Sunday, April 12, 2009

Go Navy!

SEALs 3: Pirates: big fat 0.

How would you like to be the pirate on USS Bainbridge? Suddenly everybody is pointing a gun except for you. Oh man, damnit! Don't you feel stupid? But, really, how did you think this was going to end?

Way to go, Navy. Well done.


Now, it's time to quit fucking around and do the job.

No more bullshit. No more discussion. No more UN meetings and memos and sanctions.

Deploy the fleet and clean these bastards out. We know where they are, we know how they operate, we know where they're based. International law regarding piracy on the high seas is clear and it is long past time to erradicate these lawless bastards like the vermin they are.

Surrendar and face the gallows, or be blown from the water. Period.

I have more than a bit of experience in this area and I'll have some detailed thoughts up on this tomorrow. In the meantime CW, who is also experienced in this subject, over on Refugees From the City has a couple of excellent posts up.

18 comments:

  1. I'm extremely glad to hear the good news. Stonekettle's RSS feed updated with the news before my media feeds did--thank you for passing along the update.

    This was a success, and I'm proud of our folks over there.

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  2. My count is Navy four, pirates zero.

    The pirate's "lead negotiator" is, if he's smart, trying to cut a deal to go to a US prison. (Gotta be a step up from a Kenyan jail.)

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  3. The biggest obstacle, in my innocent opinion, was the closed lifeboat. I have to believe that the SEALS waited until they had the plan down cold, and probably had to delay after the captain's escape attempt. The results, however, speak for themselves.

    Go Navy.

    Dr. Phil

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  4. Chris, my count was bodies, but I concur with your assessment.

    Phil, you are most likely correct. That closed lifeboat would have a very difficult assault target - if your goal is to keep the hostage alive. Once the captain jumped into the water though, well then it's just a box to keep dead bodies in, and fiberglass doesn't stop bullets worth a shit, trust me on this.

    SEALs train for exactly this situation, those bastards are like Ninja's crossed with greased lightening. I doubt the pirates even knew they were there - and they'd likely been there for some time just waiting for an opportunity.

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  5. SEALs, putting the Special in Special Forces since 1941.

    Taking head shots from a floating platform with your targets on another floating platform in choppy seas. I'd like to see hot shot HALO players try that!

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  6. Oh, forgot to say, good on Obama for making the decision and delegating the authority to the ship commander.

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  7. From the reports, the captain was still in the lifeboat when the SEAL snipers opened fire. Straight out of a movie with 3 bodies falling all around you as you sit captive.

    I wonder what the range was while firing on a pitching ship. How do you adjust for the waves?

    On another thought, crazy conservatives are in a tizzy that Obama didn't act fast enough?? The DoD reported directly that he gave his assent for lethal force twice upon request. I don't understand the reality distortion field some people have around them.

    - tt

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  8. tt - I believe the distance was about 90 feet (as the lifeboat was being towed by the Bainbridge).

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  9. Well, if it wasn't clear, I wasn't being critical of Obama. For a new President to authorize deadly force on foreign nationals in international waters (I don't think they made Somali waters, even more so if they were in Somali waters) to rescue a non-combatant, especially for a President with no former military time, and then being able to hand the final decision off to the on-scene commander, yeah, I think that deserves a shout out. And from what I understand the captain asked for permission twice (probably asked for permission and got it back so quickly he asked for clarification).

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  10. tt, Steve is correct. The distance would have been around 100ft plus or minus. SEALs and Navy gunners are trained to compensate for the rise and fall of the sea and shipboard motion - still, three perfect headshots at that range from a moving platform at moving targets, yeah that's pretty damnned spectacular. But, again that's exactly what SEALs do, and why they are who they are.

    As to Obama. Obama could have shot the pirates himself and conservatives would have been critical. He could have ordered negotiation, and conservatives would have had a cow. I suppose he could have taken the conservative option, i.e. wait for the hostages to die, then order an invasion of a completely uninvolved third world country - conservatives probably would have approved of that I suppose. But the bottom line is that the President, any president, has little to do with situations like this. The law is clear regarding piracy, and so are the rules regarding use of deadly force:

    Rule 1: Deadly force is authorized when lives are in immediate and imminent danger.

    This is always the on-scene commander's decision, and no different than if this had been a bank robbery. Conservatives and Obama bashers need to shut the fuck up and give thanks that Navy did what it does so damned well and the hostages are freed and safe. Period. The proof of the correctness of the Navy's action is, as they say, in the pudding, i.e. the hostages are free and safe. Claiming that "Obama" could have done it better or different or should have or not have or whatever, is just plain silly, ignorant, and childish.

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  11. Steve, I understood you just fine. And I agree.

    No, what I'm talking about and what what I think tt was talking about are the reports in the media from conservatives saying, hey, yeah, sure, ok, the Navy rescued the hostages and the ship is safe, but they wouldn't have been in this situation in the first place if only Obama had... and etc.

    Those people need to shut the fuck up, sooner rather than later.

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  12. Amen to the "shutting the fuck up." Especially as I bet few of the complainers have any milkitary experience.

    As an old Air Force sergeant, I salute my Navy comrades, and especially the SEALs. To quote my daughter "They rock!"

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  13. The distance was 75 feet.

    In the dark.

    From the deck of a rolling ship.

    To the deck of a pitching lifeboat.

    Yeah, SEALs just fucking rock.

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  14. Also, all three shots were head shots.

    If you don't understand what all of this means, I can't explain it to you.

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  15. ::Salute to the Navy::

    What Jim said.

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  16. "Use of deadly force", "head shots".

    No equivocation there, is there?

    As for those who want to bash the current president one way or another -- I don't believe that the Somali pirates began taking ships in late January 2009. This may've been the first American flagged ship, but the problem has been there for a while. Just sayin'.

    Dr. Phil

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  17. You are correct, Doc.

    I'll have a post up shortly.

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  18. Am sending you some "motivational" artwork that the CMC down here put up on his facebook, Jim. Think you'll get a kick out of it.

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