Mullen Shocked by Pirate Attack on Supertanker

American Forces Press Service ^ | Jim Garamone

[BIGLOOK]

There are prohibitions on arming merchant marine vessels. Once armed other than defensively they become military vessels and legitimate military targets. They can then be denied access to ports as such.

Defensively arming of merchants only means small arms.

[DemonDeac]

“I don’t understand. Can’t you throw crap at them as they climb on board? It must be a big job to climb abord, and takover.”

As I understand it they have a bunch of RPGs aimed right at you to force you to let them on. On a ship filled with oil you don’t want things blowing up all around you so you give in.

[R W Reactionairy]

This may be a hostage situation ... with the ship itself as the hostage. You can’t unload the largest super tankers in all that many places. If you can’t sell the cargo, or operate the ship in ordinary commerce after seizing control what else is left?

IIRC the LOOP offshore from Port Fouchon [spelling?]LA is the only port on the US Gulf Coast that can off load the biggest of the big. The article does not say, but what is the cargo. Unless it is refined product, it would have to be sold to a refiner to be usable.

Double hull or no double hull a small group of idiots with low tech weapons can probably take out any tanker afloat without boarding. [If they can’t they can certainly do an inordinate amount of damage.] After they control the ship, a glorified Molotov cocktail would probably do the job.

[Tunehead54]

4am bump! ;-)

[Mila]

“How soon before they start going after cruise ships?”

They’ve already tried that at least once, back in 2005. This kind of thing would definitely put me off taking a cruise in waters where these bastards roam.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/4409662.stm

[SerafinQ]

The world must declare war on pirates. There should be no negotiations. Ship crews’ must arm them selves and defend themselves. International war ships must beef up their presence and shot to kill pirates. Pirates must be executed if captured. When hostages are taken, it should be treated like we would treat terrorists taking hostages and not give into calls for ransom. Indeed, it may take sinking a few ships to deter these villains.

[Chickensoup]

… you have in piracy clearly is, if you are intervening and you capture pirates, is there a path to prosecute them?” Mullen said. “That’s something I think the international community has got to answer for the long run.”

This guy just doesnt understand the shoot to kill order. Ther would be no pirate left for the international community to perseverate over. Should have happened to Saddam Hussein. He should have been shot dead int hat spider hole. I cannot believe that he was spared.

[piytar]

"He says that being armed is a violation of all kinds of laws,both US and inrenational. It makes no sense to me,but that's the way it is evidently."

Actually it makes perfect sense from the moonbat perspective. Those laws are intended to stop piracy by ensuring that nobody is armed. It is the exact same perspective that sees gun control laws as a way to combat gun crime, just in a different setting...

[AndyJackson]

Doesn’t it inspire confidence in you to hear an admiral say he is, “Shocked,” by a predictable tactical scenario!

Can you imagine this from Patton or MacArthur or Petraeus or Odiorno or Nimitz or Halsey or Spruance or 31kt Burke or Nelson or Pellew or JPJones or Wellington or any of the famous fighting Captains, Admirals and Generals of history.

Where does Bush find these wimps.

[JasonC]

Change the idiotic laws, and flout them until they are changed. Is everyone here very stoned?