Post Hoc Fallacy: Zim Shipping Restructures

In their frantic effort to achieve some sort of tangible victory,  BDS'ers often resort to wild abandonment of logic, cause and effect, and truth.

We're about to see it again.

The economic downturn of the last few years has left many of the container carriers floundering. New ships ordered before the financial crisis have flooded the market, and this overcapacity is directly influencing the profitability of many shipping lines.

That Sinking Feeling: Global Crisis Hits Shipping Industry Hard

Maersk Line sees shipping overcapacity for five years

The Impact of the Economic Crisis on the Shipping Industry and Trade Consequences

Zim Shipping  has also been struggling for some time.   Its 2nd quarter 2014 results were less than stellar.

 
In January, restructuring plans had been announced with Israel Corp handing control of two-thirds of Zim  to creditors . The final details of the restructuring were announced this week:

From Reuters 

Israel Corp, one of Israel's largest conglomerates, has planned to split into two companies for more than a year in an attempt to boost the value of its core businesses and attract a broader range of investors.

Under its plan, Israel Corp will continue to hold two of its most lucrative and stable companies -- potash and speciality chemicals maker Israel Chemicals (ICL) and Oil Refineries, Israel's biggest refinery.

On Monday, it detailed plans for the spin-off company, Singapore-incorporated Kenon Holdings. It will transfer to Kenon its holdings in five units: chipmaker TowerJazz, shipping line Zim, Qoros Automotive -- a joint venture between Israel Corp and China's Chery Automobile -- IC Power and IC Green Energy.

Among the expected changes for Zim Shipping is a consolidation of ports of call.
Although this is the culmination of events beginning in 2008, already the anti-Israel cru is declaring this a victory for BDS. In the Copernican world of  Palestinian activism, the entire universe orbits around BDS. There are no routine business decisions as far as the BDS'ers are concerned. Its all about them-  their "power", their "momentum".

Since the summer, attempts have been made in Vancouver, Tampa, Tampa and Long Beach and Oakland to block Zim ships. Outside of Oakland,  there has been resounding failure.

In spite of this, expect to see BDS'ers crowing victory as  further details of the restructuring become public.

To them, all I can say is  Post hoc, ergo propter hoc

ZIM reported ready to abandon Oakland Port

From The Marine Executive:

On Sunday night, after not being able to unload at the Port of Oakland, the ZIM Shanghai headed to the Port of Los Angeles. According to The Jewish Press, ZIM may not call on the Port of Oakland again. Other shipping companies wary of the port’s unreliability may also consider the same.

With an estimated 150 ZIM visits a year, that’s a lot of business and perhaps even jobs for the City of Oakland to lose, says the news agency.

The longshoremen of Oakland have claimed that they were physically threatened by the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) protestors involved in the blockade of the vessel and that the leadership of their union, the ILWU, is not involved in the demonstrations. The union released a statement after claims arose that some in their leadership were using the BDS protest to bolster their contract negotiating position with the port.

As far as the union can ascertain, the protests are organized by a coalition of individuals and organizations that plan events and create action alerts under the name of "Block the Boat for Gaza" online.

The Port of Oakland is the only port in the United States so far where BDS protesters have been able to intimidate and physically threaten the longshoremen into not working.

Curiouser and curiouser.

On Monday Sept. 29, Clarence Thomas from Local 10 of the ILWU participated in a talk at Laney College, where he described coordinating the protest at the docks with members of the Arab Resource organizing center. This is in direct contradiction to the Union’s formal written statement. Is the union leadership sacrificing the rank and file by making back room deals with extremist groups? Is the union deliberately hiding their role in organizing the protests so they can claim victimhood? Are they using the protests as a bargaining chip in their contract negotiations with the port? Or is Clarence Thomas simply lying?

These are all questions that need answers.

It has been reported that Zim has made the decision that the Port of Oakland is too poorly managed to be a reliable partner in the international shipping business, and is moving their business elsewhere. Other shipping companies, seeing how vulnerable the port is to disturbances may follow suit. And Oakland Mayor Jean Quan is too caught up in her own re-election campaign to pay this issue any attention.

While the BDS holes will likely claim victory over this, there are no winners. The Port of Oakland will now live with the consequences of weak leadership. It has lost more than jobs. It has lost credibility.

UPDATE
Zim has denied reports that it will stop shipping through Oakland. 
From a Statement in American Shipper, issued October 2:

 ZIM disputed reports that suggest it might end service to the Port of Oakland after demonstrators disrupted cargo operations over the weekend and a ship had to divert of the Port of Los Angeles to discharge cargo. There was a similar protest in August, but that ZIM ship was eventually able to work at a different terminal in Oakland. An article on the website of the Jewish Press newspaper Wednesday reported that "there are questions if ZIM ships will continue to try to use the Port of Oakland anymore." The report was also cited by Maritime Executive . But a spokesman for ZIM said Thursday that "this report isn't accurate. ZIM is not pulling out of Oakland; the customers there are important for the company....

The lack of accurate information from the union, the port and from the media is a continued source of frustration for people attempting to track the situation at the docks.

Threatening Dockworkers. This is not your grandfather's "Solidarity"

Physically threatening clerks and longshoremen. This is the true face of the BDS movement

ILWU statement on blockage of Zim vessel by protestors at Port of Oakland

SAN FRANCISCO, CA: At 6:00 PM Saturday, ILWU Local 10 and 34 represented longshoremen and clerks dispatched to work the vessel ZIM Shanghai at SSA’s Oakland California Terminal were met with hostile demonstrators, effectively blocking all access to the terminal. Longshoremen and Clerks trying to report to work were threatened physically at some points of ingress and their personal vehicles were physically blocked. As such, all personnel stood-by outside of the demonstration perimeters for health and safety purposes. At approximately 8 PM SSA released all personnel from work.

As far as the union can ascertain, the protests are organized by a coalition of individuals and organizations that plan events and create action alerts under the name of “Block the Boat for Gaza” online.

The ILWU is not among the groups organizing the protests, and the leadership and membership of the ILWU have taken no position on the Israel/Gaza conflict.

ILWU Coast Longshore Division news release: Saturday, September 27, 2014

Contacts:

Jennifer Sargent, 503-703-2933

Craig Merrilees, 510-774-5325

Oakland Block the Boat: Bad for Oakland

Agitprop site Indybay declared that the  Oakland Block the Boat action "won the support of ILWU Local 10 and ILWU Local 34 longshore workers who refused to cross the line." 

Yet lying comes as natural to the anti-Israel cru as breathing.  There was no "solidarity". The posts on Twitter from the Oakland Block the Boat showed the activists bullying  union members, and physically  blocking them as they tried to get to their jobs. 

 The dockworkers apparently fought back.

 

There was no "solidarity",  only selfish and thoughtless maneuvering by a self absorbed group of activists blinded by their seething hatred for the world's only Jewish state. But others could anticipate the consequences.


In a letter to Oakland mayor Jean Quan, the Pacific Merchants Shipping Association expressed their    concern, writing    

"...while demonstrators are entitled to their opinions regarding a geo-political struggle that goes back centuries, they are not entitled to harm businesses and workers in Oakland as the result of their opinions"

The letter, courtesy copied to Gov. Brown and others, continues:

"If port operations are easily shut-down by any group with a political agenda, the damage to its reputation will be immense, immediate and hard to repair. That this takes place at a time when port competitiveness is extremely intense, with cargo owners having many options through which to move their goods and our California ports only now recovering to pre-recession volumes, only makes the protection of the port more imperative."

Block the Boat. Bad for business. Bad for Oakland. And its happening again on October 25.

Congresswoman Hahn Releases Statement on Protests Regarding Zim Ship at the Port of Oakland

Rep. Janice Hahn represents California's forty-fourth District in the U.S. House of Representatives. She is a member of the House Committee on transportation and Infrastructure and issued this statement on  August 19th regarding the fiasco that was taking place at the Oakland docks.  With Seattle in the cross-hair of the anti-Israel activists tomorrow, it is still relevant.

SAN PEDRO, CA—Today, Congresswoman Hahn released the following statement on the ILWU Local 10’s decision not to unload a Zim ship docked at the Port of Oakland that has been the subject of ongoing protests:

“It is critical to the state’s local economy that this ship be unloaded. I urge the local police department to take steps to ensure ILWU Local 10 workers’ safety so that they may reconsider their decision and unload this Zim ship. This issue is about commerce in the United States not the political situation in the Middle East . Failing to unload this ship threatens the local economy and jobs this community relies on. I have been assured that the local police can guarantee the safe passage of workers at the terminal while allowing the peaceful protests to continue.”

“With cargo diversion a constant threat to our West coast ports, not unloading this cargo, simply sends the wrong message.”

“Last week in my San Pedro office, I convened a meeting with the local ILWU, the Israeli Counsel General, clergy, and representatives from Jewish Labor and the Port of Los Angeles to discuss this issue. We were assured by our ILWU leadership that they are neutral on the political situation in the Middle East and guaranteed that the ships in LA and Long Beach would be unloaded. As the co-chair of the Congressional PORTS Caucus, I hope that we can hold similar meetings in Northern California to bring key leaders to the table to find a resolution.”

“Finally, I stand with the Teamsters in calling on the ILWU to unload the Zim ship and allow important commerce to continue.”

Congresswoman Hahn is the founder and co-chair of the Congressional PORTS Caucus. She represents America ’s Port – the Port of Los Angeles . With the Port of Long Beach , it is the largest port complex in the nation.

Breelyn Pete
(202) 225-8220
Breelyn.Pete( at)mail.house.gov

Tacoma Block the Boat: Anatomy of a fail

Block the Boat Tacoma has followed the same trajectory as so many other BDS actions. A period of manic self promotion and a failure to achieve an tangible aim has been followed by a rapid series of "even when we lose, we win statements", and the defeat, now wearing the laurel wreath of "victory" is never spoken of again.

The Seattle Times reports

About 100 people opposed to Israel’s military action in Gaza formed picket lines outside Washington United Terminals gates on Port of Tacoma Road shortly after 7 a.m., in an attempt to keep longshore workers from unloading the vessel Chicago, owned by the Israeli company, Zim Integrated Shipping Services.

Instead, longshore workers were taken to the terminal by an alternate route and began their shift as usual. “We’re not going to talk about how they got in,” said Tara Mattina, a Port of Tacoma spokeswoman. “The ship did come in as expected, and the longshore workers started working at 8 a.m.”

The Police were also well prepared for this action

Tacoma police kept their distance Saturday morning, but they set up a roadblock on the Port of Tacoma Road for about 45 minutes, allowing access only to port workers with identification. Port security officers refused to allow parking in the vicinity, threatening to tow cars along Marshall Avenue and Port of Tacoma Road.

The self reporting from the anti-Israel activists provides a different perspective. They distributed leaflets promoting the scurrilous and discredited  apartheid meme

When thwarted in their efforts gain access to the docks , some activists discussed forging press passes.

Via Twitter:

Despite claims of ILWU "solidarity" with their aims,  the local ILWU was unimpressed. ILWU Local 23 President Dean McGrath firmly declared via Twitter  'No organization will hijack our 'muscle' for their purposes."

With no worker "solidarity" for their cause, the protesters tried to physically prevent union members from reaching their destination.

KIROTV, Channel 7 reports:

A fight erupted when about 50 protestors tried to prevent workers at the Port of Tacoma from getting in and out of their parking lot.  The protestors were part of a growing group called "Block the Boat,” which was attempting to keep an Israeli cargo ship from unloading in Tacoma Saturday morning.

Protestors swarmed a man's minivan at the entrance of the parking lot.  When he finally got out to approach the gate, there was a physical confrontation. Other workers were trying to get home after their shift but they were trapped by the group. 

The anti-Israel activists were filled with self-righteous indignation that dock employees might actually care about their work responsibilities

Protesters shamelessly bragged about using their young children to obstruct  the workers.  (Children as human shields? Where have we seen that before?) What kind of parent would do this?

As the protesters slowly realized they were on the brink of failure, their rhetoric escalated. The talk was no longer of unions and solidarity.  Thinly veiled threats were made to the port. The action was no longer about the Zim ship. It was about shutting down the entire port.

Zim's customer line was next in the cross-hairs.  This is nothing short of  economic terrorism.

In spite of the protest, The Zim Chicago docked and was unloaded  without major incident.

Cue the "When we lose, we win statements", in all their infinite variety

On Monday, the "block party" continues, with Block the boat Seattle.