[Recoil Sissy]

It would seem that one can't swing a dead cat off the Somali coast or in the Gulf of Aden without hitting a pirate ship or three. The TimesOnLine (UK) reports Somali pirates have snatched nine vessels for ransom in just twelve days.

Earlier today, it was reported an Indian frigate fired on a pirate mothership in the Gulf of Aden. The frigate had been dispatched there to protect India's merchant fleet. The pirate ship apparently made the mistake of menacing the Indian warship which promptly sent it to the bottom.

Is there some reason the various navies of the world aren't already providing escort service to their nation's commercial vessels and, when necessary, blowing more of them sons of b__ches out of the water??

sissy

 

[JBrooks]

It is racist to shoot black pirates.

 

[halfmile]

If we did it there woulld be an outcry and a call for protecting the pirates' constitutional rights.

Their families would probably be able to apply for Social Security survivors benefits.

HM

 

[Justin L.]

Why would you worry about the Pirates? They've been below .500 for...oh, wait a second...

 

[Pull & Mark]

Me Thinks we are going to see some small 20mm cannons or some twin 50 cals mounted to the decks of some of these Merchant Ships in the very near future. The ship owners will do something real fast now Me Thinks. Break-em all. Jeff

 

[H82MIS]

kill em all,,,their pirates,,,

 

[Lead Man]

International law does not allow merchant ships to arm the crews or the ship itself. Saw them talking about that on Fox a few weeks back.

 

[shannon391]

They are guest workers, give them a break and a drivers permit and food stamps...at least let Oboma have a little sit down talk with them to meet their needs.

 

[FRedmon]

Them pirates are just looking for soap!

Stinking pirates

FRedmon

 

[JBrooks]

ACORN has registered all of them to vote.

 

[tom-n8ies]

They are just re-distributing wealth, whats the big deal?


tom

 

[stokinpls]

Ooooh. Let's try to find out why they don't like us. Surely it it something we're doing wrong. These folks are just misunderstood. We need to talk to them. Maybe they need a bailout. Fly a few of them over here so we can have a town hall meeting.

 

[recurvyarcher]

Our forces are deployed in Afghanistan, the Persian Gulf, and the Phillipines, for the most part. I don't think you would want them redeployed for commercial interests at this time. You wouldn't like the results.

 

[Shipbuilder]

I would be surprised if we tolerate them messing with an American flag ship. Having said that there are very few ,if any, American flagged merchant vessels any longer. That is likely the reason the US Navy is not involved. Most merhantmen that I have seen today are Panamanian registry with Indoniniian crews. I doubt Panama can do anything about Somolian Pirates.

I spent some time last year talking to the leaders of the Indian Navy aboutrepair. I got the distinct impression that they were a tough bunch and that they would shoot bad guys in a heart beat. I can tell you they do indeed have the equipment to do it.

If we do turn the US Navy loose on the pirates it will be like watching 16 yard shoot offs at the grand.Our ship to ship stuff is pretty impressive,we just don't get to see it much except when we test it.

Jim

 

[halfmile]

This is piracy on th high seas, no jurisdiction.

The offended entity has the right to go after them.

If they did tackle a vessel of american registry the use of force should be immediate.

However, since the incoming administration is the Clinton retread, I wouldn't hope for much seeing as the Cole bombing was such a farce.

HM

 

[Merlyn]

If George Bush went after them, he would become an even bigger asshole for protecting the world from more aggression.......JMHO....merlyn...

 

[gdbabin]

Our warships routinely patrol off the coast of Somalia, most often on their way from, or to their deployment stations in the Persian Gulf or Red Sea.


The Indian Ocean is a big place and it's difficult to be everywhere.

I will always remember how small I felt, even when on a carrier, when there is nothing to see but the sea and the curvature of the planet.


That being said, you will soon begin to hear more about the involvement of our Naval forces with regard to piracy.

Guy Babin

 

[laura!]

As tall as you are, Guy, I bet you can see the curvature of the planet on land!

 

[JBrooks]

"That being said, you will soon begin to hear more about the involvement of our Naval forces with regard to piracy."

This is good news. I hope they grab a few more super tankers and maybe a couple of loads of Ipods and BMWs. If our Navy can earn a few extra bucks from piracy and it lowers are overall tax bill that would be great.

 

[Uncle Sam]

Justin !!....NICE !!! I literally laughed out loud !!....Uncle Sam, Pa.(Pirates Fan)