Eisboch wrote:

"HK" wrote in message
m...
Eisboch wrote:

"HK" wrote in message
m...


The ship, its contents, and ransom money are just property, a
commodity much less valuable than the lives of the ship crews.



The reason this nonsense continues is because ransoms are paid.

I know what Ronald Reagan would do.
I know what George H.W. Bush would do.
I know what George W. Bush would do.
Hell, I can even guess what Bill Clinton would do.

But, I can't begin to predict what Obama would or will do.
After all, it's only money.

Thomas Jefferson had the right idea.

Eisboch


I think it really stupid to assault a ship commanded by pirates when
the crews' lives are at stake. On the other hand, if there are pirates
approaching or leaving the ship, and they are not carrying hostages,
well, they are fair game. We obviously need to task some satellites to
watch the Somali coast and any small boats heading way offshore. We
can do that in real time, and dispatch naval aircraft to ward off any
small boats that get too close. We can do this at night, too.

What would George W. Bush do? Get a few thousand Americans killed.




I didn't say that. We don't need to put the crew of a captured ship at
further risk.
But, we can take action against the warlords that organize these attacks.

Eisboch

I'm confident our leader will handle this situation properly. The
captain did a brave thing. We need to pray for him.

"D.Duck" wrote in message
...

"Calif Bill" wrote in message
m...

"HK" wrote in message
m...
D.Duck wrote:
"Eisboch" wrote in message
...
Betcha there are a few in Wash DC breathing a sigh of relief.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/piracy


AP now reporting that two of the *pirates* escaped with the ship's
captain. The plot thickens.



U.S. flagged vessels with union crews do get some training in repelling
boarders. I hope a deal can be made for the captain's life.

--
Palin & Bachmann in 2012 -
All Stupidity All the Time

I would put a noose around all the pirates that are captured on the ship
and line them up along the rail. Inform the ones with the captain that
if anything happens to the captain or they leave the area, the ones on
the rail will head to the sea.


Do you think the captains captors care? (say that fast three times)


Actually yes. They have to explain to the other people in the "village" why
they let the others hang. Same village, so they care.

"Calif Bill" wrote in message
...

"D.Duck" wrote in message
...

"Calif Bill" wrote in message
m...

"HK" wrote in message
m...
D.Duck wrote:
"Eisboch" wrote in message
...
Betcha there are a few in Wash DC breathing a sigh of relief.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/piracy


AP now reporting that two of the *pirates* escaped with the ship's
captain. The plot thickens.



U.S. flagged vessels with union crews do get some training in repelling
boarders. I hope a deal can be made for the captain's life.

--
Palin & Bachmann in 2012 -
All Stupidity All the Time

I would put a noose around all the pirates that are captured on the ship
and line them up along the rail. Inform the ones with the captain that
if anything happens to the captain or they leave the area, the ones on
the rail will head to the sea.


Do you think the captains captors care? (say that fast three times)


Actually yes. They have to explain to the other people in the "village"
why they let the others hang. Same village, so they care.

Bill, I have a bridge for sale .................

"Jim22208" wrote

I'm confident our leader will handle this situation properly. The captain
did a brave thing. We need to pray for him.

I am very interested in what "Fearless Leader" is going to do.

Why does "Rocky and Bullwinkle" come to mind?

"Eisboch" wrote in message
...

"Pittman Pirate" wrote in message
...

"HK" wrote

The ship, its contents, and ransom money are just property, a commodity
much less valuable than the lives of the ship crews.

True. And to continue to send unarmed men into these situations in these
areas is plain stupidity. We have US naval vessels all over the globe
doing such things as jellyfish research, listening, and retesting
something they tested 2,000 times before. It would be nothing to station
vessels on patrol in that area of the world, and to handle these
situations as they come up. If a SEAL can't handle a skinny terrorist
with an antiquated RPG, he should turn in his flippers.


Haven't spent that much time in the blue water, huh?
Mighty small ships in gigantic oceans. We have ships patrolling
the normal shipping lanes, but this event happened about 300 miles
from the nearest Naval vessel according to the reports.
Furthermore, there were apparently about 150 cargo ships transiting
the general area at the time. Which do you protect?

Eisboch

Actually, spent eight years there, holding Leading AB status. Other
certifications and positions, but I digress. I do know that it is
Pollyannish to think that we can patrol every ship and every waterway.
Imagine sugar ants on the Superdome parking lot, and multiply the asphalt by
100,000.. During WW2, we had convoys, and the U boats still sank ships. I
was talking about situations where ships are seized, and action taken after
that. Maybe the knowledge would trickle down that if you attack a US
vessel, there will be a no nonsense response. A captain who drops anchor
(if in shallow water) or some other way disables his ship isn't going to
have to worry about some illiterate villager getting it under way. So they
sit there in a Mexican standoff.

Steve

On Wed, 08 Apr 2009 18:31:45 -0400, HK wrote:



I dunno, Vic. It seems when we use our brawn instead of our brains on
these failed states, we seem to make it easier for terrorists and despots.

A "failed state" is one that can freely harbor terrorists, pirates,
etc. Sometimes nothing works to instill order but brawn.
Using brains would mean getting the locals to use the brawn.
If you can, fine. But you'll still get blamed for the violence.

--Vic

"Pittman Pirate" wrote in message
...

"Eisboch" wrote in message
...

"Pittman Pirate" wrote in message
...

"HK" wrote

The ship, its contents, and ransom money are just property, a commodity
much less valuable than the lives of the ship crews.

True. And to continue to send unarmed men into these situations in
these areas is plain stupidity. We have US naval vessels all over the
globe doing such things as jellyfish research, listening, and retesting
something they tested 2,000 times before. It would be nothing to
station vessels on patrol in that area of the world, and to handle these
situations as they come up. If a SEAL can't handle a skinny terrorist
with an antiquated RPG, he should turn in his flippers.


Haven't spent that much time in the blue water, huh?
Mighty small ships in gigantic oceans. We have ships patrolling
the normal shipping lanes, but this event happened about 300 miles
from the nearest Naval vessel according to the reports.
Furthermore, there were apparently about 150 cargo ships transiting
the general area at the time. Which do you protect?

Eisboch

Actually, spent eight years there, holding Leading AB status. Other
certifications and positions, but I digress. I do know that it is
Pollyannish to think that we can patrol every ship and every waterway.
Imagine sugar ants on the Superdome parking lot, and multiply the asphalt
by 100,000.. During WW2, we had convoys, and the U boats still sank
ships. I was talking about situations where ships are seized, and action
taken after that. Maybe the knowledge would trickle down that if you
attack a US vessel, there will be a no nonsense response. A captain who
drops anchor (if in shallow water) or some other way disables his ship
isn't going to have to worry about some illiterate villager getting it
under way. So they sit there in a Mexican standoff.

Steve


I certainly go along with that.
Another option maybe is to have open village meetings and Obama can go over
and give his "Hope and Change" motivational speech and then answer
questions. Heck, it worked on millions here.

Eisboch

Simply train and arm the crew with 50 cal. and 20 m.m. automatic weapons to
defend themselves. A 20 m.m. Vulcan gatlin gun mounted amidships with quad
50's fore and aft would stop all the nonsense. As a former destroyer
shipmate, I assure you the firepower in the aforementioned is sufficient to
strike terror in the hearts of any so called Pirates.
"Eisboch" wrote in message
...

Betcha there are a few in Wash DC breathing a sigh of relief.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/piracy

On Wed, 08 Apr 2009 19:00:14 -0600, Vic Smith
wrote:

On Wed, 08 Apr 2009 18:31:45 -0400, HK wrote:



I dunno, Vic. It seems when we use our brawn instead of our brains on
these failed states, we seem to make it easier for terrorists and despots.

A "failed state" is one that can freely harbor terrorists, pirates,
etc. Sometimes nothing works to instill order but brawn.
Using brains would mean getting the locals to use the brawn.
If you can, fine. But you'll still get blamed for the violence.

--Vic

Maybe we could offer them jobs - if we had any.

wrote in message
m...
Simply train and arm the crew with 50 cal. and 20 m.m. automatic weapons
to defend themselves. A 20 m.m. Vulcan gatlin gun mounted amidships with
quad 50's fore and aft would stop all the nonsense. As a former destroyer
shipmate, I assure you the firepower in the aforementioned is sufficient
to strike terror in the hearts of any so called Pirates.
"Eisboch" wrote in message
...

Betcha there are a few in Wash DC breathing a sigh of relief.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/piracy



I have searched around and haven't found a specific reference yet, but I
think there may be an international maritime law regarding the arming of
merchant vessels. Sidearms are ok, I think, but not a major weapons
system. I've found general references, but not anything that clearly
addresses the subject.

Eisboch