[wpietri]

It's wild to me that you write "As I get older, I see this sentiment as very naive." And then go on to say some breathtakingly naive things.

A lot of ocean activity is thoroughly regulated. For example: https://www.imo.org/en/About/Conventions/Pages/International...

Moreover, It's not like they're getting paid in sand dollars or doubloons from the bottom of the sea. The passengers are signing contracts and paying large fees in landlubber currencies. There's a company involved here, a legal entity. The company is based in Washington State.

If this was really not covered by any law in any country with a plausible claim on it, you can bet that people will soon be clamoring for one. Remember that air travel was once entirely unregulated. Now it's one of the most highly controlled activities. A lot of regulation like that happens in response to notable disasters; the regulations are, as they say, "written in blood."

[TheDudeMan]

So you're saying there is an agency/organization that would review and approve such endeavors? What is it, in this case?

[wpietri]

I did not in fact say that. I'm addressing the broader false claim that the ocean is some sort of essentially unregulateable space. Indeed, I think the final paragraph makes clear that I think it's possible that no agency currently has unambiguous authority, but that won't stop people from creating one if enough people die like this.

I also suspect that people with broad authority may investigate this and consider/recommend prosecutions if appropriate. E.g., the Washington State Attorney General, the US Coast Guard, and the Canadian Coast Guard.

[barrysteve]

Pushing regulation back to the point where someone dies, causes these problems in the first place.

It's not hard to certify vehicles before use. We do it with cars on a daily basis.

Measuring the necessity for regulation "in blood" is unbelievably cruel.

[wpietri]

It's actually really hard to certify vehicles before use when they're novel vehicles. Try reading vehicle safety standards if you want proof of how complex it gets.

Good regulation balances the need for innovation vs the need for public health and safety. We can argue about the right balancing point all day, and people certainly will. But there's no simple solution on either side.

[barrysteve]

I agree there is no simple solution. But I'd prefer not to die, to prove to you that experimental submarines need regulation.

How is this a deniable point?

We are conscious enough as humans to not require death to change beliefs.