| Author | Message | ||
     Court |
Anybody else watching this unfold at the Pentagon? The American crew, on this humanitarian ship delivery food for relief, has been retaken from the pirates. The ship was seized 300 miles off the coast . . one pirate in custody and the fate of the others, said to be "in the water" is unknown. Can you say "target practice"? When was the last time a frickin' Somalian overran an American ship? Where's Bush when we need him?  | ||
| Cyclonedon |
Where's Bush when we need him? hopefully in Texas, never to be seen again! | ||
| Court |
Shane Murphy is among my new heroes . . . I just listened to his sister who described him as a "fun loving, partying sort of a guy until he takes command of his ship and then he becomes something that George Carlin says I can't say". Fun to watch the government, who was unable and unwilling to respond, scurry to get on board to take credit for tossing the ••••••• Somolians into the sea. Ya gotta love American kids! | ||
| Oldog |
BooYaah! Get Some! | ||
| Court |
Hahahahahaha . . . . . Gibbs is stuttering and stammering . . . . uh, what happened? Looks like young Captain Murphy didn't get the memo about having to apologize for being an American. While a "bail out" plan was being considered by the government he tossed their asses in the sea. I confess . . . I don't even know if Somolians float. | ||
| Ourdee |
+1 get some Hope they cut the chum before they threw it in. | ||
| Xblaw |
Wish the rest of America would get the memo that was on Captain Murphy's desk this morning. Glad we aren't all pansies. | ||
| Greenlantern |
About time somebody fought back. This crap has only running rampant for what, A decade or so? And anyone who styles their self a "pirate" should know better than to attack a vessel who's name is the Grail of privateer ships. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CSS_Alabama | ||
| Jb2 |
Court, We've been following it here at the shop. Good stuff. It was cool that they had one in custody and the other eleven were "in the ocean" according to Fox News. They did later report that the pirates were in a lifeboat and the American captain was still being held hostage. Gibbs is prolly on the phone to Somalia seeing if there are any charges that could be brought against the American sailors. Sheesh! JB2 (Message edited by jb2 on April 08, 2009) | ||
| Jstfrfun |
Until this the great maritime plan was to "let them have the ship" in an effort to save life and health of crew members. Looks like kicking ass works better! Less of this would happen if crewmembers had side arms while in known pirate infested waters. | ||
| Slaughter |
I'm very eager to hear HOW the crew took back their ship. Supposedly US crews were trained for just this eventuality and whatever they were trained to DO - WORKED. Tonight's news will be interesting. | ||
| Greenlantern |
I knew I had read on this subject recently. http://www.america.gov/st/peacesec-english/2009/Fe bruary/20090223125330wcyeroc8.523196e-02.html?CP.r ss=true | ||
| Court |
>>>Until this the great maritime plan was to "let them have the ship" Shane apparently failed to get the memo. If he isn't a Buell rider, I think we need to recruit him! | ||
| Rfischer |
The Somalies apparently still hold the Capt. so this isn't done yet. Since all these high-jackings are about ransom - not terrorism - the "let them have the ship" practice is not illogical. Its goal is to avoid any possible injury or loss of life to crewmembers. The pirates are usually well-armed with lethal weapons that can do serious harm and damage, tho not sink a ship of course. It's a difficult issue for the ship operators, who for good and valid reasons aren't Rambo types. Yesterday there was a report that a group of pirates tried to take a NATO ship at night, mistaking it for a commercial vessel. Got a BIG surprise, and a quick transition from tough pirate to cowed prisoner. | ||
| Sayitaintso |
I've been following the piracy thing thing for a couple years now and so far its been about "capture and ransom". In general crews were instructed to not fight back and their employer would pay the ransom to get them back and then file an insurance claim. Its mostly the insurance companies that have been taking in the rear end. I actually read a while back that shipping companies were afraid that some crew sometime would eventually fight back and that would cause the pirates to start slaughtering crews in the future rather than just capturing and ransoming back. What I don't understand is why ships even go near that fly spec of a place. Its gotta be a risk/reward thing but what the hell is in that area that would be reward enough for the risk? For me though.....I'll tell you what. If my employer wanted me to serve on a ship that was headed to known pirate territory and not be armed or fight back, they would have to pay a huge chunk of change. | ||
| Wolfridgerider |
I actually read a while back that shipping companies were afraid that some crew sometime would eventually fight back and that would cause the pirates to start slaughtering crews in the future rather than just capturing and ransoming back. Dead men tell no tales... | ||
| Sayitaintso |
Dead men tell no tales... You right on that one.....its the dumb ass media. If a "go fast" full of pirates disappeared nobody would be the wiser. Arm the ships with a couple shoulder fired rockets and the problem would quickly go away. or Arrr to the bottom with 'em me matey. | ||
| Rfischer |
That "flyspeck of a place" actually borders on one of the busiest commercial shipping lanes in the world. And the pirates are operating sometimes 300 miles off the Somali coast, from mother ships. Not easy or practical to avoid. It's a one millions square mile chunk of ocean and pretty easy for the pirates to avoid LE or military patrol vessels. | ||
| Rfischer |
And, "dead men [may] tell no tales", but before they are dead they can return fire with heavy automatic weapons, RPG rounds, and the like which is a risk ship operators simply are unwilling to take. They are not military entities, nor are they wild west cowboys. They are business people using prudent risk management as they see it. We might disagree, but we're not the operators who are responsible for the ships, cargoes, and crews. In the operators' estimation God invented insurance companies for a reason - insure the risk and do nothing to trigger possible loss of property and/or life. | ||
| Sayitaintso |
the busiest commercial shipping lanes in the world Yea but is/was the savings to the shipping companies for not moving the "shipping lanes" another several hundred miles offshore enough to offset the risk of losing an entire ship? I guess its' safe to assume it is since the ins. companies are paying for any losses..... at least as long as the shipping companies can keep getting coverage. I'm secretly am hoping that the pirates are being keel hauled even as we speak and that things turn out ok for the skipper still being held. | ||
| Rfischer |
"..not moving shipping lanes.." Short answer is look at a map. Move to where, exactly, if the destination is the Red Sea and beyond to the Suez. The pirates are acutely aware of their strategic location and the near impossibility of avoiding their turf. | ||
| Spdkls |
i hear blackwater is out of a job right now, since they got booted from iraq. put those guys on the boats. pirates wouldn't ever take one again. | ||
| Ferris_von_bueller |
There is a documentary on Discovery that covers piracy from it's beginnings to current day. Rfisher is correct. Insurance companies, ship owners and governments dont want the sailors to arm themselves, although some have employed security contractors. Did you know, " ...the shores of Tripoli" from the Marine Hymn, references the First Barbary War between the United States and the North African States which was a result of piracy. | ||
| Paint_shaker |
"Give me Liberty or give me death!" | ||
| Fast1075 |
"I don't even know if Somalis float" Depends if they are the "skinnies" or the fat warlords. Solution: Can you say Phalanx??? Woopass inna can. (Message edited by fast1075 on April 08, 2009) | ||
| Jstfrfun |
A sudden rash of pirates being introduced to Davey Jones (maritime keeper of the dead), via harsh response from various weapons, corporate or government supplied, would send a glaring message to those who prey upon the insurance carriers of those cargo ships, which in fact does a trickle down to those who buy the products those ships are carrying. | ||
| Davegess |
These guys are tough to deal with simply because the country they come from has no functioning government and virtually no economy. these guys support whole areas of the country and your choices are pretty much starvation or piracy. Threat of death is small compared to watching your kids starve. Not that they don't need to be dealt with, just that it is not as easy as sinking a few ships. | ||
| Court |
>>>i hear blackwater is out of a job right now
I am a construction worker. | ||
| F_skinner |
Parts of Blackwater have changed their name and as far as I know they have lost very little business. The new name escapes me right now. I have not read the whole thread but I think, in the last year, this piracy deal has happened about 5 times. We had fun busting on the Navy guy today. To be fair the ocean is a big place and they can not be everywhere at the same time. Send in the Marines, the Merchant Marines! I am not a Construction worker. (Message edited by f_skinner on April 08, 2009) | ||
| Damnut |
In 2008, pirates seized 42 vessels off the country's 1,900-mile coastline, the longest in Africa. Since January, pirates have staged 66 attacks, and they are still holding 14 ships and 260 crew members as hostages, according to the International Maritime Bureau, a watchdog group based in Kuala Lumpur. I got this from an article on MSN |
