By this point, we are all well aware that piracy is alive and well out there in some magical land called Somalia and really, by now, most of us don’t care anymore. But, every once in a while, a bit of news surfaces that just makes you wonder how stupid people can really be.
Let’s have a quick chat about history shall we? (and if you put your head down on your desk I will do what my teacher used to do me when we slept in class. That’s right… poop in your backpack… remove your skull from your face and lock it away until you notice… cover you in honey and toss you in the zombie pen)
One of the most well known cases where a smaller ship took a much larger ship was in 1717 when Blackbeard took this:
YAR!!!
The Concorde, was a French war flagship weighing in at over 300 tonnes and carrying over 20 cannons and it was taken by this:
...yar... but with balls of steel
A sloop similar to this known as the Adventure Sloop, a much smaller ship with far less weaponry.
As historic as this was, it is a task that isn’t as easy these days, what with the invention of automatic weapons, things that make bigger booms than the 1700’s thought were possible and them new-fangled floatin’ metal ships.
So, recently, a pair of Somalian pirate “vessels” opened fire on a cargo ship last week, 250 miles off the coast of Somalia.
Fishing with assault rifles?
However, the cargo ship turned out to be the French Navy vessel, La Somme, a 3800 tonne refueling ship. (I wonder what the sound of an entire boat full of men pooping themselves simultaneously sounds like?)
Just a cargo ship...
One skiff fled while the naval ship gave chase on the second. When they were caught, there were no weapons, ammo, food or drink on board as it at all been cast overboard during the chase… just lots and lots of dirty pants.
So what did we learn today kids? If you are in a row boat armed with a couple of assault rifles, do not try to take over a ship that is 15 times your size, armed with the navy who have lots and lots of guns.
