Reverend Ludd
New member
Exactly my thoughts.
Laura Dekker...........why dont they leave her alone ?
- Thread starter Sandyman
- Start date
Exactly my thoughts.
webcraft
Well-known member
Tanqueray
Well-known member
Stingo
Well-known member
A1Sailor
...
+3; or is it 4?!!!
sincerely hope that she finds useful things to do in the future despite her "gap year"; or was it longer?
Maybe educationalists will use her as a role model. Way to go!
lustyd
Well-known member
As luck would have it, most of us are good enough at reading that it wasn't a problem. If you'd like a translation, PM me...
ffiill
Active member
My grandmother got a pefectly good education and left school at 12 as did my grandad.Raising of the school leaving age has always been political in the UK and used as a means of reducing official unemployment levels-staying at school until 16 or 18 does not mean you will be better educated but that you will not become an unemployment statistic. I have been a teacher as was my father and Auntie and we were all degree educated but this is not a necessity.
The levels of literacy and numeracy my Grandma attained by the age of 12 at the beginning of the 20th century as well as general knowledge;knowledge of the arts literature and poetry; is far superior to that of most 21st century 16 year olds. That was at an urban mill town school in Yorkshire
The levels of literacy and numeracy my Grandma attained by the age of 12 at the beginning of the 20th century as well as general knowledge;knowledge of the arts literature and poetry; is far superior to that of most 21st century 16 year olds. That was at an urban mill town school in Yorkshire
Blueboatman
Well-known member
I believe that as a mature student-which she demonstrably now is IMO- should she decide to take up further education at some later stage she will benefit from it a lot more than most who go straight thru the system.
If she receives no further formal education I reckon too that she has now 'learnt how to learn', she's up and running, wey hey.
Most people want to be led, she is a rare minority and not exactly a threat to the establishment.
As a motivational speaker to disillusioned teens I think she might have something useful to say though
If she receives no further formal education I reckon too that she has now 'learnt how to learn', she's up and running, wey hey.
Most people want to be led, she is a rare minority and not exactly a threat to the establishment.
As a motivational speaker to disillusioned teens I think she might have something useful to say though
MissFitz
Member
Not to diminish Laura Dekker's achievement, which is considerable, but I do struggle to see how good parenting consists of buying your young teenage daughter an ocean-going yacht on demand, letting her miss out on a lot of her education & exposing her to a global media circus at an impressionable age. Or maybe I'm just envious..........
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Capt Popeye
Well-known member
well in a society that tends to lead / breed 'Company People' instead of 'individules', i'd say that Laura shows us all that 'individules' do still exist, despite the pressures, and 'individules' can perform very well in a society.
re skills required to 'sail alone', never mind the Navigation skills, the personal skills must be a great strain, remember the lone yachtsman (was it a Dennis Dewhurst ?) that dissapeard in the Atlantic during a race ? Very strange goings on !
go on, give the Girl some space and credit.
Roberto
Well-known member
We have been moored opposite her boat when she was in the Canaries, during a couple of days. There is not much to do in Pasito Blanco so we basically stayed on board, so did she together with her mother (I suppose she was her mother).
http://sybrancaleone.blogspot.com/2010/09/ancora-solitari-laura-dekker.html
During a couple of occasions, some people ventured nearer to her boat just to have a look and point the finger with a smile "oh look that's her".
One Spaniard asked the mother if he could take a picture with Laura, I must say he was very polite, if it's not the right moment I can come back later, etc etc.
The mother answered "sorry no pictures now", but as the Spanish guy was quietly leaving she hastened to call him back, "Senor senor: if you want a picture with Laura, send an email to her web site (written in cubical letters on the hull, on flags, etc), you will get a quick answer with a proposal for sponsoring her trip in exchange for a picture".
Eyes wide open, the Spanish guy said "Am I right, that means I have to pay to take a picture ? "
"Yes, it's like that, answered the mother."
Obviously what type of daughter/parents relationship the Dekker have is their own business, but I am not surprised that some sort of children protection authority got curious and possibly investigated further.
BTW we spent 1.5y with a 3 and 7yo daughters, the elder boat-schooled, in the very unlikely event (she's crazy about horseriding) she might decide to leave for a similar trip when teenager, I personally would more care more about her not abandoning every contact with formal study than selling internet banners on her site, but then those are personal choices.
http://sybrancaleone.blogspot.com/2010/09/ancora-solitari-laura-dekker.html
During a couple of occasions, some people ventured nearer to her boat just to have a look and point the finger with a smile "oh look that's her".
One Spaniard asked the mother if he could take a picture with Laura, I must say he was very polite, if it's not the right moment I can come back later, etc etc.
The mother answered "sorry no pictures now", but as the Spanish guy was quietly leaving she hastened to call him back, "Senor senor: if you want a picture with Laura, send an email to her web site (written in cubical letters on the hull, on flags, etc), you will get a quick answer with a proposal for sponsoring her trip in exchange for a picture".
Eyes wide open, the Spanish guy said "Am I right, that means I have to pay to take a picture ? "
"Yes, it's like that, answered the mother."
Obviously what type of daughter/parents relationship the Dekker have is their own business, but I am not surprised that some sort of children protection authority got curious and possibly investigated further.
BTW we spent 1.5y with a 3 and 7yo daughters, the elder boat-schooled, in the very unlikely event (she's crazy about horseriding) she might decide to leave for a similar trip when teenager, I personally would more care more about her not abandoning every contact with formal study than selling internet banners on her site, but then those are personal choices.
BobPrell
Well-known member
Well there are many paths to future notoriety or fame, put the two together and you have celebrity I suppose. As soon as I look at links to the Wail which forumites publish, I get distracted by stuff like this:
Her Mum signed off for her to marry Doug Hutchinson, 51yo actor.
This could also be an answer to the thread "How does an 18yo girl earn some money?"
avb3
New member
Good grief, Laura is 16. She has an experience many envy, and her whole life ahead of her. It's not like she doesn't have lots of time to catch up on schooling, and decide how she will continue her sailing career.
Is there anyone who doesn't think that she will be a giant in the sailing world in years to come, and not just as an author and guest lecturer?
rotrax
Well-known member
Yes, but can she shake off her father Desmond's bad press when he was looting and shooting his way to Shanty Town..........
dylanwinter
Active member
Pix with sailor
Pix with the KTL cameraman are free
actually I will ppay you
I have to say that as the father of a daughter - now 19 - I would prefer her to get on with getting an education rather than getting tied up in a media circus - however, she has achieved the goal that has either been set for her or set by herself
she has shown that she has guts.
A few years ago I rode a horse along the Oregon trail - 2,000 miles across America
one of the people I joined up with was also doing the same journey - he said that you have to do these things for your own reasons - not to impress oother people.
he said that one day you will mention it to a guy in a bar and the bloke will nood and then ask you what the red socks score was. Better be ready for that moment when what you think is an achievement doesn't amount to a bag of beans
Dylan
Pix with the KTL cameraman are free
actually I will ppay you
I have to say that as the father of a daughter - now 19 - I would prefer her to get on with getting an education rather than getting tied up in a media circus - however, she has achieved the goal that has either been set for her or set by herself
she has shown that she has guts.
A few years ago I rode a horse along the Oregon trail - 2,000 miles across America
one of the people I joined up with was also doing the same journey - he said that you have to do these things for your own reasons - not to impress oother people.
he said that one day you will mention it to a guy in a bar and the bloke will nood and then ask you what the red socks score was. Better be ready for that moment when what you think is an achievement doesn't amount to a bag of beans
Dylan
MissFitz
Member
Well yes, but that's kind of my point - what have you got to look forward to when you've sailed round the world at 16? Wouldn't her parents have done better to encourage her to get a sailing job, save up for her own boat, maybe join the racing circuit etc a la Dame Ellen?
I am starting to sound like my mother, but isn't it healthier for kids to earn their own opportunities & learn to wait a couple of years to achieve their ambitions? Or is that terminally old-fashioned?
aluijten
New member
Question is obviously, how many is a couple?
This young lady was/is obsessed by sailing probably since birth. Her plan to circumnavigate started at the age of nine.
It's not like she got up one day and thought to herself "lets do a circumnavigation".
She went to quite a lot of sailing, training and planning on her own before executing this mission.
I agree that for the vast majority of girls (and boys for that matter) her age this would have been a bad idea, but in this particular case I tend to agree with what she did.
From what I've read about her she does not strike me as a person that is blind for risks.
As far as I can see her father was quite sensible about this as well. He did not frustrate the hell out of her (like our government) but tried to be supportive in a very constructive (towards safety) way. It's hard for anyone not close to them to understand the process that led to this circumnavigation, but I don't think the process was unthoughtful.
I consider this an exceptional performance. It should also remain exceptional I think...