Wrapped in cotton wool

Published: Friday, 18 January 2019

FOR many years until last year I cruised the French canals extensively, and can but agree with your correspondents about safety, writes, 'Barney' Collins.

It seems to me that we want to wrap people up in cotton wool with such safety features, yet abroad there are virtually none either on the canals or anywhere else, and certainly not those silly warnings that are in abundance in this country.

Not be in the vicinity of water

Every time someone who is so drunk he/she should not be anywhere near the vicinity of water, they fall in and then comes the cry for more safety measures, especially fencing, yet not for one moment do those people have the nous to realise it is the person's own fault that they fell in.

It was your article this morning with the reference to the Manchester drowning, that has prompted me to write, for just how many have drowned in the canals there? The hell of a lot.

Blaming the authorities

Fences on walls, concrete barriers and God knows what next, all to make those left behind believe it was not the fault of those that drown but the authorities for not making sure they cannot fall in.

When someone is so drunk they fall in a canal and drown, as your Victor often says, there is only one person to blame. It seems on the continent they let them get on with it, so it seems they take more care, not being so reliant on being mollycoddled by fences and such to stop them.