Re:You are being lied to about pirates
by mikedouglas on Thursday April 16, 2009 @12:38PM
(#565393)
Not only are they seizing defenseless civilian ships, they're bribing countless Somali warlords, paying for their political ambitions and child armies. Not holding these people accountable (or trying to attach ridiculous motives) is a kind of soft bigotry that has hampered Africa for the beginning, and allowed butchers like Mugabe, Idi Amin, and Charles Taylor to gain and hold power.
The fact that the author has seen to have confused toxic waste with nuclear waste makes this all the more unbelievable.
This is about money. Some armed men have found a way to get extraordinarily rich in third world-countries by seizing undefended tankers and cargo vessels and holding them for ransom. Then they play for sympathy/admiration by saying they're trying to stop fishing and dumping when they're of course not actually bothering fishing vessels or holding any ship with toxic waste for ransom - much less chasing these vessels out of regional waters.
Describing yourself as a champion of the people while making yourself rich is an old, old criminal shtick.