“Captain's Dinner: A Shipwreck, An Act of Cannibalism, and a Murder Trial That Changed Legal History” by Adam Cohen

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SHORT-FUSE NOTICE

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EXPLANATION

Occasionally, a Proposed Topic for Future Meetings has a SHORT-TIME FUSE because a governmental unit is soliciting PUBLIC COMMENTS for a limited time period with a SPECIFIED DEADLINE.

Exhibit A would be the 8/5/2016 Proposed Topic entitled “Clone Rights -- Involuntary Soldiers, Sex Slaves, Human Lab Rats, Etc.”

We had already focused on this topic for our 4/9/2008 meeting more than 8 years ago when the PBS Newshour interviewed a Yale U. Biology Professor who had already created a “Chimaera” with 25% Human DNA and 75% Chimp DNA (Chimps are the animals that share the most DNA with humans).

The Yale U. Biology Professor stated that he was then (2008) in the process of creating a “Chimaera” with 50% Human DNA and 50% Chimp DNA, and that he planned to create in the near future (2008 et seq.) a “Chimaera” with 75% Human DNA and 25% Chimp DNA.

As our 4/9/2008 meeting materials posted on http://www.ReadingLiberally-SaltLake.org disclose, Gwen Ifill who conducted the interview, was oblivious to the issue of the Nazi’s definition of a Jew based on the percentage of Jewish heritage and the Ante-Bellum American South’s definition of African-American based on the percentage of Sub-Saharan-African heritage.

But, even more appallingly, Gwen Ifill failed to ask the obvious question = What happens if the 50%-50% “Chimaera” then already being created happens to exhibit as DOMINANT TRAITS 100% Human DNA and as RECESSIVE TRAITS 100% Chimp DNA!!! Which, of course, would mean that Yale U. was treating as a lab rat a “Chimaera” that is 100% Human!!!

Unfortunately, the 8/5/2016 Proposed Topic was prompted by a Proposal from the National Institute of Health (NIH) which appeared in The Federal Register of 8/5/2016 and which had a 9/6/2016 deadline for public comments!!!

So our 9/14/2016 meeting, which was the first for which our focus had not already been determined as of 8/5/2016 under our normal rules, was too late.

So the reason for inaugurating this Short-Fuse Notice Section is to provide a Special Heads Up that a Proposed Topic has a Public-Comment Deadline that will occur before the first regular meeting date at which the topic can be discussed -- so that any of our readers who want to comply with the Public-Comment Deadline can contact the Proposer of the Topic in order to confer with anyone else who may be considering comments by the deadline.

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PENDING SHORT-FUSE PROPOSALS

1. Re “Clone Rights -- Involuntary Soldiers, Sex Slaves, Human Lab Rats, Etc.” (proposed 8/5/2016), although the 9/6/2016 public-comment deadline of the National Institute of Health (NIH) has passed, this Topic Proposal is still active. PLEASE NOTE ATTACHED TO THIS PROPOSAL THE 1/29/2017 UPDATE ENTITLED0 “HUMAN-PIG CHIMERAS -- DECENT BEHAVIOR DESPITE OPEN BARN DOOR.”

2. Re “Destroying Great Salt Lake To Grow Low-Profit Hay For China” (proposed 9/27/2016), there is a 10/24/2016 public-comment deadline that will occur before our first possible regular meeting (11/16/2016) at which this Proposed Topic could be considered.
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johnkarls
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Joined: Fri Jun 29, 2007 8:43 pm

“Captain's Dinner: A Shipwreck, An Act of Cannibalism, and a Murder Trial That Changed Legal History” by Adam Cohen

Post by johnkarls »

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NYC Harvard Club Book Promotion – “Captain's Dinner: A Shipwreck, An Act of Cannibalism, and a Murder Trial That Changed Legal History” by Adam Cohen, Esq.

I propose that we read “Captain's Dinner: A Shipwreck, An Act of Cannibalism, and a Murder Trial That Changed Legal History” by Adam Cohen (Authors Equity Publishing 11/18/2025 – 384 pages but probably many fewer sans notes & index – Hardcover $32.00 or $16.99 Kindle from Amazon.com).

IMHO --

(A) It would serve as a brilliant follow-up to our 12/10/2025 focus book “Antifa: The Anti-Fascist Handbook” whose theme seems to be that it is acceptable in American society for politicians to call other politicians a “Fascist” or “Hitler” without affording the victims a fair trial before they are assassinated by the followers of the name-calling politicians!!!

(B) After all, the “Murder Trial That Changed Legal History” demonstrated that even NECESSITY does NOT justify murder – and the Antifa Handbook’s theme is that murder/assassination is justified for anyone who you think is a fascist.

(B) “Captain’s Dinner” author Adam Cohen is particularly qualified to describe and analyze the “Murder Trial That Changed Legal History” since he was President of the Harvard Law Review which means he was almost certainly at the head of the 1987 Harvard Law School class of 560 graduates.


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THE HARVARD CLUB OF NYC WILL CONDUCT A WEBINAR WITH THE AUTHOR ON 12/9/2025 (such webinars typically comprise a 30-minute presentation followed by 30 minutes of Q&A).

FOR ANYONE WHO IS NOT A MEMBER OF THE NYC HARVARD CLUB AND WOULD LIKE TO PARTICIPATE IN THE WEBINAR, PLEASE CONTACT ME AT ReadingLiberally-SaltLake@johnkarls.com.


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NYC Harvard Club Notice –

Date: Tuesday, December 9
Time: 7:00pm-8:00pm

When the yacht Mignonette sank in 1884, four men were cast adrift in a lifeboat with no food and little hope. Two weeks later, only three survived—after making an unthinkable choice that shocked the Victorian world. In Captain’s Dinner, acclaimed journalist, NYT bestselling author, and Pulitzer Prize juror Adam Cohen brings this harrowing true story to life, from the desperate struggle at sea to the sensational murder trial of Regina v. Dudley and Stephens. The case set a legal precedent that necessity can never justify murder, a principle that continues to shape Anglo-American law today. Join us for a riveting exploration of survival, morality, and justice in a story as gripping as any thriller.

Brett Andersen, Program Committee


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Book Description per Amazon.com (usually quoting from the book’s dust jacket)

A Barnes & Noble Best History Book of 2025

Four men in a lifeboat. Two weeks without food. One impossible choice that would reshape the boundaries between survival and murder. “A perfect enunciation of the classic philosophical conundrum: can you sacrifice one innocent life to save many?" (Yann Martel, author of Life of Pi)

On May 19, 1884, the yacht Mignonette set sail from England on what should have been an uneventful voyage. When their vessel sank in the Atlantic, Captain Thomas Dudley and his crew found themselves adrift in a tiny lifeboat. As days turned to weeks, they faced an unthinkable choice: starve to death or resort to cannibalism.

Their decision to sacrifice the youngest—17-year-old cabin boy Richard Parker—ignited a firestorm of controversy upon their rescue. Instead of being hailed as heroes and survivors, Dudley and his crew found themselves at the center of Regina v. Dudley and Stephens, a landmark murder trial that would establish the legal precedent that necessity cannot justify murder—a principle that continues to shape Anglo-American law today.

In Captain's Dinner, acclaimed journalist, Pulitzer Prize juror, and New York Times bestselling author Adam Cohen masterfully depicts both the harrowing weeks at sea and the sensational trial that followed. "Is killing one innocent person justified if it saves the lives of three others? Cohen's answer—in this riveting account—reads like a thriller" (former U.S. Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken). Through this Victorian tragedy, Cohen reveals an enduring conflict between primal instincts and moral principles. This book will “make you think long and hard about what you might do to survive” (Ezekiel J. Emanuel, M.D., Ph.D., University of Pennsylvania).

Perfect for readers of David Grann's The Wager and Nathaniel Philbrick's In the Heart of the Sea, this pulse-pounding true story has become a real-life example of one of life's greatest moral dilemmas. “Thoroughly researched and impeccably argued” (Martel). Rich with narrative detail and real-life courtroom twists, “brilliant and profound,” (bestselling author Amy Chua), Captain's Dinner strikes at the heart of a question that haunts us all: When does survival justify murder?


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Author Bio per Amazon.com

Adam Cohen, who served as a member of the New York Times editorial board and as a senior writer for Time, is the author of Imbeciles: The Supreme Court, American Eugenics, and the Sterilization of Carrie Buck, which was longlisted for the National Book Award. He is also the author of Supreme Inequality: The Supreme Court’s Fifty-Year Battle for a More Unjust America, and Nothing to Fear: FDR’s Inner Circle and the Hundred Days That Created Modern America. A graduate of Harvard Law School, he was president of volume 100 of the Harvard Law Review.


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Book Review Excerpts per Amazon.com

"Based on extensive primary research, this engaging legal and maritime history is highly recommended for all libraries."
-- Library Journal, Starred Review

"Adam Cohen takes on one of life’s defining moral questions in this riveting historical exploration about a difficult choice at sea that led to a murder trial that set a new precedent."
-- Barnes & Noble, Best History Books of 2025

"Drama abounds on the high seas and in the courtroom . . . a gripping look at a foundational moral shift of the modern era."
-- Publishers Weekly

"Journalist and author Cohen strikes gold . . . A legal milestone and a good read."
-- Kirkus Reviews

"This was not the first act of cannibalism in the name of survival, but it was the first that changed the world. For students of legal history, this one’s a must-read."
-- David Pitt ― Booklist

"A briskly told, deeply researched study . . . While Mr. Cohen engages readers with a lively and suspenseful narrative, he is also interested in exploring the intricate logic of the legal decision."
-- Donna Sanders ― The Wall Street Journal

"Thoroughly researched and impeccably argued, Captain's Dinner is both a terrific and an important story. It's a perfect enunciation of the classic philosophical conundrum: can you sacrifice one innocent life to save many? That is a moral dilemma as relevant today as it was in Victorian England."
-- Yann Martel, author of Life of Pi

“Is killing one innocent person justified if it saves the lives of three others? Adam Cohen’s answer—in this riveting account of Dudley and Stephens, one of the most famous cases in legal history—reads like a thriller. And it begs the question of each of us: what would you do?”
-- Antony J. Blinken, former U.S. Secretary of State

“Brilliant and profound, Captain’s Dinner had me gripped from page one. Even as he takes on wrenching moral issues, Cohen brings humanity and wit to the most serious and ghastly of subjects. With vivid, fast-paced writing, extraordinary research, and incredible historical detail, Cohen takes us back to the scene of the crime—and brings it alive. No one can write like Adam Cohen. A masterpiece!”
-- Amy Chua, Yale Law Professor and author of Political Tribes and The Golden Gate

“Captain's Dinner is an enthralling and entertaining book about a gruesome subject: cannibalism. Adam Cohen brings to life one of the most important murder trials in history, and expertly sketches in the social and historical background. This is both an adventure story and a courtroom thriller. It is, above all, simply a fascinating read that asks the reader to consider what you would do in the extreme circumstances encountered by the shipwreck survivors.”
-- Max Boot, New York Times bestselling author of Reagan: His Life an

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