Speaking of hearings at which the questioners have no clue what they are talking about, a reader brings to my attention the questioning of Senate Commerce Chairman William Smith (D-Mich.) during the Titanic hearings.

The New York Times of May 29, 1912 carried an excerpt from the Daily Mail’s editorial on the topic:

The Daily Mail, in an editorial article headed, “Watertight Smith,” on the Titanic report to the United States Senate, says:
“…It is regrettable that Senator Smith was not content to let the report speak for itself. his speech, which must be considered apart from the report, is certainly not calculated to add to the authority of the committee over which he presided. It is a violent, unreasonable diatribe, in which the Senator betrays once more that amazing ignorance that prompted him to ask during the inquiry whether watertight compartments were intended as a refuge for passengers.”