Twenty Boats Was Legal

The Titanic had 20 lifeboats.

Capacity: 1,178 people.

Passengers and crew: 2,224.

Here's what most people miss.

The ship wasn't negligent. Maritime regulations required 16 boats minimum for vessels over 10,000 tons.

Titanic had 20. Four more than required.

They exceeded the standard.

The regulations were written in 1894. Ships had grown 10x larger. The rules never updated.

White Star Line followed the rules. They even surpassed them.

And 1,500 people died.

The espoused theory: "Safety standards protect passengers."

The theory-in-use: "Compliance is the goal. Adequacy is optional."

The gap killed more people than the iceberg.

This note explores THE SPLIT, one of four forces from Shadow Strategy. The Narrator writes the rules. The Operator follows them. Neither checks if the rules still make sense.