Posted on 05/15/2008 3:29:13 PM PDT by forkinsocket
AS A CHILD, Peter Leeson was pirate-obsessed. He cherished the ruby-eyed skull ring he got at Disney World, after riding Pirates of the Caribbean. He took up a collection of coconut pirate heads. He lapped up the pirate themes in "Goonies." And when he grew up to be an economics professor, and started studying pirate society, he found a new excuse for admiration. Pirates, it turns out, were pioneers of democracy.
Presidential candidates, take note: Long before they made their way into the workings of modern government, the democratic tenets we hold so dear were used to great effect on pirate ships. Checks and balances. Social insurance. Freedom of expression. So Leeson, an economics professor at George Mason University, will argue in his upcoming book, "The Invisible Hook: The Hidden Economics of Pirates."
Yes, those stereotypically lawless rum-chuggers turned out to be ardent democrats. And in their strange enlightenment, Leeson sees the answer to a riddle about human nature, worthy of "Lord of the Flies" or an early episode of "Lost." In the absence of government and law enforcement, what becomes of a band of men with a noted criminal streak? Do they descend into violence and chaos?
The pirates who roamed the seas in the late 17th and early 18th centuries developed a floating civilization that, in terms of political philosophy, was well ahead of its time. The notion of checks and balances, in which each branch of government limits the other's power, emerged in England in the Glorious Revolution of 1688. But by the 1670s, and likely before, pirates were developing democratic charters, establishing balance of power on their ships, and developing a nascent form of worker's compensation: A lost limb entitled one to payment from the booty [...]
(Excerpt) Read more at boston.com ...
I liked him when he was clean cut in 21 Jump Street.
Now he’s just too greasy for my taste.
ney i sez... i be a SpacePirate!!!
Actually Bluebeard was a landlubber, not a pirate. However Edward Thatch (Blackbeard) was a pirate, and a fine one at that. Thatch was a great believer in public relations. He wore a baldric equipped with at least 6 pistols, stuck lit slow matches up under his hat, so that when he attacked a ship his face was wreathed in smoke,”like the very devil himself”. When he captured a ship and thought the crew was holding out treasure on him, he started threatening with death, then got inventive. However, when researchers started to look closely at his career and that of his associate,”Black Sam” Bellamy, they found that with over 300 ships taken between them, there were precisely 0 casualties. Actually firing upon a ship risked loosing any possible plunder, and the ship was valuable in it's own right. Getting into any type of sword fight or close quarters pistol work risked your own skin, all that lovely booty goes for naught if your own personal booty is sharkbait. Yes, Thatch shot his own quartermaster, Israel Hands under the table once, just to remind the crew who he was. But, Hands survived and remained loyal to Blackbeard right till the end. None of this excuses Blackbeard or any of the other pirates for their actions, some of who were just as bloodthirsty as legend tells. They should have known that taking the product of others labor through fear, intimidation, and deadly force if necessary, is the proper role of government, and not independent contractors.
Arrrggggghhhhh, shipmate. I be off then. If’n ye be seein’ the rat, tell him Cap’in Frank ‘as the black spot fer ‘im.
Keep yer stern to the cosmic wind an’ grog in yer cup!
Fare thee well, mate!
hahahahaha
Aye aye Matey... fair winds and following seas to you.
Oh, let us Ladies have some fun; it’s just eye candy and we’re all Hale and Hearty Lasses! Post your own version. Let’s see your taste in “eye-candy.”
P.S. It’s not so much Depp as it is the Pirate-thing. To each her own. :)
Well...maybe not, LOL! I’m guessing it most likely involves bunnies and slippers... ;)
Good. Then we won’t have to fight over him, unlike a coworker who insists he’s hers. (lol)
Umm. Recently, Sweeney Todd, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Earlier, What’s Eating Gilbert Grape, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, Edward Scissorhands, Nightmare On Elm Street, Once Upon a Time in Mexico, Crybaby, Dead Man, Donnie Brasco, From Hell.
Always ratty, wispy hair, blacked over eyes ... a “type” ...
Made for teen girls.
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