Poems and Thoughts    by Frank Maurer

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A Tragedy Caused by a Loose Wire. We have all received some item or another, Transported by one of those huge container 'barges'. They have evolved to become so very large That the complexity of such vessels Results in a myriad of elaborate wiring. Now to 'Dolly', one of those container ships As long as the Eiffel Tower is high. After loading in the Baltimore harbor, it commenced Towards the very long Francis Key Scott bridge and open sea. The ship soon became out of control, heading towards the bridge. It careened straight into one of its support columns, Basically destroying the whole collapsing structure And killing six workers repairing potholes during the night hours. After weeks of sleuthing, a tiny error was miraculously discovered. One wire, among thousands, was found to be loose inside a fuse box. The reason it became disconnected was because An identification tag, wrapped around that wire, Had been attached too close to the control box door, Gradually causing tension which had dislodged the wire And thus the control mechanisms of the ship. This is why a pilot will walk around hisser plane before takeoff, Has confidence in the mechanics' ability to find any error, And, in the cockpit, always going through a long and complex checklist. We are building ever bigger-- but should there be A logical limit to size-producing disasters? I was a pilot myself and always was aware Of the inspection-part of my every flight, no matter how short! Frank Maurer 22 November 2025 1115 Hours.