Maybe it's his big opportunity?

[Oakman]

Thinking about it, this could be exactly what he needs to gain some standing as a player. 1. It's a global problem - with no-one except Alqueda and a few other Islamic extremists backing the bad guys. As far as I know, not even North Korea approves of piracy. 2. The solution in its broad sense is simple and straightforward. The Marines provided it in the battle of Derne on the shores of Tripoli almost exactly 200 years ago. 3. The US should be able to gain lots of backing for an increased presence of the major navies of the world, and adopting a pursue and kill policy for all cases of piracy. Obama can have his picture taken with Sarkozy again (They have the biggest European Navy left) as the two leaders (and I use the term lightly) plot strategy (and I use that term even more lightly.) 4. Somalia may have to watch its national border invaded a few dozen times as we take pirated ships back from what has been safe harbor, but since it's obvious that what's left of the national government isn't in control anyway, so what?

Jon Smith & Wesson: The original point and click interface

[wolfbinary]

Isn't Somalia in civil war and/or effectively controlled by warlords?

[Oakman]

wolfbinary wrote:

Isn't Somalia in civil war and/or effectively controlled by warlords?

Yes and yes. It has been for years. Mogadishu, the capital, was where Blackhawk Down happened. That was another example of a President (Clinton in this case) engaging in nation-building without understanding that it meant having an army of occupation, not simply a few combat battalions.

Jon Smith & Wesson: The original point and click interface

[Lost User]

Hollywood film probably beckons, and may be even an interactive computer game as well.

[Oakman]

Richard A. Abbott wrote:

an interactive computer game

Have you ever asked yourself what an non-interactive computer game would be like? Or have I just started to free-associate too much?

Jon Smith & Wesson: The original point and click interface

[Vikram A Punathambekar]

Well, we blew a pirate ship out of the water. First incident in my memory where I've been proud of an action my country took on the international stage. (Kargil 1999 is a bit dubious because we were responding to an armed invasion.)

Cheers, Vıkram.

Carpe Diem.

[Lost User]

The film industry is well versed in creating true-to-life war stories, so why not this Pirate based incident? And with the previous Somalia humanitarian activities that involved the United States armed forces, Blackhawk Down is notable not just for the Hollywood film but also the resulting computer game and lets not forget the book the was the cause for the making of the film. Do you feel it is a little macabre creating a computer game that depicts an unfortunate series of incidents that resulted in US Military losing lives?

[Oakman]

Richard A. Abbott wrote:

so why not this Pirate based incident?

And, to steal Stan's idea, Johnny Depp could play the chief pirate.

Richard A. Abbott wrote:

Do you feel it is a little macabre creating a computer game that depicts an unfortunate series of incidents that resulted in US Military losing lives?

While the military's mission is not to die for their country but to make the other S.O.B's died for theirs, nonetheless their job is to put their lives on the line, regardless of SNAFUs, REMFs, or Murphy. "With your shield, or on it," was the goodbye blessing of Roman mothers to their sons when going off to war (Soldiers running away usually threw the large Roman shield away in order to move more quickly; casualties were often carried off the battlefield in their own shield.) The men involved in the Battle of Mogadishu lived up to the expectations we have always had of warriors, especially the Nighthawks that hovered over the trapped Rangers all night. Not to celbrate their heroism - while carefully not exculpating those who made foolish or uniformed decisions - would be a sad state of affairs.

Jon Smith & Wesson: The original point and click interface