1. Cruise Ship News weighs in on the 3rd class option on Titanic II. According to Clive Plamer, 700 people will pay for the opportunity to sleep in cramped cabins as they did on the original Titanic. Cruise Ship News says this sounds good in theory but wonders whether having 700 people sharing two bathrooms meets current health and safety standards. And if you are going authentic, does that not mean you will have to keep those passengers away from other parts of the ship? The commentary closes with this:

Then there is the question of price because according to the Telegraph, the cost of a third class ticket was £7 and £9. Converted into today’s money, then Titanic 2 third class tickets would cost £587 and £754. Would you be willing to pay as much as that to cross the Atlantic in such cramped conditions, and then there is the question of whether you would have access to the rest of the Titanic 2 ship, as original third class passengers did not have such access?

That is a good question. Are you willing to spend money to sleep in authentic Titanic 3rd class quarters with just two bathrooms for 700 people?

Source: Titanic 2 Ship Third Class Tickets An Authentic Option(20 Jan 2014,Cruise Ship News)

2.The National Student is reporting on a poll that does not look good if you are looking to an 18-24 year old to save your life. Virgin Cruises apparently did a study that asked various questions about what they would do in certain situations. Stop a pirate? 81% said no. Nor would they summon a kraken to help Davy Jones against other ships. Nor would they help crew load cannons to fend off attacks from enemy ships. And an astounding 87% would not allow women and children first in the lifeboats. Now some of the questions are really foolish like a peg leg pirate boarding the ship. The fact they would not bother to let women and children first may speak to a generation that is self absorbed looking at their smartphones to give a damn about anything. And it would not be surprising many would rather do nothing to help crew repel real pirates (that might be sensible considering the modern day pirate is armed with automatic weapons).

Or the kids answering the survey decided it was a hoot and decided to have some fun with it.

Source: Students: Useless In A Titanic Disaster Situation, Says Research (20 Jan 2o14,The National Student)

3.3. Update on Loraine Allison/Helen Kramer Story
The news that DNA conclusively proved Loraine Allison did not survive Titanic is getting widely reported now. There has been an uptick in news postings from all over the place and even blogs as well. Over at Debrina Woods site (http://www.titanicslastmystery.com)there is a new statement in the DNA response section which states (in part):

We were informed in DEC/2013, that a third party was announcing that they had conducted a separate (unrequested by us and sponsored by the opposition Allison’s) DNA Testing and had received a very(conveniently) NEGATIVE determination. To which we respond to all: OK…for now. BUT ALL, BE ADVISED, THAT THIS SAGA IS HARDLY OVER…!!!! We intend to maintain fully on course in our determination to presenting THE REAL and total FACTS of this story to the world and while I had harbored sensitivity to certain more inflammatory issues regarding William Percival Allison’s actions and others involved back in the day, that OUR evidence supports and discloses as showing MUCH MISCONDUCT…Now, am thinking not so much. Which will make for all the better reading and PRESS!! I am hoping that my manuscripts will be completed this spring and ready for submission for publication. We regret that many will be confused by the information that is making the rounds now in the press and other media…
and that we feel has been irresponsibly released for sensation value.

The rambling statement hints at conspiracies, divided opinion, and a book to come. While those who support Helen Kramer’s claim might cling to the hope that the DNA test was wrong or that perhaps manipulated in some fashion the uncomfortable truth is that the grandmother was not related the Allison family. Whether she was a fantasy prone individual convinced of being Loraine Allison (possibly by her husband) or was part of a fraud is unclear.