Arrrrrgh Pirates in the news!

Okay it's good that we captured one pirate and are set to prosecute this scurvy dog. Word of caution, the ocean is a big place and the pirates don't have anything to lose by capturing some Americans for retaliation or for a treasure chest filled with US dollars. I hope President Obama has seen the movie Blackhawk Down. The lesson learned is if he commits our troops in a hostage rescue operation or other military action he had better do it full force and only with reliable intel and a lot of contingency planning, otherwise, our guys will risk getting beat up by lawless street mobs with AK47s and RPGs.

Here is how the the First Battle of Mogadishu went down in October 1993. The US Forces took on the Somali militia fighters loyal to warlord Mohamed Farrah Aidid, with support from armed civilian/street fighters. The US assault force consisted of nineteen aircraft, twelve vehicles and 160 men. During the operation, cascading losses, starting with the downing of two UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters being shot down (hence the title, Blackhawk down) by rocket-propelled grenades, and three others were damaged. Some of the soldiers were able to evacuate wounded back to the base, but others were trapped at the crash sites and cut off. An urban battle ensued throughout the night. Early the next morning, a combined task force was sent to rescue the trapped soldiers.

When the battle was over an estimated 1000 to 1500 Somali's had died and 18 Americans had died. Although Aidid's militia had suffered terrible losses, the mission went down as military disaster because it was intended to be a small scale Army Ranger Operation to capture or kill Warlord Dictator Aidid and his officers.

President Obama, I know you read my blog everyday. Please watch Blackhawk Down before you send guys into Somalia again.

Back to Pirates in the news...

By KATHARINE HOURELD, Associated Press Writer Katharine Houreld– 51 mins ago

NAIROBI, Kenya – Special forces on a Portuguese warship seized explosives from suspected Somali pirates after thwarting an attack on an oil tanker, but later freed the 19 men. Hours later and hundreds of miles away, another band of pirates hijacked a cargo ship, a NATO spokesman said Saturday.

Pirates are now holding 17 ships and around 300 crew, including the British-owned cargo ship Ariana, hijacked overnight with its Ukrainian crew.

The attack on the Ariana, about 1,000 miles (1600 kilometers) from the sea corridor NATO guards and the seizure of explosives from the group that attacked the crude oil tanker MV Kition may indicate the pirates are adapting their tactics as crews become better trained in counter-piracy measures.

Sailors are aware that pirates generally attack during the day and that some guidelines suggest designating a safe room with a bulletproof door where crews can lock themselves in case of an attack. Such a room would still be vulnerable to being blown open with explosives.