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Ninety Percent of Everything
Ninety Percent of Everything: Inside Shipping, the Invisible Industry That Puts Clothes on Your Back, Gas in Your Car, and Food on Your Plate | Rose George
11 posts | 10 read | 12 to read
Eye-opening and compelling, the overlooked world of freight shipping, revealed as the foundation of our civilizationOn ship-tracking websites, the waters are black with dots. Each dot is a ship; each ship is laden with boxes; each box is laden with goods. In postindustrial economies, we no longer produce but buy. We buy, so we must ship. Without shipping there would be no clothes, food, paper, or fuel. Without all those dots, the world would not work.Freight shipping has been no less revolutionary than the printing press or the Internet, yet it is all but invisible. Away from public scrutiny, shipping revels in suspect practices, dubious operators, and a shady system of "flags of convenience." Infesting our waters, poisoning our air, and a prime culprit of acoustic pollution, shipping is environmentally indefensible. And then there are the pirates.Rose George, acclaimed chronicler of what we would rather ignore, sails from Rotterdam to Suez to Singapore on ships the length of football fields and the height of Niagara Falls; she patrols the Indian Ocean with an anti-piracy task force; she joins seafaring chaplains, and investigates the harm that ships inflict on endangered whales.Sharply informative and entertaining, Ninety Percent of Everything reveals the workings and perils of an unseen world that holds the key to our economy, our environment, and our very civilization.
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rockpools
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Started this this morning, which Emma somehow remembered I was after the best part of a year ago - thank you @Oryx !

A trip from the UK to Singapore on a Maersk general cargo ship (a tad bigger than these ‘teensy‘ ships in the docks here - one day I‘ll post a picture to show just how teensy they are 😬), and an insight into the global shipping industry. Fascinating and really well-written- I think I‘m going to enjoy this!

julesG Maybe @Oryx keeps secret ledgers with notes. Or spreadsheets like, @squirrelbrain? 😁😁 14mo
Oryx @julesG I have a drawer of presents and things I'm going to give to people. At any time it might have Xmas gifts, charity shop book finds for the nieces, random things for my mum, and litsy books 14mo
Oryx @rockpools glad you are liking it. I found it really fascinating. 14mo
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julesG @Oryx I have a similar drawer, but my gift-giving talent is not as strong as yours. 14mo
squirrelbrain Sounds great! Hmmm @julesG you‘ve given me an idea for a new spreadsheet. 🤣 14mo
rockpools Somewhere in the last few years, I completely lost the ability to social media. Sorry for the non-replies! Loving the idea of a secret ledger @julesG -I might work on that… and I was actually eyeing new drawer-units just before you posted @Oryx. Obviously I need to hit the buy button now. I think you might like this one Helen @squirrelbrain. 13mo
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Oryx
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Paperback to the rescue.

TrishB Phew… 2y
squirrelbrain Phew indeed! 😁 2y
rockpools Close shave there! Look forward to hearing how this one is - I haven‘t quite turned into a freight-ship-spotter - but I am curious! Currently eyeing a nuclear fuel carrier moored in the bay, which I *think* is a new thing for here… 2y
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Oryx @rockpools it's really interesting. I do not know why I'm so interested in the merchant navy, but I do have a fascination with the idea of being at sea for months. Not enough to actually do it, but to know more about what it's like. Similar to my fascination with people living in Antarctica. She's a good writer. I'll pass this one on to you when I'm done, if you don't mind waiting. 2y
dabbe Cutest pup! ❣️🐾❣️ 2y
rockpools @Oryx Aw thank you, if you decide to pass it on, that would be amazing. And no, of course not - realistically I was going to add it to my ‘track down in the next 5 years‘ list, rather than my ‘read next week‘ list! I do know what you mean. One of my not-regrets-but-what-ifs was that I wasn‘t brave enough to apply for the librarian job with Antarctic Survey when it came up years ago. Reading about it‘s a much less stressful option tho! 2y
Oryx @rockpools librarian in Antarctica - that's the dream. Just nipping off to do an Librarianship MA so I can apply next year. I'll bring the book to Gladstone's if I don't get around to posting it before. 2y
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keithmalek
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keithmalek
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vlwelser
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This book is really about what it's like to live at sea. The title refers to the fact that we import just about everything but the book is about the people that make that happen and the dangers they face. The author actually lived on a cargo ship as part of her research. I liked it.

#BookSpinBingo free space
@TheAromaofBooks

TheAromaofBooks I quite like that cover as well. 4y
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Erynecki
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Can you name a ship transport line? What do you know about traversing the Suez Canal or Somali pirates? Do you know who serves in these ships and how long they‘re typically at sea? Ninety Percent of Everything offers a good first person journalistic account of life aboard a Maersk ship.

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nikirtehsuxlol
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The dark days of oil spills are over according to this book. “More oil is poured down the drain by mechanics changing their engine oil than is spilled by the worlds fleet of oil tankers.”

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Darrenpayne
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Love this book. From the plight of the merchant navy, to piracy, pollution and whales, this was a fascinating read. I liked the account of the Maersk Kendal sailing to the rescue of a sinking ship in the Indian Ocean. it‘s a marvelous account of an industry and way of life one rarely considers, yet pretty much everything we consume comes by way of these enormous ships. Visit a ship tracker site to see the thousands of ships out there.

cathipink Sounds like a really interesting book, Darren. 6y
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Oblomov26
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The modern merchant marine - does not sound that interesting right? Well actually this book cover this subject and it is fascinating. The author explores the issues facing the industry- flags of convenience, crews drawn from the cheapest labour who work with little comfort, the impact of containers, piracy (and the reasons for modern piracy). As the title suggests an industry which brings us 90% of everything we consume.

AmyG Alot of things we give no thought to. Does sound fascinating. 7y
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abbadean8
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"...being arrested and shot at in West Africa...and the first ever advice columnist recommended that a woman fearing lonely spinsterhood get down to the docks and find a sex-starved sailor." ?#ninetypercentofeverything #nonfiction #maritimeindustry #booksaboutboats #booksaboutships

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abbadean8
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At the allergist and reading #ninetypercentofeverything to pass the time. It's a book about the maritime shipping industry--I know, sounds boring, but it truly is mind-blowing and it's actually riveting! I lost count of the number of times I've turned to a friend and said "wow! Did you know...?" while reading this book #nonfiction #journalism #booksaboutboats #booksaboutships

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