Assad: O Captain! My Captain!

According to Syria's leader-till-death-do-us-part Bashar al-Assad, his country is a ship and he's the captain. And he won't abandon his vessel until he's the last man standing which is not that far-fetched considering that his citizens are dying or fleeing abroad by the droves so it won't be long before there's no one left there. Of course as far as maritime metaphors are concerned, there is one that is much more suited to the situation in Syria. Namely he is indeed a captain but of a submarine that has broken down, foundered at the bottom of the ocean. Even if he wanted to leave there'd be nowhere to go.