MovieChat Forums > Captain Phillips (2013) Discussion > Piracy

Piracy

posted 8 years ago by go_titans
8 replies | jump to latest

I just did a history unit on piracy for uni, and my studies included the current day situation.

The Somali situation was created by civil war breaking out in the early 90s, and the UN abandoning the fight to leave the Somali people to fend for themselves.

With no government operating, foreign fishing vessels (pirates) moved into Somali waters and completely wiped out the lobster population, destroying the ocean floor with their method of 'bottom dragging' to catch their prey.

The local Somali fisherman faced starvation, since the international community doesn't give a f..k about pirates destroying the livelihood of these people, and therefore no outside help was offered to try and solve the problem.

In response, these fisherman first hijacked the foreign fishing boats (pirates) and ransomed the crew (and I personally would pat them on the back for their efforts), until eventually these foreign fishing vessels began turning up heavily armed.

So, the Somali fishermen turned their attentions to bigger and unarmed prey, which is where the story about Captain Phillips comes in.

It is only now that the international organisations created to combat the problem of piracy are beginning to acknowledge that Somali piracy has merely been a response to other forms of piracy that have previously gone unreported by western media and ignored by the UN.

People don't commit desperate acts like these because they didn't have the right parents. They do it because they have no other choice.

[–] CGSailor 8 years ago

If you're trying to drum up sympathy for the pirates, you're an idiot.

Other nations did try to help. With humanitarian aid.

They were attacked.
repeatedly.
We went after the warlords causing the civil war/genocide.

we were attacked.
Repeatedly.

Finally the world at large decided the Somalis created their own sh!thole, and refused any and all help. so you know what..... FRAK 'EM.

That does not give them the right to orey upon others, to resort to piracy.

The only good pirate is a dead one.

I joined the Navy to see the world, only to discover the world is 2/3 water!

[–] 8 years ago

[deleted]

[–] go_titans 8 years ago

Yeah, my one thought while reading CGsailor's post was that he was painting a picture of these people having lived in these regions (Somalia and Sierra Leone) for thousands of years, only to start resorting to piracy over the last 20 years: why?

Is he saying that excess fluoride in their water supply (not that they have any) has suddenly made them mindlessly aggressive? Is he also saying that all the reports about foreign fishing vessels destroying local fishing stocks are wrong?

Does he really expect people to believe that it is because all of a sudden in the 1990s they decided to create their own sh!thole and put their lives at constant risk by resorting to piracy? Because lobster fishing suddenly looked boring compared with the high adrenaline rush that comes with taking on the US Navy?

CG's post makes no sense.

[–] Staropramen 8 years ago

The very fact that you would pat anyone on the back for attacking unarmed merchant or fishing vessels alone disgusts me.

[–] go_titans 8 years ago

That's a ridiculous response, since it is obvious you haven't got any knowledge of the situation and yet you are stating an opinion publicly.

These fishing vessels are doing the following:

A) taking advantage of a population that has suffered a civil war and has been abandoned by the international community and left to fend for themselves.

B) are operating illegally as a result.

C) using heavy raking or dragging equipment to completely destroy the ocean floor and cause irreparable damage to the region's ecosystem.

D) completely depleting the region of its lobster population, a population that had survived in that area for thousands of years, possibly hundreds of thousands of years.

E) are now coming under the radar within the international community because they are not adhering to quality controls and health regulations, and as a result are dumping toxic and poor quality fish stock on the European market and an unsuspecting public.

F) are employing desperate people to work on their boats, and are providing them with very poor conditions and wages.

G) have taken away the Somali fishermen's livelihood, placing them in a position of potential starvation, and are therefore directly responsible for creating the whole problem in the first place.

I'll say it again, yes, I pat the Somali people on the back for hijacking these boats and ransoming those in charge. In effect, they are the only people in the world combating this very serious problem.

Oh, and you may check me for factual accuracy on any of the points I have made above.

[–] Staropramen 8 years ago

So a 101 or 102 level course in college has made you an expert? GTFO of here with that trash...

And yes, as an American Merchant Marine officer I take exception to anyone saying they pat pirates on the back for their actions.

They should be shot on sight.

[–] go_titans 8 years ago

Ha ha ha, I get it now, you're a troll. Sorry, I should have realised from your first post.

[–] liscarkat (19396) 2 years ago

Bullshit. There's no excuse for kidnapping and terrorizing innocent ship's crews. The pirates had a choice, but they chose badly, and they got what they deserved. My empathy is for the men who had to go through hell at the hands of the criminals.