On Sun, 15 Apr 2012 17:07:49 -0500, Caesar Romano
wrote:

... because there were not enough escape pods!

But there was plenty of room for Bruce Ismay. He was on one of the
first lifeboats launched.

After the disaster, Ismay was savaged by both the American and the
British press for deserting the ship while women and children were
still on board. Some papers called him the "Coward Of The Titanic" or
"J. Brute Ismay" and suggested that the White Star flag be changed to
a white liver. Some ran negative cartoons depicting him deserting the
ship. The writer Ben Hecht, then a young newspaperman in Chicago,
wrote a scathing poem contrasting the actions of Capt. Smith and
Ismay. The final verse reads: "To hold your place in the ghastly face
of death on the sea at night is a seaman's job, but to flee with the
mob, is an owner's noble right."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/J._Bruce_Ismay

Not knowing the exact circumstances, he may or may not have done the
right thing by getting off the ship. As a businessman, he may have
save lives by getting the hell out of the way and letting the heroic
crew do their jobs without his hindrance.

What he was guilty of was reducing the number of lifeboats.

"To accommodate the luxurious features Ismay ordered the number of
lifeboats reduced from 48 to 16, the latter being the minimum allowed
by the Board of Trade, based on the Titanic's projected tonnage."

May have been legal, but it certainly was not the right thing to do.
The laws and thought process were certainly different in 1912, not
just for ships, but for industry in all forms.