Free Republic

Sorry Ron Paul supporters, I know you howl like a dog whistle factory in a tornado when he gets criticized, but this is exactly why Trump said he'll never win... Ron Paul says he would not have authorized the mission that led to the death of Osama bin Laden, and that President Barack Obama should have worked with the Pakistani government instead of authorizing a raid... Read the rest at Poltico Even if he's right, for the sake of argument, these are statements that make a person patently unelectable. Focus groups have found that this ranks right up there...

WASHINGTON (AFP) — A US lawmaker known for broadsides at US foreign policy says Somali piracy has an age-old solution: "Letters of marque" empowering private citizens to chase the seaborne scoundrels from the oceans. Republican Representative Ron Paul and a handful of conservative theorists say it's time that the US Congress used the technique, pioneered by European powers in the 18th Century as a way to wage naval warfare on the cheap. Major shipping companies should accept a "go at your own risk" approach and not expect government help when they transit through pirate-infested waters, Paul said this week in...

Once again, piracy captures the world's attention, though it seems unlikely that Hollywood will ever cast Johnny Depp in Pirates of Somalia. It's equally unlikely that a Somali immigrant got carried away on National Talk Like a Pirate Day (September 19th) here in the States and sent word to his friends back home. Greed and jihad represent the motive of this resurgence of maritime larceny off the coast of Africa, while the opportunity was provided by Somalia's civil wars and the loss of central state control. Piracy has been with us since at least the 13th century BC, with every...

Last night the Indian Navy Ship Tabar struck a long overdue blow for freedom of the seas by sinking a pirate mother ship in the pirate-infested waters of the Gulf of Aden. At last, the pirates will know that the hijacking party has been crashed. Some are questioning whether the Tabar acted in self-defense. Ridiculous, they acted in the cause of law and order in support of freedom - a much higher calling. Perhaps this event will shake other nations out of their unwillingness to address the threat and put together a meaningful military force to eliminate these nautical terrorists...