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To: kollmhn who wrote (119656)	4/9/2009 2:43:53 PM
From: JimisJim	2 Recommendations Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 206323

<edit>Over-simplifying: it is illegal for civilian ships to be "armed". The intent was to make it easier to dispatch pirates -- if you are an armed non-military ship, you are presumed to be a pirate and will be prosecuted as such... and/or not allowed access to most ports around the world. The US Coast Guard will prosecute any civilian vessel if they so much as find a single pistol on board, regardless of the type or size of the civilian vessel. In practice, they probably don't search freighters, but they do actively go after small craft and search them for weapons, drugs, etc... same law, same deal. They don't want zodiacs zooming around San Diego harbor (where a lot of Navy ships dock) with armed civilians. These laws are why cruise ships and others are adopting non-lethal defenses such as sonic blasters and laser "dazzlers" for pirate defense. Jim

To: kollmhn who wrote (119656)	4/10/2009 10:18:58 PM
From: Aggie	6 Recommendations Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 206323

hi kollmhn, "I, too, am puzzled why the ships allow themselves to be taken over so easily." Modern merchant ships are not crewed in vast numbers. Many if not most of these ships have only 10-15 crew members on board. Modern power-sharing systems, computer-controlled.....all of these mean that the number of men required to run the system is actually quite low. The labor required to offload the vessels when in port is locally supplied, and to be honest, frequently mechanized as well. Ship board radar is not sensitive enough to pick up small craft such as the piroughes that are commonly used. And the pirates are quite adept at stalking at night. The food on board is also good, and with all the labor-saving devices....well, let's just say these guys are more likely to be shaped like oysters, than like Rambo. Now put all these things together on a ship 800 ft long, and you get the picture. Too much castle wall to defend, not enough boiling oil or archers or guys in armor with pikes. The cost of equipping a ship with armed cover (a la Blackstone) would probably add 20 - 30% to the daily operating costs, and usually these ships are not configured to handle the additional people on board. No staterooms, galley space, etc. It would be quite a painful exercise for such a short voyage leg. Much easier just to sail 500 miles out. Of course, now that the pirates have come onto the "mother / daughter" ship concept, their operational range is considerably increased. But then again - if the world armed forces adopted a policy of shoot first, then shoot again later on all mother ship configurations, the problem would once again be a small regional one. Regards to all, Aggie