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February 16, 2007
Looney Mooney is back
The Brooklyn Paper
By Christie Rizk
In one of the more bizarre twists of the Barclays saga:
A man who set out to row himself across the Atlantic Ocean last year, but sank three hours into the journey, vows to complete his mission — and he hopes he’ll have Barclays behind him.
Victor Mooney, whom some bloggers have dubbed “Looney Mooney” after he attempted to row from the old slave-trading post, Goree Island, Senegal, to the United States last May, announced his second try last Wednesday, unveiling a new (but still-unbuilt) boat.
“It [will be] virtually unsinkable and professionally built,” he said, a reference to his less-than-seaworthy, self-made first boat, which sank three hours into his trip, forcing the Senegalese navy to rescue him.
This time, Mooney will need $75,000 to make this dream a reality — $50,000 for the boat and another $25,000 for supplies and to support his family for the three months he estimates the journey will take.
He hasn’t gotten any corporate sponsors, but that didn’t stop him from splashing the Barclays logo on renderings of the boat (it’s not likely that the financial behemoth will touch anything that links it, again, to slavery).
But Mooney, who once got free workspace from Atlantic Yards developer Bruce Ratner, is always optimistic.
“Barclays is good for Brooklyn,” he said. “I commend Barclays."
NoLandGrab: For the record, we weren't amongst the bloggers who called Mooney "looney."
The Brooklyn Paper makes a good point: one would think that Barclays Bank wouldn't want to have anything to do with any project that might ignite a conversation about ties between the bank and the slave trade.
It makes us wonder if Mooney received a cease-and-desist letter.
Posted by lumi at February 16, 2007 8:06 AM