Posted on 04/16/2009 10:31:25 AM PDT by Winged Hussar
We read in this morning's paper that militant "Islamic" terrorists from Somalia are now threatening to "massacre" American sailors because Navy SEALs rescued an American from terrorist kidnappers. The countries to which merchantmen sail, in defiance of plain common sense, still refuse to allow armed vessels to dock in their ports. A possible answer would be for the merchant ships to mount detachable "combat modules" that could be lowered into international waters while the ship docked with its cargo. ...In the meantime, though, we would like to remind sailors of a very simple way to kill pirates without using anything that could be legally defined as a "weapon." Just drop something heavy onto their speedboat or skiff when they attempt to board.
The above practice dates back to the age of sail, when not only pirates but legitimate combatants would attempt to capture ships by rowing alongside in small boats and then climbing aboard. Sailors and marine guards therefore kept a few cannonballs (probably 18 to 32 pounds) handy to drop into the boarders' boat. A heavy iron ball would, when dropped from the ship's upper deck, go right through the rowboat and sink it. We are not sure what a similar technique would do to a skiff with a plastic bottom, and perhaps some tests should be conducted to determine the impact necessary to split one open or make a hole in it.
...We encourage merchant fleets to experiment with these techniques in advance to make sure they will work. (That is, an encounter with pirates is not the first time they should be tried. As an example, the crew should experiment on empty skiffs similar to those used by pirates to see what will work.)
(Excerpt) Read more at israpundit.com ...
Now there's an idea. From Article I, Section 8:
[Congress shall have the power to] declare War, grant Letters of Marque and Reprisal, and make Rules concerning Captures on Land and Water;
From the Wikipedia article on Letter of Marque:
The issue of Marque and Reprisal was raised before Congress after the September 11, 2001 attacks[3], and again on July 21, 2007 by congressman Ron Paul. The attacks were defined as acts of "air piracy," and the Marque and Reprisal Act of 2001 was introduced, which would have granted the president the authority to use Letters of Marque and Reprisal against the specific terrorists, instead of warring against a foreign state. The terrorists were compared to pirates in that they are difficult to fight by traditional military means.[4] Congressman Paul also advocated the use of letters of marque to address the issue of Somali pirates operating in the Gulf of Aden on April 15, 2009.The issue of Marque and Reprisal was raised before Congress after the September 11, 2001 attacks[3], and again on July 21, 2007 by congressman Ron Paul. The attacks were defined as acts of "air piracy," and the Marque and Reprisal Act of 2001 was introduced, which would have granted the president the authority to use Letters of Marque and Reprisal against the specific terrorists, instead of warring against a foreign state. The terrorists were compared to pirates in that they are difficult to fight by traditional military means.[4] Congressman Paul also advocated the use of letters of marque to address the issue of Somali pirates operating in the Gulf of Aden on April 15, 2009.
The vaunted triple barrel potatoe gun.
And that, my friend, is the essence of the problem with all the Rube Goldberg solutions posted here.
The root cause is ports which will not allow armed merchant vessels to dock. The root solution is to boycott those ports and cut off their trade. Their shipping and insurance rates will either go through the roof or they will allow the merchant vessels to be armed. We can start the ball rolling with reciprocity-- any countires who do not allow U.S. merchant vessels to dock when their armed will not be allowed to dock in U.S. ports either. Small caliber machine guns on merchant vessels are an effective weapon against unauthorized boarding. They aren't particularly effective on a invasion vessel disguised as a merchant ship.
Any port authority who can't figure out the difference doesn't deserve to remain in business.
Does this mean we would have to allow armed Chinese merchant vessels to dock in Long Beach? If we had a reciprocity agreement with them, the answer is obviously yes. If we don't think they are worth trading with, then the answer is no.
The idiots at the UN and the idiot signatories to its treaties have, essentially, legalized piracy. There is no longer any legal framework with which to deal with them.
Add to that the enemy media, who will gleefully take the side of the pirates, and the emergence of “lawfare” where lawyers essentially try to criminalize military actions, rational means of dealing with pirates are completely denied us.
I got an email this morning from a hard-core liberal aquaintance. It was so disgusting that I did not want to copy it, and have it imbedded into my computer.
I found a copy of the ‘filth’ and here is the link. (The U S NAVY)
http://www.motivatedphotos.com/?id=15293
Folks, this is a very good example of how distorted Liberal thinking is!
Gubermint-types love the Rube Goldberg solutions since they
cost the most and allow for more pork.
(Of course the simplest solution is training and arming some crew members.)
these guys have 2 things going for them in future leftist politics:
from MN and Rube Goldberg experts...
“Ole winners demo Goldberg machine”
http://www.northfieldnews.com/news.php?viewStory=48077
Drawing pretty designs in the sea with a Gatling gun |
I don't think that any of these hijacked ships was boarded while stopped...
Please. - I could board that ship in less than a minute under moderate sea conditions. - longer with poor conditions.
> if the crew remains behind cover.
The purpose of fire sweeps is to do exactly that. - force the crew to remain under cover while you board.
I assume that all of the passive defensive methods are already being used to repel boarders right now.
Rationally, considering the dozens of captured ships and the hundreds of hostages, those methods don't work very well do they?
And that is given the amateurish methods and primitive equipment being used.
Arm the mariners - leave the security craft offshore while in port.
Next thing you know poured cauldrons of flaming oil and catapulted boulders may be considered.
I heard that they have 2 boats, and tie a rope across them, the rope is caught by the bow of the tanker and the 2 small boats are pulled along side quickly and pulled along as the Pirates climb on....
the answer is to construct a “Fork” thet runs in front of the Tanker’s bow....just at the water line....it catches the Line...and clamps it, then the mechanism drops a 10 ton concrete weight into the sea, dragging the Boats and Pirates to their graves, instantly....
or a minigun. ; )
That’s funny!
As a former US Navy sailor, I take that as a compliment.
It will work one time and then you try a different approach. Obviously firearms are the solution but politics won’t let that happen :(
Through some “Natural Gas” at them. Death by Suffocation!!!!!
BOILING LARD MIXED WITH PIGS PARTS
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