Obama you cowardly piece of shit...

[Skaw]

Well that helps out everybody then. Pirates get their money. People will learn not to go boating around Somalia. And the world governments won't have to deal with negotiating for/rescuing a captives life.

 

[Rappa]

Can we just make a single "ZOMG OBAMA SUXXX" topic and just consolidate all these bullshit threads into it, please? Or better yet, how about a "FUCK OBAMA LOL" social group so we don't have to see the new topics pop up every other day and people can just go nuts making them?

 

[Rips]

Of course the lefty pinko media in Canada aren't going to bother reporting about the Somalian pirates. They're too busy covering the "Obama finally picks the official white house dog story".

Pull your head out of your ass and while your at it pop out your caps lock key. We're not left we're right and just because one Canadian didn't hear about it doesn't mean we don't report it, you moron.

 

[Khajit]

Can ya explain the concept of right and left(in politics) for me? used to try and figure it out but both sides seemed so bloody stupid i couldn't tell the difference on if they were supposed to be separate entities.

 

[Falsey]

All I have to say is, I know unlikely as it maybe, that none of you pro-Obama people or your family are ever in a hostage situation like this captain where your life is basically in his hands.

I wonder if you would still have an, "I'm just one man and Obama has an economy to worry about so I'm sure he'll give the order to rescue me when he gets around to it" attitude.

Bush was garbage but it doesn't justify him acting the same. 4 days to "ok" a kill order is 3 days, 23 hours and 59 minutes too long. Period.

Maybe he should worry less about hurting the pirates feelings and more about doing his god damn job. My beef is NOT that the SEALs didn't go in guns blazing. Last thing I want is for this brave captain, who volunteered to be a hostage to save his crew, to get hurt. My beef is it took him 4 FUCKING DAYS to "ok" snipers to take out the sons of bitches out.

I guess you can't expect anything less from least qualified president EVER hold the office.

when does running into a situation with terrorists blind and stupid a good idea?

stop having downs. do you know what a strategy is? have you ever made a plan? every written an essay with a rough draft? jesus shut up you nutcase.

 

[Tristam Green]

Timeline:

As of April 9, 2009, a stand-off was established between the USS Bainbridge and the pirates' lifeboat from the Maersk Alabama, where they continued to hold the captain of the ship, Richard Phillips, hostage. The warship was several hundred yards away, with rescue helicopters and lifeboats, but kept its distance, out of the pirates' range of fire. A P-3 Orion surveillance aircraft was securing aerial footage. Radio communication between the two ships had been established. Four foreign vessels held by pirates were heading toward the lifeboat. A total of 54 hostages were on two of the ships, citizens of China, Germany, Russia, Ukraine, the Philippines, Tuvalu, Indonesia and Taiwan.[12][13]
On April 10, 2009, Phillips attempted to escape from the lifeboat but was recaptured after the captors fired shots. The pirates then threw a phone—and a two-way radio dropped to them by the U.S. Navy—into the ocean, fearing the Americans were somehow using the equipment to give instructions to the captain. The pirates wanted a ransom and were ready to kill Phillips. The U.S. dispatched other warships, including the guided-missile frigate USS Halyburton, and the USS Boxer to the site off the Horn of Africa. The pirates' strategy was to link up with their comrades, who were holding Russian, German, Filipino and other hostages, and get Phillips to Somalia, where they could hide him, making it difficult to stage a rescue, giving the pirates more leverage and a stronger negotiating position. Anchoring near shore would allow them to land quickly if attacked. Negotiations were ongoing between the pirates and the captain of the Bainbridge, who was under the direction of FBI hostage negotiators. The captors were also communicating with other pirate vessels by satellite phone.[12]
However, negotiations broke down hours after the pirates fired on a small United States Navy vessel that had tried to approach the lifeboat not long after sunrise Saturday in the Indian Ocean. The American boat did not return fire and "did not want to escalate the situation".[14]
"We are safe and we are not afraid of the Americans. We will defend ourselves if attacked", one of the pirates told Reuters by satellite phone. Phillips' family had gathered at his farmhouse in Vermont.[15]
On Saturday, April 11, 2009, the Maersk Alabama arrived in the port of Mombasa, Kenya under U.S. military escort. An 18-man security team was on board.[9] The FBI secured the ship as a crime scene.[16]



On Sunday, April 12, 2009, Capt. Richard Phillips was rescued, reportedly in good condition, from his pirate captors.[17][18] The commander of United States Fifth Fleet Vice Admiral William E. Gortney reported the rescue began when Commander Frank Castellano, captain of the Bainbridge, determined that Phillips' life was in imminent danger and ordered the action. President Barack Obama had previously given standing orders to take action if it was determined Phillips' life was in immediate danger. [19][20] The Vice Admiral reported that U.S. Navy SEALs snipers on the Bainbridge's fantail opened fire and killed the three pirates remaining in the lifeboat. At the time, the Bainbridge had the lifeboat under tow, approximately 25 to 30 yards astern.[21] A fourth pirate was aboard the USS Bainbridge negotiating a ransom and was taken into custody. The U.S. Navy evacuated Captain Phillips via RHIB boat to the USS Bainbridge and then flew him by helicopter to the USS Boxer for medical evaluation.[17][18] In response to the rescue, Somali pirate commander Abdi Garad issued a threat to attack American interests in the region.[22]

They were in negotiations with the pirates on the 10th, when Capt. Phillips attempted his escape. Negotiations broke down shortly thereafter, as would be expected.


1. He's lucky they didn't kill him after they dragged him back out of the water.
2. The administration you're so ready to bitch about took the absolute best course of action in issuing a standing order to only take action if the captain's life appeared to be in danger.


and most importantly;



3. This isn't 1986 and this isn't Libya.

 

[Tomasello]

Pull your head out of your ass and while your at it pop out your caps lock key. We're not left we're right and just because one Canadian didn't hear about it doesn't mean we don't report it, you moron.

I don't give a fuck how right (pardon the pun) you think you are up in Canada (or U.S.A.-lite) but your way left of the U.S. even with Obama and the Democrats in power which is pretty fringe in my book...

 

[Zoolander]

Wow, talk about an overreaction and a misinformed opinion. I can't believe people like you actually exist in the world.

And Khajit, think of political stances as a line. On the Left you have liberals, as you go from left to right it gets less liberal until you get to moderate in the middle, and then it starts getting more conservative. Generally, Left/Liberal = Democrat, Right/Conservative = Republican.

 

[Tomasello]

1. He's lucky they didn't kill him after they dragged him back out of the water.

If Obama signed the order on Wednesday like he should of done it would of been over the minute the captain hit the water because they would of turned the boat with the pirates on it into swiss cheese.

2. The administration you're so ready to bitch about took the absolute best course of action in issuing a standing order to only take action if the captain's life appeared to be in danger.

FOUR DAYS LATER.... the order up till Saturday was "don't hurt anyone because I'm too scared to hurt the muslim pirates... boo hoo"

3. This isn't 1986 and this isn't Libya.

No but that's EXACTLY what we should do. Find the dump of a village these pirates congregate to and bomb the fuck out of it.

 

[Trippyhippy]

The story is actually pretty interesting. Here is what really happened.

Aboard the Maersk Alabama, a 17,000-ton cargo ship, Captain Phillips’s crew erupted in cheers, waved American flags and fired off flares. When four pirates attacked the ship on Wednesday, the crew escaped harm after the captain offered himself as a hostage. He told his crewmen to lock themselves in cabins, and allowed himself to be taken at gunpoint into the lifeboat in which the pirates fled.

Over the ensuing days, according to official accounts of the episode, the pirates made repeated threats to kill the captain as their motorized lifeboat moved about 30 miles off the Somali coast. It was closely watched by United States warships and helicopters in an increasingly tense standoff.

Talks to free the captain began Thursday, with the commander of the Bainbridge communicating with the pirates under instructions from F.B.I. hostage negotiators flown to the scene. The pirates threatened to kill Captain Phillips if attacked, and the result was tragicomic: the world’s most powerful navy vs. a lifeboat.

Vice Adm. William E. Gortney, commander of the United States naval forces in the region, said in a briefing in Bahrain that despite ransom demands from the pirates the United States had not discussed any ransom and had talked to the pirates only about the release of Captain Phillips and the pirates’ surrender.

The Defense Department twice sought Mr. Obama’s permission to use force to rescue Captain Phillips, most recently on Friday night, senior defense officials said. On Saturday morning, the president agreed, they said, if it appeared that the captain’s life was in imminent danger.

By Friday, with several warships within easy reach of the lifeboat, the negotiations had gone nowhere. Captain Phillips jumped into the sea, but was quickly recaptured. On Saturday, the pirates fired several shots at a small boat that had approached from the Bainbridge.

By the weekend, however, the pirates had begun to run out of food, water and fuel. That apparently provided the opening officials were hoping for. In briefings, senior officers who spoke anonymously because they had not been authorized to disclose information said that the pirates agreed to accept food and water. A small craft was used to deliver them and it apparently made several trips between the Bainbridge and the lifeboat.

On one trip, one of the four pirates — whose hand had been gashed during the capture of Captain Phillips — asked for medical treatment and, in effect surrendering, was taken in the small boat to the Bainbridge. Justice Department officials were studying options for his case, including criminal charges in the United States or turning him over to Kenya, where dozens of pirates have faced prosecution. Three pirates were left on board with Captain Phillips.

Meanwhile, members of the Navy Seals were flown in by fixed-wing aircraft. They parachuted into the sea with inflatable boats and were picked up by the Bainbridge. On Sunday, the pirates, their fuel gone, were drifting toward the Somali coast. They agreed to accept a tow from the Bainbridge, the senior officials said. At first, the towline was 200 feet long, but as darkness gathered and seas became rough, the towline was shortened to 100 feet, the officials said. It was unclear if this was done with the pirates’ knowledge.

At dusk, a single tracer bullet was seen fired from the lifeboat. The intent was unclear, but it ratcheted up the tension and Seal snipers at the stern rail of the Bainbridge fixed night-vision scopes to their high-powered rifles, getting ready for action.

What they saw was the head and shoulders of two of the pirates emerging from the rear hatch of the lifeboat. Through the window of the front hatch they saw the third pirate, pointing his AK-47 at the back of Captain Phillips, who was seen to be tied up.

That was it: the provocation that fulfilled the president’s order to act only if the captain’s life was in imminent danger, and the opportunity of having clear shots at each captor. The order was given. Senior defense officials, themselves marveling at the skill of the snipers, said each took a target and fired one shot.

“This was an incredible team effort,” Admiral Gortney said when it was over. “And I am extremely proud of the tireless efforts of all the men and women who made this rescue possible.”

So yeah, they pointed a gun at the guy 1 time and snipers took out everyone on the boat immediatly.

Even though it doesn't really have anything to do with Obama. At all, really.

Captain Phillips, who was said to be resting comfortably, spoke to officials of the Maersk Line, who quoted him as saying: “The real heroes are the Navy, the Seals, those who have brought me home.”

Tom...

The people that don't like Obama are sticking with this story here:

Spoiler:

In yet another blatant example of liberal media bias, Barack Obama is getting all the credit for “authorizing” the rescue of hostage Captain Richard Phillips from Somali pirates, yet none of the blame for possibly escalating violence because of the death of the pirates.


I watched a press conference held by the Pentagon after the rescue. Multiple reporters, but especially one from NPR and an Irish reporter (from a network or service I didn’t catch) spent a lot of time putting words into the mouth of Navy Vice Admiral Bill Gortney. The main lines of questioning included whether or not it was really necessary to kill the pirates, whether or not the Navy had negotiated fairly since they hadn’t offered the pirates anything other than arrest, and to clarify, multiple times, whether or not the order for the rescue had come from “the highest authority.” Then, one of the reporters wanted to know if killing the pirates would result in escalation of violence, since before the pirates had been so nice to their captives, only administering “occasional” beatings and rarely if ever killing them.

The admiral admitted that, yes, it was possible and maybe even likely.

The gist of the questioning was to conclude that it was in fact a bad thing to have used force, that it would probably make things worse, and that Obama gave the order. How did it come out in the press?

From AP: “The head of U.S. Naval Forces Central Command is warning that the successful rescue of an American captain held by Somali pirates could escalate violence in that part of the world.

In rescuing the captain of the American ship Maersk Alabama, Navy SEALs killed three of the four pirates who had been holding Capt. Richard Phillips in a lifeboat. All were shot by snipers aboard the USS Bainbridge.

Navy Vice Admiral Bill Gortney said at a news conference Sunday that the rescue ending in the pirates’ deaths will likely have a ripple effect.

While piracy is common off the coast of Somalia, crews have seldom been harmed.

In Gortney’s words, “This could escalate violence in this part of the world, no question about it.”

The problem here is that he only agreed with the words that a reporter basically put in his mouth. He was not warning about anything. The reporter asked him if he thought it was true, and only then did he say what they quoted him as saying. The story makes it sound like the admiral came up with his “warning” out of the blue.

Also from AP:

“President Barack Obama twice authorized the military to rescue a U.S. captain held by Somali pirates and whose life appeared to be at risk.

Officials say Obama gave the OK on Friday and Saturday to rescue Capt. Richard Phillips from a lifeboat off the Somali coast. Officials say both times the Pentagon believed Phillips’ life was at risk.”

The problem here is that during the same press conference, what the admiral said was that Comrade Obama authorized the “appropriate use of force” if the on-scene commander believed the hostage’s life was at risk. There is a HUGE difference here. Obama did not give the OK for a rescue; he gave the okay for “standing authority” to be used at the discretion of the commander of the destroyer ONLY if he thought the hostage’s life was in danger. If the pirates had never actually threatened the life of Captain Phillips, but only tried to get him ashore or to another boat, there wasn’t necessarily any authority to intervene.

That’s one problem. Obama is getting credit for “ordering” a rescue he never actually ordered. He left it in the hand of the commander on-scene, and only if to save the life of the hostage, not rescue or retrieve him unconditionally. Had the operation gone horribly wrong, Obama could easily have hung the destroyer’s captain out to dry, claiming he used his authority improperly. Remember all the Democrats who voted to authorize use of force against Iraq? Didn’t they later claim that they only authorized the “possible” use of force? Once Iraq wasn’t popular any more, it suddenly became “Bush’s war,” because he “abused” his authority.

The other problem is that the two AP quotes above are from totally different stories. The story about the “escalation” doesn’t mention Obama. The one giving credit to Obama doesn’t mention the supposed “escalation” we have now caused. Doesn’t it follow that if Obama is going to get credit for the operation, he should also get the blame for angering those poor pirates by wantonly killing their friends as the reporters at the press conference tried to infer on multiple questions?

I looked at several AP and Reuters stories and it was the same across the board. Where there was credit, Obama’s name was always prominently featured. Where there were questions about the necessity of killing the pirates or about our supposed inflaming of the situation, only the military seemed to be involved.

And one other minor point here. Didn’t the French special forces kill a few pirates earlier in the week? None of the reporters or stories seemed to ask whether or not the French escalated anything.

I give full credit to Obama for at least giving the commander on the scene authority to save the life of the hostage. But it was frankly, a weasel move designed for exactly this outcome. If it went well, he could claim credit and get it. If it went wrong, he could blame the military for everything from incompetence to being trigger happy. A real leader would have “sent a message” by ordering a rescue, period, which Obama is actually getting credit for doing. The reporters on TV were saying that we were telling the pirates, in essence, “don’t mess with us because we come for our hostages.”

If only that’s what had happened.

That's what the other people of a conservative persuasion have come up with as a story. Try that one out on another forum and see if it works for ya.

 

[Rips]

I don't give a fuck how right (pardon the pun) you think you are up in Canada (or U.S.A.-lite) but your way left of the U.S. even with Obama and the Democrats in power which is pretty fringe in my book...

I get that we are more left then you. I don't like it either. Still, watch your tongue and show a little respect for us. I'm growing tired of this lolCanada shit. We're not US lite either. We're Canada.

 

[Firestreak]

I get that we are more left then you. I don't like it either. Still, watch your tongue and show a little respect for us. I'm growing tired of this lolCanada shit. We're not US lite either. We're Canada.

Let's just not go crazy, nobody wants to see Canada on strike.

 

[Halifirien]

4 days to "ok" a kill order is 3 days, 23 hours and 59 minutes too long. Period.

Wow, you've totally convinced me. Arrests? Trials? Taking the chance that you could end a situation peacefully and bring criminals to justice instead of killing them outright? That's for fucking pussies! Why didn't I see it before? I'm going to burn my Democrat badge and go teabagging on the 15th to show my disgust at a successful rescue operation!

Take a deep breath and let go of some of the blood lust, man. You'll feel better.

 

[Tristam Green]

No but that's EXACTLY what we should do. Find the dump of a village these pirates congregate to and bomb the fuck out of it.

Negative, compadre.

If we pancaked everyone that pissed us off in the past 20 years, the world would be a fucking parking lot.

Wow, you've totally convinced me. Arrests? Trials? Taking the chance that you could end a situation peacefully and bring criminals to justice instead of killing them outright? That's for fucking pussies! Why didn't I see it before? I'm going to burn my Democrat badge and go teabagging on the 15th to show my disgust at a successful rescue operation!

Take a deep breath and let go of some of the blood lust, man. You'll feel better.

In other news, Jim DeMintJulep is holding one of those ridiculous tea party protests in my good ol' hometown tomorra :|

 

[Lucki]

Does anyone know what the actual procedure is for hostage situations involving the navy?

Can we just make a single "ZOMG OBAMA SUXXX" topic and just consolidate all these bullshit threads into it, please? Or better yet, how about a "FUCK OBAMA LOL" social group so we don't have to see the new topics pop up every other day and people can just go nuts making them?

Seriously, either one will be fine with me, because this shit is starting to get old.

 

[Tristam Green]

Does anyone know what the actual procedure is for hostage situations involving the navy?

Ten bucks says "what just transpired last week".

 

[JP]

Find the dump of a village these pirates congregate to and bomb the fuck out of it.

I know who I'm not voting for if they ever run for president!

 

[Falsey]

i seriously think Tom lives in fantasy land where movie plots all come true and its always just simple to go in and bomb the fuck out of someone.

 

[Ryuoho]

The fact that several snipers were able to shoot and hit their respective targets with one shot each on the rolling seas is movie-like enough for me. That's incredible.

 

[Jereme]

The fact that several snipers were able to shoot and hit their respective targets with one shot each on the rolling seas is movie-like enough for me. That's incredible.

One of those shots was through a window to boot.