Defense attorneys for Somalis take aim at 1819 pirate law

The Virginian-Pilot ^ | 5 Jul 10 | Tim McGlone

[GATOR NAVY]

Ok, I have decided to take my abuse, I have never watched the show so I really don't know what I think about this bunch. I do however wonder why we as humans are killing the largest mammal on earth. That's it, that's all I have to say.

I'm not going to abuse you for thinking that whales shouldn't be hunted. It's not necessarily my belief but you will certainly find you are not alone on FR. The question is do you approve of the dangerous and lawless tactics (such as attempting to disable whaling vessels at sea) of this group? Or should the issue be settled in another fashion?

[bert]

Greenpeace sailors are pirates.

Greenpeace is a terrorist group

[Tamar1973]

Under that law, they say, Greenpeace activists who forcibly prevent a whaling ship from conducting its mission could be considered pirates. The filing is the latest in a string of challenges to one of two piracy cases pending here in federal court.

Yep they are, and there are some Greenpeace pirates in Japan currently on trial for that.

[Gay State Conservative]

And lawyers in this country wonder why they’re as hated as they are.

[Jacquerie]

Now there’s a bunch of pretty boys who will make fine prison wives.

[cpdiii]

“Under that law, they say, Greenpeace activists who forcibly prevent a whaling ship from conducting its mission could be considered pirates.”

Sounds good to me.

Although I do not approve of whaling and consider it obscene I have even greater disapproval of Green Peace in what they do to the whaling ships that are conducting themselves in totally legal manner.

The way to stop whaling is by applying economic pressure by private individuals and or corporations (NOT BY GOVERNMENT!!!!!) to the companies that conduct whaling or are involved in it in any way. In reference to a Green Peace vessel that deliberately puts itself in harms way of a vessel, I do not give a rats ass if their vessel comes to harm. If life is lost, it is because of Greenpeace not the whalers. If Greenpeace attacks a vessel that is piracy and they should be sunk like pirates.

[cpdiii]

“Under that law, they say, Greenpeace activists who forcibly prevent a whaling ship from conducting its mission could be considered pirates.”

Sounds good to me.

Although I do not approve of whaling and consider it obscene I have even greater disapproval of Green Peace in what they do to the whaling ships that are conducting themselves in totally legal manner.

The way to stop whaling is by applying economic pressure by private individuals and or corporations (NOT BY GOVERNMENT!!!!!) to the companies that conduct whaling or are involved in it in any way. In reference to a Green Peace vessel that deliberately puts itself in harms way of a vessel, I do not give a rats ass if their vessel comes to harm. If life is lost, it is because of Greenpeace not the whalers. If Greenpeace attacks a vessel that is piracy and they should be sunk like pirates.

[tanknetter]

That whole history of combating piracy in the early 1800’s is fascinating. Adams urged Jefferson to pay tribute to the pirates. Jefferson refused. “Millions for defense, not one penny for tribute” was the slogan of the day. Young, heroic secret agents traveled over the desert from Egypt to where captives were held and staged daring rescues, etc. Jefferson in Paris urged europeans to unite to combat the piracy. It took a while before they responded. Thank goodness they are atually helping in Afghanistan.

Truthfully, Jefferson was all over the friggin' map when it it came to piracy, and ended up being undeservedly credited with taking a strong stand thanks to being backed into several corners by his own aggressive commanders (thanks in large part to the communications issues back at the time).

If you're talking about William Eaton and the Marines moving on Tripoli specifically, you might want to read "The Pirate Coast" by Richard Zacks, which paints a less than flattering picture of Jefferson (and a probably overblown one of Eaton).

[GladesGuru]

“I got no problem with whalers using shotguns to clear the decks of boarders.”

I humbly suggest that the harpoon gun is actually a simple cannon. Just have some appropriate ammo ready, and an old tradition of the sea can once again be reenacted.

“Give ‘em a whiff of grape.” That’s ‘grape’ as in ‘grape shot’. Functionally, think of a huge shotgun shell.

;-)

Envision Sea Shepherds treading water, icy water, after their inflatable develops lots of leaks.

;-) ;-)

[denydenydeny]

In their most recent court filing, the attorneys argue that the 200-year-old piracy statute has never been updated and is not applicable to modern-day pirate suspects.

Piracy, the "living, breathing" profession.

Apparently every law, statute and ruling has been "outgrown", except for Roe vs. Wade, which must remain unchanged for time immemorial.

[FateAmenableToChange]

I do however wonder why we as humans are killing the largest mammal on earth. That's it, that's all I have to say.

The fact that it's the largest mammal is categorically irrelevant. All that mean is that there's a lot of meat there. After all, unless you're a vegetarian, I assume you don't ask your server at Outback Steakhouse, "Could you please make sure that the beeve this steak came from was not the largest steer in existence, or at least not from the largest breed of cattle?" or at Red Lobster, "I know the Alaskan King Crab is the largest species of crustacean out there, so I think I'll have the langustina instead...." Unless there's something notably different about the category "mammal" than the category "cattle" or "crusteacean", it doesn't provide a compelling case for distinguishing whales from the "other white meat" category.

On the other hand, I do draw the line at eating sentient or potentially sentient critters. I think horror at the recognition that a functioning id and ego would be consumed is at least partly responsible for the taboo against cannibalism and the perfectly proper response against animals that kill human beings. Whales, dolphins, wolves, apes, and elephants have all shown at least the potential for sentience

[TheErnFormerlyKnownAsBig]

Their defense is....the dead guy did it, and since we failed, it ain’t piracy.

Apparently they think that attempting but failing to commit a crime doesn’t count.

[Shamrock-DW]

...because Hillary isn’t available....

[Candor7]

We should have never rescued them; they could have been easily categorized as “lost at sea”.>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Thats what the Russians recently did, released them at sea, and they just didn’t make it back.

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2518301/posts

[rabscuttle385]

Under that law, they say, Greenpeace activists who forcibly prevent a whaling ship from conducting its mission could be considered pirates.

They are pirates.

[JimRed]

Under that law, they say, Greenpeace activists who forcibly prevent a whaling ship from conducting its mission could be considered pirates.

Yes, they are, and should be dealt with appropriately.

[JimRed]

I do however wonder why we as humans are killing the largest mammal on earth. That's it, that's all I have to say.

I don't like the concept of whaling either, and would like to see it stopped. But since it is still legal, I like the activities of these pirates even less.

[chargers fan]

I suppose in a perfect world the whalers and the Sea Shepherd folks would sink each other. Two birds with one stone and all that

[Pan_Yan]

Hippies Failing Badly!^TM

Are the Sea Shepherd pirates?

Please let me know if you want on or off the Whale Wars ping list.

[SatinDoll]

They should be hanged.