Her parents have come under criticism from some observers for allowing the high-risk adventure.
Veteran sailors questioned the wisdom of sending a teenager off alone in a small boat, knowing it would be tossed about for 30 or more hours at a time by the giant waves that rake the Southern Hemisphere's oceans this time of year.
Her father defended the voyage.
"I never questioned my decision in letting her go," he told reporters Friday. "In this day and age we get overprotective with our children. If you want to look at statistics, look at how many teenagers die in cars every year. Should we let teenagers drive cars? I think it'd be silly if we didn't."
My .02 is that the parents should have in the least had a safety and support ship trailing her. Not to help her navigate, but for an instance like this. They could have been a slave to her lead, and rescued her in an instant.
So the Australian taxpayers paid to charter the Airbus?
So the fishing boat captain ended up in the water risking his life?
So the fishing boat crew's families will go without their catch shares?
All so a wealthy Calif teenager can play in the Southern Indian Ocean?
Clearly it was worth it from her father's point of view.
Brilliant.
Hybrid Mode
