- Thread starter barn E
- Start date
That seems to be the case, a lawless area and this is what people do when that happens, hard to speculate what is being done for those held hostage and the piracy situations occurring in that region. I don't understand why ships that must pass through that area and are vulnerable cannot be armed or be provided with means to mitigate the problem. It's open season on them and they are sitting ducks right now. Even with maritime rules and all the other associated issues, there needs to be change to address this situation, it's escalating and those 200 some hostages are just bargaining fodder, I certainly do not understand all the red tape here, sometimes you just gotta do what has to be done, and we (U.S.) should not be the only contributor to what needs to be done.
K
Kruse
Guest
200 Americans or 200 people from other coutries?
The rest of the world needs to ween themselves from America's nipples.
The rest of the world needs to ween themselves from America's nipples.
Interesting that the sniper elimination(can't call it a killing, that would be mean-spirited)is being touted as the first test of external_link and his reactions to a world crisis.....and it is being touted as wildly successful.....wasn't the first test actually the North Korean missile launch ??? What was the wildly successful response to that threat ??? Look over here...I said look over here....ignore what's going on over there....I said ignore.
It is a matter of going to the history books. In World War II, we were sending ships through dangerous areas infested with U-boats and subject to bombing. We convoyed them, provided escorts and in many cases, armed them and put combat crews on. AND we beat the challenge. I would think that these rag tag riff raff would be at least as easy to beat as a professional dedicated enemy war machine.
Billy, it"s just business...In a profit-oriented society, the bottom line is what"s important.
So far, it"s been cheaper for the shipping companies to treat piracy as just another minor business expense; as long as they can adjust their rates to cover it, they will.
So far, the pirates have been quite good at treating the crews satisfactorily, minimizing public uproar in the countries affected.
O had no choice; he had to have a satisfactory outcome, whether the Capt survived or not.
If the pirates are smart enough to control their own crazies--keep them off private yachts, just hit commercial ships (remember all the support our own outlaws got when robbing trains??) they can keep going, but if they"ve got Victory Disease, they"ll wind up forcing military action.
There"s also the questions of their traditional fishing grounds being stripped clean, etc.
So far, it"s been cheaper for the shipping companies to treat piracy as just another minor business expense; as long as they can adjust their rates to cover it, they will.
So far, the pirates have been quite good at treating the crews satisfactorily, minimizing public uproar in the countries affected.
O had no choice; he had to have a satisfactory outcome, whether the Capt survived or not.
If the pirates are smart enough to control their own crazies--keep them off private yachts, just hit commercial ships (remember all the support our own outlaws got when robbing trains??) they can keep going, but if they"ve got Victory Disease, they"ll wind up forcing military action.
There"s also the questions of their traditional fishing grounds being stripped clean, etc.
The reason many ships do not arm is that the crews are treated so badly they are afraid of mutiny. So the ships have no guns. Also a lot of ports in pus--y countrys will not let armed cargo ships dock. This is what I heard on a couple of news reports. Maybe if a few countries get some guts this will change? Jeffcat
The reason many ships do not arm is that the crews are treated so badly they are afraid of mutiny. So the ships have no guns. Also a lot of ports in pus--y countrys will not let armed cargo ships dock. This is what I heard on a couple of news reports. Maybe if a few countries get some guts this will change? Jeffcat
Anonymous-0
Well-known Member
I wonder where all this ransom money is going ? Al Quida getting their hands on it ? That alone would be reason enough to end it
Origin of Marines: Armed troops onboard to protect officers from crew primary mission. secondary was general ship protection. Other crews/hostages being held are not Americans. Other countries taking action?-- The French did a recovery last week also, lost one hostage killed, French noted to have killed and captured some other pirates previously- article noted 8 are being held French custody for probable trial. Isreali ships not bothered- known to have araments on merchant ships, New York City found .50 calibers and 20mm in arms locker of one a few years back. Russian ships picking up cargo/grain in Canada noted to have had a few automatic rifles on board for a couple security people. Some countries allow ships officers to have pistols or shotguns available- some to keep crews in line. UN politicals and law of sea treaty does NOT encourage armed merchant vessels but is vague on who is responsible for controling piracy in territorial waters of a country without government. Somali pirates might be compared to state toll booth collectors and speed trap running cops picking on truckers- not supposed to shoot them, jusst pay off and add cost to bill. (last sentance: Sarcasm Alert) RN
garytomaszewski
Member
Or was the first test the UNARMED Navy vessel that was boarded by Chinese in INTERNATIONAL waters 2 weeks before the Chinese prime minister met bho. Only heard about it 1 day here, was Japanese news for a week. Where was your pres and sec of state then? Oh, I forgot Hill owes a lot of favors to the chinese for all the "support" they gave slick willy.
Anonymous-0
Well-known Member
It has been reported other countries shipping companies are afraid these pirates will retaliate for the U.S. taking action. It seems there are three groups of people in the world now, One are Americans & Israelies who are not afraid to fight, two are terrorists and pirates who will fight, and three - the rest of the world which has become a bunch of pansies. It appears places like Europe have people who don't believe in anything and are afraid to do anything. These countries are slowly being overtaken by terrorists.
Anonymous-0
Well-known Member
This European handwringing until US action is required is nothing new. It goes back at last to the early 1900's, right after the Erropean colonies started getting away from the old monarchies. That's not cause and effect but probably co-inkydink.
MarkB_MI
Well-known Member
- Location
- Motown USA
That's a terrific idea, railhead. How do you think that will play out in the press? "US Navy Kills Unarmed 16-year-old". And that will be the NY Times version. I'm sure al-Jazeera will have a much better headline.
Fortunately, the captain and crew of the Bainbridge have a little more sense than that.
Don't think that the captured pirate will get off easy. He will almost certainly be handed over to Kenya for trial. The Kenyans will sentence him to a term in one of their fine prisons. Once there, the young convict will quickly become acquainted with his HIV-infected fellow inmates in unspeakable ways. Assuming that he doesn't succumb to Karposi's Sarcoma before the end of his prison term, he will then be returned to his miserable homeland to live out his few remaining days.
Fortunately, the captain and crew of the Bainbridge have a little more sense than that.
Don't think that the captured pirate will get off easy. He will almost certainly be handed over to Kenya for trial. The Kenyans will sentence him to a term in one of their fine prisons. Once there, the young convict will quickly become acquainted with his HIV-infected fellow inmates in unspeakable ways. Assuming that he doesn't succumb to Karposi's Sarcoma before the end of his prison term, he will then be returned to his miserable homeland to live out his few remaining days.
MarkB_MI
Well-known Member
- Location
- Motown USA
While the US is basking in glory over the outcome of the Maersk Alabama incident, it really doesn't change anything. The navy of the Most Powerful Nation on Earth was able to free a hostage and kill or capture his four teenage kidnappers. Do you think the warlords back in Somalia care one iota whether or not a few of their employees get killed on the job? There's plenty of willing replacements back in port. For the warlords, this is an insignificant setback. They still have plenty of money, weapons and volunteers, and shipping companies are still willing to fork over large ransoms.
Now I admire the professionalism of everyone involved in the rescue of the Alabama's captain. But we shouldn't delude ourselves into thinking that the tide has somehow turned against the Somali pirates. It hasn't, and it won't unless someone is willing to assault and destroy the harbors used by the pirates. And you can bet that doing so will cost the lives of a few of those 200 hostages.
Now I admire the professionalism of everyone involved in the rescue of the Alabama's captain. But we shouldn't delude ourselves into thinking that the tide has somehow turned against the Somali pirates. It hasn't, and it won't unless someone is willing to assault and destroy the harbors used by the pirates. And you can bet that doing so will cost the lives of a few of those 200 hostages.
By listening to the press, one would think Obammy planned the whole rescue by himself, and also shot all three pirates (marine community organizers) by himself. Truth is, he held the deal up for a while, then did what was REQUIRED by law in this situation, which was to let the military do their job. He would have rather discussed the pirate's human rights, their contributions to society (research in prosthetics, study and taming of exotic birds, etc.) and sent them some aid for all the trouble we caused them.
Commentator
Member
The pirates seem to be threatening to kill those people they have kidnapped. But those same people are their strongest "bargaining chips". Killing the hostages removes all the personal protection from the pirates.
Yes, the German U-boats sunk a lot of ships in those days, my granddad was blown out or off one, was burned but floating with many other crew members, he survived to sail another 26 years, after reading the news, those somali pirates are way out of control and continuing to escalate their activities.
Similar threads
We sell tractor parts! We have the parts you need to repair your tractor - the right parts. Our low prices and years of research make us your best choice when you need parts. Shop Online Today.
Copyright © 1997-2024 Yesterday's Tractor Co.
All Rights Reserved. Reproduction of any part of this website, including design and content, without written permission is strictly prohibited. Trade Marks and Trade Names contained and used in this Website are those of others, and are used in this Website in a descriptive sense to refer to the products of others. Use of this Web site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement and Privacy Policy TRADEMARK DISCLAIMER: Tradenames and Trademarks referred to within Yesterday's Tractor Co. products and within the Yesterday's Tractor Co. websites are the property of their respective trademark holders. None of these trademark holders are affiliated with Yesterday's Tractor Co., our products, or our website nor are we sponsored by them. John Deere and its logos are the registered trademarks of the John Deere Corporation. Agco, Agco Allis, White, Massey Ferguson and their logos are the registered trademarks of AGCO Corporation. Case, Case-IH, Farmall, International Harvester, New Holland and their logos are registered trademarks of CNH Global N.V.
Yesterday's Tractors - Antique Tractor Headquarters
Website Accessibility Policy