to load and unload.

 

[Admiral Rockwell Tory]

No, that was the right thing to do.

The negligence is in ignoring the country afterwards.

The US went 4 years without an ambassador to Panama, spanning both the Trump and Biden admins. During this time China got closer to Panama, filling the void we left.

Panama puts out open contracts, anyone can bid. It is not Panama's fault China did and the US did not. Oh, and they do not operate the canal, just the ports on either side of it.

I see your history education is as pathetic as ever? Does the name Noriega mean anything to you, dumbshit? The Panama Invasion? Surely you are not that sheltered!

 

[Harpy Eagle]

I see your history education is as pathetic as ever? Does the name Noriega mean anything to you, dumbshit? The Panama Invasion? Surely you are not that sheltered!

Oh, I know all about the US supporting the drug lord dictator till he ran out of being useful. I know that the joke in DC was the Bush I was running for POTUS to stay out of jail for the things we did and allowed to happen in Panama. I could offer you some good books on the subject if you like, they do not whtiewash our actives like what you learned in history class

I know all about the invasion and even talked to Panamanians about how they felt about it.

I am reading a book right now about the transition of the canal to Panama and the years that followed.

What have we done for them lately, say in the last 25years or so? It is in these years that China has gained a foothold in Panama. Did you know that Panama put out bids to build a 4th bridge over the canal? Can you guess how many American companies put in a bid?

 

[Harpy Eagle]

You also have to realize that using a rail system has major drawbacks. One way is move the freight then wait on the ship to reload. You are going to spend money to move the cargo and in storage.
If you have an empty ship waiting for the cargo when it arrives then you are needing two ships. An additional cost. Also you are adding logistical costs. And possibly storage costs.
If you have a ship bring in a load and pickup one up then you increase costs because you have a need of two ships. You increase logistical costs again and you may still have storage costs.
All in all it is better in the long run to create a new canal as you only have one ship inolved in transportation. You have less storage costs, less wait time to load and unload.

It is indeed better, it seems the rail system is a stopgap till such time as a new canal can be built. They do not pop up over night