The most simple problem to solve in the universe

[jackal]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090414/ap_on_re_af/piracy

Train and Supply a good number of these ships getting Hijacked by these guys with RPG's
or simlar weapons with incendary rounds and a pair of field glasses. When the come close
the Boat you blow them up. After a while they will stop one way of the other this will stop.
A twin 50 caliber mount would be an effective measure as well.

[TrenchGoon]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090414/ap_on_re_af/piracy

Train and Supply a good number of these ships getting Hijacked by these guys with RPG's
or simlar weapons with incendary rounds and a pair of field glasses. When the come close
the Boat you blow them up. After a while they will stop one way of the other this will stop.
A twin 50 caliber mount would be an effective measure as well.

i agree. blast the scum out of the water.

[S197]

I think something has to be done but am not sure that's the solution for several reasons:

1) Who will pay for these weapons? The country that pays for them will ultimately be responsible for how they're used. The last thing you want is for pirates to guise as sailors only to arm them with even more powerful weapons or for ships being mistakenly destroyed.

2) This area is gigantic and it's not feasible to arm every single ship in the area

3) Giving untrained civilians RPG's and 50 cal guns seems like a bad idea. You could train them but then again, whose responsibility does that fall on?

[jackal]

Our goverment and a lot of other goverments already have systems in place
to deal with thse kinda issues.

This isn't a complicated matter at all people just make it that way.

http://www.constitution.org/mac/prince00.htm

Nicolo Machiavelli figured it out 1505 A.D.

[PurpleMustReign]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090414/ap_on_re_af/piracy

Train and Supply a good number of these ships getting Hijacked by these guys with RPG's
or simlar weapons with incendary rounds and a pair of field glasses. When the come close
the Boat you blow them up. After a while they will stop one way of the other this will stop.
A twin 50 caliber mount would be an effective measure as well.

I say nuke 'em. Blow them out of the water with a WWII-type Nuclear Missle.

[Eli]

Imagine the astronomic costs to an insurer if the bad guys, upon meeting armed resistance, sink the ship with it's crew aboard. Right now, paying a couple mil ransom is preferred.

Do you have any idea what the cost would be if a full oil tanker would go down with some 2 million barrels of oil? The cost of the tanker alone can exceed $100 million. Environmental cleanup costs could well be in the 100s of millions.

[TrenchGoon]

Imagine the astronomic costs to an insurer if the bad guys, upon meeting armed resistance, sink the ship with it's crew aboard. Right now, paying a couple mil ransom is preferred.

Do you have any idea what the cost would be if a full oil tanker would go down with some 2 million barrels of oil? The cost of the tanker alone can exceed $100 million. Environmental cleanup costs could well be in the 100s of millions.

I don't know what meeting resistance really has to do with it. THEY are highjacking ships, THEY are threatening to kill hostages, THEY are threatening to sink ships. Its all on them. Our job is to annihilate them.

[Eli]

I don't know what meeting resistance really has to do with it. THEY are highjacking ships, THEY are threatening to kill hostages, THEY are threatening to sink ships. Its all on them. Our job is to annihilate them.

Whose job, exactly? You and the rest of the armchair Rambos? You want to go fight in Mogadishu to protect Dutch and Lithuanian freighters?

[Demi]

One american ship gets hijacked and holy crap send in the marines!

This happens all the time, the idea of incendiary rounds, .50 caliber machine guns etc is equivalent to arming every civilian that drives into an area within a certain radius of a certain percent of violent crime. Ridiculous. Not only that, there are treaties in place to keep nations from arming their cargo ships.

They threaten a lot of things, when is the last time you heard of them sinking a ship or killing anyone? So let's turn that stretch of water into mogadishu in the 90s because one captain had to spend a week on a life boat? The cost of simply paying them is an insignificant fraction of the cost of all these other ideas...ideas which would result in even more deaths than the current situation. If the number of attacks increase, or become more violent? Ok I can understand, but not at this point...

[Swaps]

you're forgetting that these pirates said they're going to avenge the 3 dead with American lives.

An armed society is a polite society. Manners are good when one may have to back up his acts with his life.
-Robert A. Heinlein

Had the TWENTY men on the boat had something besides water cannons to defend themselves, this story never would've happened.

4 pirates, 20 sailors.
And these sailors are not allowed to defend themselves?
F that.

[Demi]

4 pirates 20 sailors with no job based combat training whatsoever.

So, now, we have 3 dead pirates after a standoff, it'd be better to have some civilian shippers scattered among the dead? As long as they're allowed to defend themselves? How about one of the pirates with the RPGs sinks the entire ship?

They said they're going to avenge there dead...so let's start a war between joe schmoe the sailor, and some pirates with nothing better to do, no job, and no money?

[Swaps]

Oh yeah, because I would rather be taken hostage, held captive while my family is freaking out trying to raise 2 million in ransom, knowing they can't, then be executed anyway.

Good plan.


You think these Somalian pirates are so "highly trained".

The guy they captured is only 16 years old.
I'm sure he went through a RIGOROUS boot camp...

If these sailors start defending themselves, then these "pirates" will eventually die off, or lose heart.

either that, or never sail a boat around Africa.

Which isn't possible.
Unless you want to invade Somalia and clean house.
Which is probably going to have to happen eventually anyway, the way things have been going there the last 5 years.

[Cliff]

Oh yeah, because I would rather be taken hostage, held captive while my family is freaking out trying to raise 2 million in ransom, knowing they can't, then be executed anyway.

Good plan.

Maybe I'm a coward ... but I'm pretty sure me (and most people) if they have a gun pointed at them will become "captive" rather than saying "Just go ahead and shoot me!".

[jackal]

Whose job, exactly? You and the rest of the armchair Rambos? You want to go fight in Mogadishu to protect Dutch and Lithuanian freighters?

You might want to hold up on the ARM chair Rambo comments. I was in the army at 17 years old and have multiple
years training in combat. When I left Fort Benning GA the unit I trained with held some records against Ranger units
in training at Division level.

[Demi]

Oh yeah, because I would rather be taken hostage, held captive while my family is freaking out trying to raise 2 million in ransom, knowing they can't, then be executed anyway.

The family doesn't pay the ransom. The shipping company does.

How many people have been killed by these pirates? None? Single digits?