So far Obama is passing this test .

tomder55 · Apr 10, 2009, 02:46 AM

The test I'm talking about is the attempted hijacking of the Maersk Alabama,an American flagged ship, by jihadists pirates.

So far hijacking off the Somali coast has been a pretty good business. Nations have paid ransom (tribute) to retrieve vessels to the tune of $150 million from 150 ships in 2008.

But a US ship had not been the target. The first thing that was different this time was that the unarmed crew fought back capturing one of the pirates and making him their prisoner .(arming the crew of a commercial ship is discouraged by international law)The next thing that was different was that the captain of the Maersk Alabama ;Richard Phillips,showed courage and honor ,traded his safety by offered himself up as a prisoner to save the crew. The pirates renaged on a swap deal and Phillips is still a prisoner.Ken Quinn, the second mate on the ship, told CNN. They eventually released the pirate in an attempted hostage exchange. “We returned him but they didn’t return the captain.”

The Maersk Alabama had been bound for the Kenyan port of Mombasa and was carrying food and other agricultural materials for the World Food Program, a United Nations agency, and other clients, including the United States Agency for International Development.

The pirates put Phillips on a dinghy and fled until their boat ran out of fuel .

The President's response so far has been strong. He has not gone crying to the UN . He instead ordered the USS Bainbridge to go after them . The guided-missile frigate USS Haliburton is also on hand .He has FBI hostage negotiators there telling the pirates that their only chance of survival is to release Phillips. No ransoms; no bargains, no surrender is on the table. The threat of force is real and credible. If there are to be negotiations they will be conducted from a position of strength .

He has not held phony gratuitous press conferences and has refused to answer reporter's questions.

The U.S. military has been defending civilian shipping from pirates since the Barbary Wars two centuries ago, and one of its missions is to keep the sea lanes open for U.S. flagged vessels.

I pray for success but what is clear is that jihadists pirates ,terrorists,dictators will have to consider our actions in this situation in their future calculations . The President must continue his strong response and not weaken.

Wondergirl · Apr 26, 2009, 06:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ETWolverine

No, the SEALS who took charge are tough cookies. Obama is a guy who took credit for other people's work.

How do you figure?

Navy Credited With Bold Rescue of U.S. Captain Held by Somali Pirates - Presidential Politics | Political News - FOXNews.com

Athos · Apr 26, 2009, 07:04 PM

[quote=ETWolverine;1688909]First of all, John Wayne tried to volunteer, but he was rejected on a 4-F, and was pissed as heck about it. He wanted to go.[quote=ETWolverine;1688909]

Absolutely false!

Wayne was never 4F. He requested and received a deferment because of his marital and family status as sole support. Many other Hollywood types were in the same position but that didn't stop them from serving. He claimed later that he intended to join but he "never got around to it". John Ford harassed him for 3 years to get his butt in gear, but Wayne never did. When, toward war's end, he finally was drafted, Republic Pictures wangled another deferment for him. Wayne did not lift a finger to protest, which he could have done, and refuse the deferment.

His super patriotism in peacetime, according to his wife, was motivated by guilt for not having been a part of the big event of his generation.

speechlesstx · Nov 30, 2009, 10:58 AM

Maybe Obama didn't pass this test? David Frum has some interesting thoughts on this being related to the punishment of 3 Navy SEALs for giving a prisoner a bloody lip:

Quote:

Earlier this week, news broke that three Navy SEALs were charged and may be court-martialed for allegedly punching a prisoner. The prisoner, a high-value target (HVT) was turned over to authorities with a bloody lip.

According to a source of mine — a retired SEAL who like myself still serves in other capacities — the feeling going around the Special Operations community at Fort Bragg is that this latest development is a kneejerk reaction to the situation a couple months ago when SEAL operators rescued Captain Phillips – Captain of the Maersk Alabama – off the coast of Somalia.

At the time of the capture, the media played up the angle that President Obama himself gave the order to the SEAL snipers to open fire. Having done extensive time in anti-terrorist units myself, I can tell you from personal experience this is ridiculous, a total fabrication. Nobody except those with “eyes on” the targeted individuals can make the judgment call to open fire.

The truth of the situation was that the SEALs were held off from infiltrating the AO (Area of Operations) for over 36 hours. There was a lot of resistance from the White House in letting them in theater in the first place; once they were in place they were given very restrictive ROE (Rules Of Engagement); so restrictive that they really couldn’t engage their targets. There were two previous opportunities to rescue Captain Phillips, and they were not allowed to engage their targets.

When they finally did execute, they did so by liberally interpreting the ROE; the onsite commander finally had enough with the situation and gave them a weapons-free command and they were able to engage and rescue Captain Phillips. The fallout from the National Command Authority was immediate and extremely unpleasant; the White House did not want the rescue to be conducted in the way that it was.

So the word on the street is that this latest development is payback for the SEALs violating the ROE in rescuing the captain of the Maersk Alabama. The Chain of Command is asserting itself, letting everybody know what’s going to happen to you if you don’t follow orders.

As this was expressed to me, this opinion is based on very good, solid inside information. In my personal experience with Navy brass I have found they are very political and very politically correct. The Naval Command’s reaction to the prisoner situation was so overblown and out of proportion that I somehow find this latest angle quite believable. Unfortunately.

Sounds plausible to me.

excon · Nov 30, 2009, 11:03 AM

Hello again, Steve:

It's interesting how both Bush AND Obama can be responsible for all the ills in the world..

Somebody's fibbing.

excon

inthebox · Nov 30, 2009, 11:09 AM

Wow, these Seals are elite and are taught how to kill and survive in order to serve country and protect us, but they can be brought up on charges for giving someone a bloody lip?

What???!!!

G&P

speechlesstx · Nov 30, 2009, 11:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by excon

Hello again, Steve:

It's interesting how both Bush AND Obama can be responsible for all the ills in the world..

Somebody's fibbing.

Nah, some of it was Clinton and Carter's fault.

excon · Dec 1, 2009, 08:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tomder55

So far Obama is passing this test

Hello again, tom:

Come on, admit it. If you're able to wend your way through the right wing chaff, you'll find that Obama is actually a NEOCON of the first order. He has EMBRACED the Bush doctrine on Gitmo. He hasn't brought ONE soldier from Iraq. In the face of a failed state, he has EMBRACED the general who LIED about Pat Tillman. He has EMBRACED torture, rendition, secret NSA wiretapping, the "look forward" philosophy. And, he's even EMBRACED bailing out the banks, which, under ordinary circumstances, should delight a right winger such as yourself.

Or, he's committed the WORST sin of all - alienating ALL sides.

excon

tomder55 · Dec 1, 2009, 09:02 AM

Quote:

, he's even EMBRACED bailing out the banks, which, under ordinary circumstances, should delight a right winger such as yourself.

Why would you say that ? I opposed the bank bailouts and TARP when President Bush signed them . I am like you on that issue . I don't believe in too big to fail . But I also think the growth of corporatism has very much been a construct of government interference.