Thread: Now We're in Trouble!

Originally Posted by TomSD

As for the whole bottom line ransom vs security and such. I don't care if it costs more. It is stupid to bow to the demands of bullies it just emboldens them.

But FOR THE SHIPPING COMPANIES, all that matters is the bottom line. Well, I shouldn't say that, I am sure some of them care about the crews, etc, but we'd be dishonest if we didn't think they were putting this in bottom line terms. They don't arm the ships because then they can not dock in some ports. They don't use private securtiy because the risk does not justify the cost...yet.

Originally Posted by Rajagra

I see an opportunity. It's often said that war is an effective way to boost an economy. The world economy is in a poor state right now. Let's declare war on the pirates. It would be better than a "real" war because there would no need to invade foreign land, and you rarely get innocent civillians creeping up on unsuspecting supertankers, so no innocent casualties of war. It's a win-win strategy.

I agree that this would be an easy case to make. You don't have to invade a country, the pirates will not get a sympathy vote from anyone, and if it happens in international waters, then simply killing the pirates is probably not even illegal if you catch them in the act.

I suggested on another forum that special forces units from the various countries could take turns at offing pirates, thereby gaining real-life experience without ****ing off some country or other.

The reply I got was that these sf groups have enough on their plate already, and that is probably true. But with these exercises they could actually kill the bad guys. And I can imagine that this is a wholly different experience for sf trainees.

The waters off the coast of Somalia have been used as a dumping ground for hazardous waste starting in the early 1990. European companies found a very cheap way to get rid of the waste, costing as little as $2.50 a ton, instead of something like $1000 a ton. Evidence of this dumping appeared on the beaches of northern Somalia during the tsunami of 2004. Uranium waste, lead, and heavy metals like cadmium and mercury have been found from the barrels. There is also industrial waste, and there are hospital wastes, chemical wastes. Hundreds of residents have fallen ill, suffering from mouth and abdominal bleeding, skin infections and other ailments.
Coastal Somalis live off fishing and this has poisoned their livelihood. Sounds like these "pirates" are trying to make a living and feed their families. The Somalis fishing boats are now pirate ships!

Originally Posted by denmason

The waters off the coast of Somalia have been used as a dumping ground for hazardous waste starting in the early 1990. European companies found a very cheap way to get rid of the waste, costing as little as $2.50 a ton, instead of something like $1000 a ton. Evidence of this dumping appeared on the beaches of northern Somalia during the tsunami of 2004. Uranium waste, lead, and heavy metals like cadmium and mercury have been found from the barrels. There is also industrial waste, and there are hospital wastes, chemical wastes. Hundreds of residents have fallen ill, suffering from mouth and abdominal bleeding, skin infections and other ailments.
Coastal Somalis live off fishing and this has poisoned their livelihood. Sounds like these "pirates" are trying to make a living and feed their families. The Somalis fishing boats are now pirate ships!

I knew it had to be our fault!

Why make $3 a day fishing when you can make a small fortune being a thief - with really no additional risk?

Jordan