It’s no controversial statement that the news of OceanGate‘s Titan submersible implosion hasn’t been handled with the utmost tact by the general public; the gross disregard for safety measures can and should be criticized heavily, of course, but the sheer collective indifference to this tragedy, as evidenced by the influx of apathetic, insensitive memes, is arguably bordering on pathological.

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And unfortunately, if we know anything about the internet, it’s that the train isn’t going to stop at that station. In the wake of the confirmation that the Titan imploded not long after it began its descent to the Titanic wreckage, Twitter is suddenly ablaze with conspiracy theories, with phrases such as “escape plan” and “private island” among the ideas being thrown around at the moment.

The submarine thing is suspicious. It seems very far fetched that a bunch of billionaires would take such a risky trip to check out the titanic ruins. I mean surely they have more pressing things to do as billionaires… And now they've disappeared. Sounds like an escape plan.

— Layah Heilpern (@LayahHeilpern) June 22, 2023

They chill on a private island far away from their wives🤝

— Zach (@SelfImprv) June 22, 2023

avoiding a big tax bill

— Layah Heilpern (@LayahHeilpern) June 22, 2023

Asking questions is one thing, but chasing some sort of inane pseudo-possibility solely for the sake of a thrill or some other bastardized form of self-importance brought on by the ego-gouging nature of the age of information is nothing short of disheartening for everyone involved.

Seems like they wanted to disappear

— Texasman82 (@speedmanNFG) June 22, 2023

likely

— Layah Heilpern (@LayahHeilpern) June 22, 2023

Let’s get one thing straight; I’m against economic systems that allow billionaires to live the lives they do as much as the next person. Systems that were schemed up with trickle-down economics in mind, only to never actually bring trickle-down economics into play, have no place in society and should be heavily re-evaluated.

But even if the men aboard the Titan were complicit in these dreadful systems, they’re still human beings, and the lack of sensitivity surrounding this event has been nothing short of appalling, especially considering that one of the passengers, Suleman Dawood, was just 19 years old, terrified to go down, and only went on the voyage to impress his father Shahzada, who was also aboard the vessel.

As someone who knows a thing or two about dehumanization, we all need to unplug from that which enables such sardonic vitriol and become reacquainted with the real world and its consequences once again. We can do better.