Russian ship held hostage by somalian pirates

[arjan]

I hope the pirates will find out they messed with the wrong country. The Russians won't resolve this nonsense in a politically correct manner.

It's unbelievable that this stuff is going on in this day and age.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080926/ap_on_re_eu/eu_russia_somalia_piracy

[Nick]

Probably no more such thing as politically correct for a country without a central government for more then a decade. I do believe the pirates are going to discover the hard way that the Russians have zero reservations blowing the port where the Faina is docked way way sky high. I also think they would be right in doing so - a good way to state that piracy is no longer a profitable venture.

The Russian warship; "Neustrashimy" translates to "the fearless one" fyi.

[arjan]

They will find out that a hostage doesn't mean all that much to the Russians.

I feel sorry for the seamen involved, they probably also know that their navy will shoot first and deal with the rest later.

[arjan]

The French have actually been pushing for regular patrol of those waters, but per usual the rest of Europe wants no part of it.

The French went after the pirates also, last year I think. A French boat was kept hostage at that time.

Those small boats seem like nice target practice to me.

[fustercluck]

Well at least we agree that political correctness does nothing but harm...

[paddlenbike]

What kind of pay and benefits does a pirate get these days? Couldn't find it as a category on careerbuilder.com

[corax]

The Associated Press

September 29, 2008 at 11:08 AM EDT

Mogadishu The U.S. navy says its warships and helicopters have surrounded a cargo ship loaded with Sudan-bound tanks and other arms hijacked last week by Somali pirates.

Lt. Nathan Christensen, a deputy spokesman for the U.S. navy's Bahrain-based 5th Fleet, says the navy wants to keep the weapons from falling 妬nto the wrong hands.

Pirates seized the Ukraine-operated Faina with its crew of Ukrainian, Russian and Latvian seamen last Thursday.

It is now anchored off Somalia's coast near the central town of Hobyo.

Lt. Christensen said an unspecified number of destroyers and cruisers have joined the San Diego-based destroyer the USS Howard within a 15-kilometre radius of the Faina.

[4x4mike]

I just saw pictures on foxnews and the pirate have little dingy type boats and there are only a couple. How tough can they be? I would think the tanker would have someone with a gun or something to detere the pirates. It's not like they came at them with a battle ship or submarine. I guess they could have a bomb though.

[Bob98SR5]

mike,

they usually have RPGs too.

[corax]

I just saw pictures on foxnews and the pirate have little dingy type boats and there are only a couple. How tough can they be?

have you never been on the Pirates of the Caribbean ride at Disney . . . swinging around on ropes with a knife in their teeth, etc . . . scary stuff :hillbill:

[arjan]

mike,

they usually have RPGs too.


Role playing games? You mean they even have Nintendo DS??? :)

[Bob98SR5]

its the only form of entertainment a good somali pirate will accept!

i keep thinking about the hostage crisis that they had in the concert hall with the poison gas they pumped through the vent. Boy, wehn it comes to not F'g around, the russians and the israelis co-own that title!

[MTL_4runner]

I think for the most part the pirates would be on their merry way had they not hijacked a load of tanks. The chance of them getting those to shore is about the same as Warren Buffett losing his ability to make money. I'd give them a few more days before the military loses patience and forces the issue.