This article had me hooting and laughing at several points:
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20081026/...acy_protection
Quote:
"If someone onboard a ship pulls a gun, will the other side pull a grenade?" Mody asked.
British contractors stress the importance of intelligence and surveillance, and a safe room for the crew to retreat to if the ship is boarded...
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Correct me if I'm wrong, but if you are locked in a "safe room" on a ship taken over by pirates, you are still a hostage, right? Seems like if they have the ship, they have you, no matter where on the ship you are hiding.
Quote:
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"The standard approach is for (pirates) to come in with all guns blazing at the bridge because when a boat is stopped it's easier to board," said David Johnson, director of British security firm Eos. "But if you have guns onboard, you are going to escalate the situation. We don't want to turn that part of the world into the Wild West."
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He doesn't want to turn Somalia into the wild west! I don't think he reads the papers much, seems like it's already there. How exactly do you escalate a situation where you are already being fired upon with machine-guns? That's about the highest escalation I can think of short of airstrikes and nuclear weapons, and the pirates don't seem to have an airforce.
Quote:
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Currently, pirates often fire indiscriminately during an attack but don't aim to kill or injure crew.
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I think they are mistaking poor marksmanship for a lack of lethal intent. Pretty silly.
Thank god for the "trigger happy" American contractors. I know who I would want on my ship.