Pirate Arrives In NYC

[MJS]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090421/ap_on_re_us/piracy_suspect_10

So, the 16yo pirate arrives in NY to face charges. I find this a bit odd, that the 16yo had no idea as to what he was doing. His parents had no idea what he was doing? If they did, they were ok with this? Maybe this, although I doubt it, will send a message to the others who feel that they need to make a living from hijacking ships.

"The teenager's arrival came on the same day that his mother appealed to President Barack Obama for his release. She says her son was coaxed into piracy by "gangsters with money."

"What we have is a confused teenager, overnight thrown into the highest level of the criminal justice system in the United States out of a country where there's no law at all," Jamal said. Wali-i-Musi speaks no English and may never have attended school, he said."

 

[Big Don]

You have to remember 16 in some parts of the world is an adult, whether we call it that or not.
Treating Terrorism as a crime worked so well during the Clinton admin, Obama is going to CHANGE back to that.
93 WTC bombing...
USS Cole...

 

[Empty Hands]

So piracy is terrorism now?

Jesus Christ, has the word lost all meaning?

 

[grydth]

This will be an odd trial, given that another NATO ship just played 'catch and release' with a pirate band they caught trying to take over a ship. Others have been chased off by a variety of nonlethal means and allowed to be on their way (to try again, of course, after the destroyer goes away). I'd expect his counsel to argue selective and unfair enforcement," Why me and nobody else?"

Of course, even should he be convicted, one can then expect pirates to commandeer several ships and threaten to execute the crews unless this one is freed.

Piracy is not exactly the same thing as cutting class to do doughnuts in the parking lot, so I'm not buying into any defenses I have heard as yet.... if his mama is so concerned, why doesn't she plead for the release of all the innocent merchant crews held by pirates.... you know, the truly innocent.

But, as with terrorists, expect wails of sympathy.... for the bad guys.

Sympathy for the Devil, indeed.

 

[Nolerama]

This is a sticky situation that might set a precedent within the United States in terms of how we deal with pirates.

I don't think the US is ready for something like that... especially when piracy can so easily be confused with terrorism.

The fact of the matter is (and it might have already been discussed in previous, related threads) Somalia's poor aren't poor by Western standards, they're desperate.

Some of them become pirates. If I were in that situation, I would probably do the same thing.

I'm not saying what they're doing is the right thing, but it's definitely something you do when your back's to the wall. Using a 16 y/o kid as a legal example?

That's wrong too. They should try him, but not in the United States. Make Somalia accountable for its citizens, in the same way that we demand that right from the rest of the world.

Bringing this kid to the States for a trial is a media spectacle at best, it also puts him in the position of becoming a martyr for the poor and disenfranchised of the world (and maybe a few in the US).

Not all pirates are terrorists.

Yeeeharr!

 

[Thesemindz]

I posted this in another thread, but it's worth checking out.

Pretty interesting video here.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SPpqxJboBEc&eurl

It's about nine minutes long, but it definitely adds some new context to what may be going on there.

Basically, while some of the "pirates" are just that, pirates, some of them may be essentially a volunteer coast guard protecting their local waters from illegal chemical dumping and illegal poaching. He says in this video that all the piracy has occurred within twelve miles of Somalia, which was supported by his sources, but he posted a correction later that while most of the piracy has occurred within the twelve mile range, some, like this case, have occurred further out.

He also goes into the real history of Piracy as a reaction to British Impressment.

You may not agree with his presentation, but it's a pretty interesting piece. Check it out.


-Rob

 

[jetboatdeath]

That's wrong too. They should try him, but not in the United States. Make Somalia accountable for its citizens, in the same way that we demand that right from the rest of the world.

Well you see that is the issue Somalia has no "laws" that this man (he is 18) would be tried on...

 

[MJS]

Well you see that is the issue Somalia has no "laws" that this man (he is 18) would be tried on...

The age and real name of the young pirate remained unclear. The mother said he is only 16 years old and is named Abdi Wali Abdulqadir Muse. The law enforcement official says he is at least 18, meaning prosecutors will not have to take extra legal steps to put him on trial in a U.S. court.

Either way, IMHO, he should be held responsible. Given the state of that country, I find it hard to believe that nobody there knows that there is no law, and hijacking a ship with force is not a good thing to do.

 

[MJS]

I stand corrected. Saw on the news this AM, that the pirate in question is in fact 18, not 16 as was reported earlier.

 

[astrobiologist]

18, 16, 15, 51, 72, 12... At any age they can carry a gun and use fear as a means to take money and possession from others...