I'm having tin foil hat thoughts re that

[malaise]

Alabama hostage crisis. I hope the administration was bugging the right phones.

[Howardx]

1. any more details than that?

what hostage crisis?

[JuniperLea]

2. I think that's the Maersk Alabama...

The pirate deal... arrrrrrrr matey...

[malaise]

3. Here

http://allafrica.com/stories/200904080743.html
<snip>
The crew of an American-operated ship hijacked by suspected Somali pirates early Wednesday has regained control of the vessel, but the pirates have taken the captain hostage, news agencies and television stations are reporting.
----------------------------------
It's very rare for these ships to have American crew - very, very rare.

[Dreamer Tatum]

4. No, it's not "very very rare." It's not even "rare."

What, Americans can't ride on big boats? Are they only good for hunting king crab off of Alaska?

Ever hear of the U.S. Merchant Marine?

[malaise]

5. I'm talking about the cargo ships off the Somalia coast

It is very rare - the crews are usually Asian.

[tekisui]

7. They claim they were delivering food aid to Somalia, I think.

[cali]

14. nope. to Kenya and it for a U.N. program.

[Howardx]

11. maersk ships out of long beach

it could very easily be an american crew.

[cali]

13. It is not rare. not at all.

and that captain has been making these voyages in those waters for years and years.

[cali]

15. they were 350 miles off the Somalia coast and

U.S. crews of Cargo ships do indeed travel that route.

[malaise]

18. Yep and not one American ship has even been hit by pirates

before today.

[cali]

33. so what?

no Swedish ship has ever been hit by pirates before either. And that's true of other ships flying the flags of other countries.

[cherokeeprogressive]

36. It was an American flagged ship.

[kestrel91316]

6. That's what I was thinking. CIA maybe??

[malaise]

8. This is the first ship held with an American crew

The timing is cough cough...impeccable.

[kestrel91316]

9. Hell, the "pirates" are probably CIA, too. Sometimes (often, actually)

I get the feeling we are being played for complete fools.

[Dreamer Tatum]

10. OK, let me see if I understand

The CIA is conducting a covert/overt operation to...um...ride on boats off the coast of Somalia to...um...see if they can get hijacked by pirates, for the purpose of...um...to, uh...subvert...uh...well, to confuse, um...to steal...er...infiltrate...

Huh?

Our willingness to mess around inside Somalia in military regalia has been established to the degree that they made a Hollywood movie about it, but somehow this is a CIA plot to...well...hm.

:eyes:

[kestrel91316]

12. I dunno, I was thinking it could all be a setup to show how badly we need to

keep our troops mired in the area or even build up more. Because Obama is gonna bring them home sooner rather than later, and some people aren't happy about that.

[EFerrari]

25. You don't think the CIA would LIE to us to sway public opinion, do you?

Preposterous! Ditto for DEA and DIA. I'm sure they're all firmly behind our CIC! :sarcasm:

[malaise]

28. Just a little warning to Obama

Don't you dare change a thing or else.

[EFerrari]

31. I felt a gut punch when I heard Leon Panetta at his hearing.

That's all. He backed off of everything.

:shrug:

We don't live in some democratic wonderland where America is above every filthy thing that happens in and to governments. And, we don't seem to know that.

:shrug:

[cali]

35. I think people who when they hear hoof beats in Central Park

immediately think zebras, aren't thinking very well at all.

[sufrommich]

30. Or maybe, just maybe, the rest of the world doesn't really

give a shit what plays on US 24 hour news stations and this has nothing to do with our foreign policy or what's best for whatever US political party profits from these pirates actions.Believe it or not, shit happens which has nothing to do with us all the time in the rest of the world.

[Dreamer Tatum]

32. Mired in the middle of the ocean?

Again...huh?

[EFerrari]

16. What do you mean about the timing, malaise? n/t

[malaise]

17. Pres Obama returns from his first overseas trip

The right have their talking points but no one wants to hear them since they're preoccupied with harsh economic reality. Cheney and his minions are getting airplay daily about the 'not keeping America safe' and out of the blue pirates seize an American ship for the first time. Call me a tin foil hat but it's too good to be true for the right.

[EFerrari]

19. Ah -- I see now. Yes, you're right. The timing is a little too good. n/t

[tekisui]

20. FWIW,

Limpballs opened his show today about Obama 'apologizing' to the world for America, and then tied it directly to the pirate hijacking. He went on to say how this never happened under bush and already has happened in less than 100 days of Obama administration.

He was loaded to the bear on it.

[EFerrari]

21. Wow. malaise nailed it then. n/t

[tekisui]

22. She is usually on the crest of the wave.

;-)

[EFerrari]

23. You're going to give her a big head.

:)

:thumbsup:

[malaise]

26. No big head here

:D

[malaise]

29. But 9/11 happened under Bush

so WTF does Rush mean?

[tekisui]

40. The lemmings have short memory spans.

Limpballs was saying this is 1979 again, Obama doesn't know how to handle a hostage situation, doesn't know what to do, blah, blah, blah.

It was quite disgusting that he was saying all that, while the event was ongoing.

[seemslikeadream]

24. serfs up

:hi:

[malaise]

27. Yep the wing nuts have a new topic

That Pittsburgh guy was creating way too many problems for them. :hi:

[lib2DaBone]

34. I don't understand...Why don't they mount a .50 Cal Machine Gun...

on the bow of these merchant ships and be done with it?

Is there something in Maritime Law that says they are not allowed to defend their ships?


..."talk to my leetle friend"

[Poll_Blind]

37. Ha! I just posted a thread about this, myself. I'd always kinda wondered what...

...the deal was.

PB

[lib2DaBone]

38. Yes, I just saw that. Inquiring minds want to know. :-)

[malaise]

39. It is illegal n/t