How would you react to pirates?

[Retmos]

In these times. I strongly believe cruise ships should be armed, and weapons under the tight control of the captain. I also believe in times of emergency pasengers should be polled for the presence of Military, recent ex military, police officers ect. These people are familiar with and able to handle weapons, and most likely would not panic in a tight situation. Most people in these professions carry ID to that effect. Would not want a weapon in the hands of Joe Passenger who thinks he or she is a hero and winds up shooting up the ship.

[joge107]

FIGHT - I am a retired U.S. Marine who currently works Diplomatic Security in Iraq - hiding is not a option for me except to get a better tactical advantage.

As a former Marine, I would return to my cabin and wait for some unfriendly to show up. I would then deal with the situation at hand. Hopefully, would get some firepower from the now neutralized unfriendly.

[JLC@SD]

Archie has the solution.......watch his well thought out solution

 

[hannibal54]

As an Ex-Navy man, I would do what I could to help. Hiding isn't my way of life. It doesn't hurt that I am a big person.

[Mahya]

The reports are that the pirates, all of them, are carrying kalishnikovs and AK 47's or their equals.... that the ships are traversing those territories not equally armed is ridiculous.

 

A full well aimed machine gun shot at the bottom of their "fishing boats" would put an end to those particular pirates...

 

If the passengers had not spotted them first, and started throwing all that wasn't nailed down, the pirates may well have boarded the ship.... only after this did the captain open the safe and issue the revolvers (ridiculous) to the Israeli security - this nonsense of allowing yourself to become a victim leads to being a hostage for months or an immediate worse situation.

 

Throwing knives, forks, and bottles aimed at faces could be distracting enough while bigger people throw chairs and tables aimed at dislodging kalishnikovs.

 

Count me in.

[AZPam]

I would probably follow orders and go to my room as asked. I would like to think I would fight back if needed, but you just never know how one would react in any situation until you are in it.

 

What I can imagine is a bunch of complainers griping about how their vacation was ruined by having to stay in the rooms for any length of time and port stops missed. Can't you just see the nasty letters heading towards cruise headquaters if something like this really happens? :rolleyes: I do agree that all ships should be armed in these troubled times though.

[*Kendra*]

My 5 year old daughter and I would hide, my husband, would fight. He is not a coward and will do whatever is needed to protect the women, the young, and the old.

[mapsmith]

I would first of all, NOT TAKE A CRUISE IN PIRATE INFESTED WATERS!!

 

However, if the ship I was on was boarded, I would probably be in my cabin, with mapwife, waiting for word from security that the "problem" had been taken care of.

 

However, (#2), If the pirate(s) came to my door, they would have to break in, and in the small confines of the cabin, I think that the weaponry they carried would not be of much use. So out the Balcony door and over the side with them. (I think that I am about the physical size of two of the pirates, so I should be able to manhandle them off the ship.)

 

However, (#3), hopefully the pirates would have sacked the liquor locker in the bars and feasted on the Lido, thus slowing them down quite a bit.

 

 

Just my take. Let the people who are trained to deal with security, deal with the security until it reaches a personal level.

 

But I am not gonna take no Somali Cruise unless there are Well-Armed, Well-Trained Security Forces on Board.

[Go-Bucks!]

I can't quite figure out why any cruiseline or passenger would want to go into these shark, I mean, pirate infested waters in the first place. I definitely won't be taking any cruises to Somalia.

 

But if I would be there and these guys got on board, I think I would first crap in my pants then get really mad and try to rally all the passengers to storm them all at once. Surely 600-3,000 people can overwhelm a handful of bullies even if they are armed. I would also volunteer to sit on any captured ones - mark my word, he'd be begging for mercy!! :D:eek:

[patsnails]

I'd have to say my husband and i would be right in the thick of things, i am pretty mellow till you p__s me off (ask my brother) BUT i would be scared to death

[Loretta Marie]

We've read in a few Australian publications that some passengers on MSC Melody threw plastic deck chairs and tables at pirates who attempted to board the cruise ship. Guests were ultimately ordered to return to their cabins, and the attack was thwarted by onboard security forces and evasive maneuvers.

 

But we're curious -- if you were on a cruise ship attacked by pirates, would you try to join in the fight or would you run straight to your cabin and lock the door?

 

As for me, I'm a big chicken -- I'd probably be hiding under the bed!

Pirates Oh Ho Yo Ho A Pirate Life For Me!! They would not get anything from me. I do not wear jewelry, all my gold is really inlayed and my good jewelry which is my diamond wedding band is in the safe back home.

So what are they going to get Nothing!:D

[cruzin w chris]

first laugh my ass off at them and then join everyone else in throwing anything and everything at the morons !!

[Mahya]

I would first of all, NOT TAKE A CRUISE IN PIRATE INFESTED WATERS!!

 

 

 

The problem is that the "pirates" have been emboldened and having a good ol' time since the ship owners have been paying ransom for their boats and crew...

Now they are spreading out further and further from home base...

One has to realize that a cruise to Tenerife/Canary Islands and the Southern Mediterranean has only the Rock of Gibraltar between the African continent and Europe.... I don't expect it to be very long before the " pirates" move up that far to interfere with those cruise lanes.

 

The report is that they are "Robin Hood" donating the millions they blackmail to feed Somalis - bullpoppy - I strongly suspect someone (European/Asian/Middle Eastern is making that excuse so they dont have to declare what they really are : terrorists contributing the millions to more terrorists. After all, if they name it what it is, they have to join the fight against terrorism in that part of the world....meaning Muslim against Muslim.

 

Another ridiculous and false idea - they are "Robin Hoods".... like the way they treated their own population and when the US interceded what they did to US soldiers.

 

Plain terrorists period. Pirates my arse.

[Aquahound]

Pirates are not terrorists. They are criminals. By definition, there's a difference.

 

They are not trying to instill fear. They are committing acts of criminal theft. They are ungoverned thugs. Their only agenda is to rob people and make money.

[navybankerteacher]

King Alfred learned the lesson in dealing with Danish Vikings in the ninth century: "Once you have paid the Danegeld you'll never be rid of the Dane". Thomas Jefferson decided that the paying of ransom to the Barbary pirates at the start of the nineteenth century was a no-win game - and sent the first "Mediterranean Squadron" -- Stephen Decatur, USN, and Presley O'Bannion, USMC, showed what determination could do. Let's hope that similar grit exists in DC -- a few dead pirates will set a much better tone than continuing paying ransom.

[Cuizer2]

The problem is that the "pirates" have been emboldened and having a good ol' time since the ship owners have been paying ransom for their boats and crew...

Now they are spreading out further and further from home base...

One has to realize that a cruise to Tenerife/Canary Islands and the Southern Mediterranean has only the Rock of Gibraltar between the African continent and Europe.... I don't expect it to be very long before the " pirates" move up that far to interfere with those cruise lanes.

 

The report is that they are "Robin Hood" donating the millions they blackmail to feed Somalis - bullpoppy - I strongly suspect someone (European/Asian/Middle Eastern is making that excuse so they dont have to declare what they really are : terrorists contributing the millions to more terrorists. After all, if they name it what it is, they have to join the fight against terrorism in that part of the world....meaning Muslim against Muslim.

 

Another ridiculous and false idea - they are "Robin Hoods".... like the way they treated their own population and when the US interceded what they did to US soldiers.

 

Plain terrorists period. Pirates my arse.

 

Just how are they going to operate in the Mediterranean? All the countries along that cost line have their own functioning governments with their own very real navies. There is a reason they operate out of Somalia. Somalia has no government and thus no navy. You are not going to see the pirates operating in the Mediterranean - period.