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Navy SEALs Free 2 Aid Workers From Somali Pirates

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  • #16
    I'll go along with Astralis and Red Team on this one. These folks were deserving of our effort and one of the reasons for maintaining such a capability.

    "...there is some suspicion that Obama gave the go-ahead for this raid in order to coincide with his SOTU address last night. It DOES seem a little coincidental . . . ."

    Knowing full well that the President did not make political hay of such during the SOTU address casts aside conspiracy speculation. Further the event, by itself, is not likely to garner world-wide attention of the type seen with OBL. It would appear, therefore, as it seems-sheer coincidence.
    "This aggression will not stand, man!" Jeff Lebowski
    "The only true currency in this bankrupt world is what you share with someone else when you're uncool." Lester Bangs

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    • #17
      Originally posted by S2 View Post
      I'll go along with Astralis and Red Team on this one. These folks were deserving of our effort and one of the reasons for maintaining such a capability.
      My problem with this, is that encourage folks like Shane Bauer to go on their adrenaline trips and expect the armed services to rescue them when they do get in trouble .
      As for responsibility , the host nation has the obligation to protect his citizenry and foreign nationals residing on her soil in such cases. If it is either unwilling or unable to do so , one private citizen should really think twice about working in that country.
      Last edited by 1979; 26 Jan 12,, 12:29.
      J'ai en marre.

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      • #18
        Rescued American's dad "proud" of the U.S.

        The father of Jessica Buchanan, the American rescued by Navy SEALs in Somalia along with a Danish colleague this weekend, described in an interview with CBS News the two most amazing phone calls he said he has ever received.

        John Buchanan told CBS News one was the call he finally got from his daughter, right after President Obama called following his State of the Union address on Tuesday night.

        "She said, 'Daddy, I love you, and I'll be fine. I'm OK.' It was just after, over 93 days and I hadn't spoken to her. It was pretty amazing and incredible that she's fine and (the SEAL teams) were able to do something and get her," Buchanan said. "We're just extremely grateful to God first, and to the U.S. government. They've been great throughout this whole thing - from the first day there were there, supporting us."


        The families of the two hostages had their own negotiators, who worked in conjunction with the aid organization and the U.S. government, but were independent, Buchanan said. The hostage takers originally contacted the family through the aid organization.


        "They were very difficult on everybody - on her husband, myself, her brother and sister. We got what (the hostage takers) wanted us to know," Buchanan said.

        Buchanan said he was heartened throughout the ordeal to know that "the FBI were looking over their shoulder the whole time, keeping everything on the up and up. I can't say enough about what the FBI did both in Kenya and here in the U.S. They were efficient. They were kind. They were just on top of everything. They knew what they were doing and what was going on at all times. They utilized a ton of resources."


        Buchanan said he was briefed several times a week by the negotiators, and daily by the aid organization. But still it was trying. "Most days it was 'nothing,'" he said. He and his other daughter spent "about a month in Nairobi and Kenya" with Jessica's husband, where they met with aid organization officials and the hostage negotiators, but returned home empty handed.


        Still, he knew that talk of a rescue was in the air.


        "I was sort of getting a picture [of the situation] last week, because we had been getting some bad reports on Jess's health and I knew what the triggers were for them to intervene," Buchanan said.

        President Obama, accompanied by first lady Michelle Obama, is seen on a phone call at the Capitol in Washington Jan. 24, 2012, immediately after his State of the Union address, informing John Buchanan that his daughter Jessica was rescued by U.S. special operations forces in Somalia.

        He said he it was "completely coincidental" that he was in D.C. for meetings - which he said were set up two weeks prior - with the aid organization. He said the State of the Union was "the last thing" on his mind. He was in a hotel room in D.C. with his other daughter, taking calls from relatives, and not paying much attention to the State of the Union broadcast.


        The lead-up to Mr. Obama's phone call "was very strange, because [White House officials] called, and somebody from the Situation Room called and told me to make sure my phone would be clear for a very important call. It was 40 minutes of not knowing what that call would be. I didn't know if it was going to be the worst or the best. We were in a hotel, myself and Jessica's sister. We had concluded a meeting. And so we just waited. A guy came on the phone and said 'Mr. Buchanan, the next voice you'll hear will be the President of the United States.' I said 'OK.' I'm thinking 'this could be some kind of cruel joke.'"


        As it turned out, it was most definitely not a joke.


        "He said, 'John, this is Barack Obama. I've got some really good news for you. Your daughter Jessica has been rescued and evacuated by our SEAL team and she's on her way home.' He said he empathized with me, having two daughters, and said something to the effect of how proud he was that our young people would go help these other people."


        Buchanan says he is very thankful for all that was done for his family.


        "I love my daughter," Buchanan said. "I'm just thrilled that she's ok and she's back. It sounds corny but I really am proud to be an American. We are the greatest country in the world, with the best resources. And I'm grateful to be an American."

        Rescued American's dad "proud" of the U.S. - CBS News
        Fortitude.....The strength to persist...The courage to endure.

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        • #19
          Originally posted by 1979 View Post
          My problem with this, is that encourage folks like Shane Bauer to go on their adrenaline trips and expect the armed services to rescue them when they do get in trouble .
          As for responsibility , the host nation has the obligation to protect his citizenry and foreign nationals residing on her soil in such cases. If it is either unwilling or unable to do so , one private citizen should really think twice about working in that country.
          *Theres a big difference between rescuing genuine aid workers that are there to help people in genuine crisis and three jackass's that decided to go "hiking" in a declared war zone knowing they were close to the Iranian border and Iranian hostilities against the US.

          Iran grabbed them for political means although the US paid 1.5 in blackmail for their "fines".

          The Pirates grabbed them for purely financial means not political. They got paid in bullets. Well deserved.
          Last edited by Dreadnought; 26 Jan 12,, 16:18.
          Fortitude.....The strength to persist...The courage to endure.

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          • #20
            Originally posted by S2 View Post
            "...there is some suspicion that Obama gave the go-ahead for this raid in order to coincide with his SOTU address last night. It DOES seem a little coincidental . . . ."

            Knowing full well that the President did not make political hay of such during the SOTU address casts aside conspiracy speculation. Further the event, by itself, is not likely to garner world-wide attention of the type seen with OBL. It would appear, therefore, as it seems-sheer coincidence.
            Agreed; after looking into the matter a little closely, the raid had actually been in the planning stages since late last year, and the actual go-ahead was only given a week ago so, yes, simply coincidence, it would seem.
            "There is never enough time to do or say all the things that we would wish. The thing is to try to do as much as you can in the time that you have. Remember Scrooge, time is short, and suddenly, you're not there any more." -Ghost of Christmas Present, Scrooge

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            • #21
              http://true-turtle.livejournal.com/85315.html

              A friend sent me this - I felt it was worth sharing here

              RUSSIAN NAVY CAPTURES SOMALI PIRATES

              The Russians captured the Pirates, tied them up, put them on the boats, then set them all on fire - no more pirate attacks from this group.

              This video shows Russian Navy commandos on a Somalian pirate ship shortly after the pirates had captured a Russian oil tanker. The Euro Union navy that patrols these waters would not interfere because they feared there could be casualties

              All explanations are in Russian with a single exception of when a wounded pirate says something in English and the Russian soldier says "This is not a fishing boat". All conversations between the commandos are in Russian. If you don't understand Russian, the pictures speak for themselves.

              The soldiers freed their compatriots and the tanker. The Russian Navy Commandos moved the pirates back to their own (pirate) ship, searched the pirate ship for weapons and explosives and then they left the ship and exploded it with all remaining pirates hand-cuffed to it.

              The commandos sank the pirate ship along with the pirates and without any court proceedings, lawyers etc. That is, they used the anti-piracy laws of the 18th and 19th centuries where the captain of the rescuing ship has the right to decide what to do with the pirates. Usually, they were hanged.

              I would think from now on, Russian ships will not be targets for Somali pirates.

              Americans would have fed and clothed them and sent them on their merry way.
              sigpic"If your plan is for one year, plant rice. If your plan is for ten years, plant trees.
              If your plan is for one hundred years, educate children."

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              • #22
                Originally posted by USSWisconsin View Post
                http://true-turtle.livejournal.com/85315.html

                A friend sent me this - I felt it was worth sharing here
                :slap: Ecologists wont be happy.
                No such thing as a good tax - Churchill

                To make mistakes is human. To blame someone else for your mistake, is strategic.

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                • #23
                  no sympathy for the pirates, but man, sometimes the russians just do something that is just so pure ...for the lack of a better term... slavic...that it creeps me out.
                  There is a cult of ignorance in the United States, and there has always been. The strain of anti-intellectualism has been a constant thread winding its way through our political and cultural life, nurtured by the false notion that democracy means that "My ignorance is just as good as your knowledge."- Isaac Asimov

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                  • #24
                    I acually don't see any problem with their solution, if they hanged them instead it would have appeared even worst.

                    Shoking it the total lack of PR, the video is on youtube, of all places..jut imagine that instead of russians, that video would have shown american/british/frreanch soldiers...the public outcry would have been the stuf of legends :pari:
                    Last edited by Dante; 22 Mar 12,, 09:54.

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                    • #25
                      Originally posted by astralis View Post
                      no sympathy for the pirates, but man, sometimes the russians just do something that is just so pure ...for the lack of a better term... slavic...that it creeps me out.
                      Care to explain?
                      No such thing as a good tax - Churchill

                      To make mistakes is human. To blame someone else for your mistake, is strategic.

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                      • #26
                        doktor,

                        Care to explain
                        http://www.worldaffairsboard.com/fie...tml#post367811
                        There is a cult of ignorance in the United States, and there has always been. The strain of anti-intellectualism has been a constant thread winding its way through our political and cultural life, nurtured by the false notion that democracy means that "My ignorance is just as good as your knowledge."- Isaac Asimov

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                        • #27
                          Interesting. While I can agree that Soviets tend to use weird methods to complete goals, in this part of the woods the Slavs seem more civil - if you exclude all the allegations for the Serbs or the Croats during Yugo-wars:slap:

                          At least they are still not taping pissing on corps and other nasty things. However, I never said (or thought) - that is just so pure ...for the lack of a better term... American ...that it creeps me out when those videos came out.
                          No such thing as a good tax - Churchill

                          To make mistakes is human. To blame someone else for your mistake, is strategic.

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                          • #28
                            fair enough, i'll take back the word slavic.
                            There is a cult of ignorance in the United States, and there has always been. The strain of anti-intellectualism has been a constant thread winding its way through our political and cultural life, nurtured by the false notion that democracy means that "My ignorance is just as good as your knowledge."- Isaac Asimov

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                            • #29
                              Originally posted by astralis View Post
                              fair enough, i'll take back the word slavic.
                              OK, now lets party :tankie:
                              No such thing as a good tax - Churchill

                              To make mistakes is human. To blame someone else for your mistake, is strategic.

                              Comment


                              • #30
                                My 2 shekels.The heroic soldiers exist to save the butts of the civilians,idiotic or not.If its in the realm of what's humanely possible,of course,otherwise is just more blood spillt for nothing.Doesn't mean that those guys weren't idiotic to go there.No matter the reason,if you go to ANY African country without a strong escort ,you're just an idiot.
                                Those who know don't speak
                                He said to them, "But now if you have a purse, take it, and also a bag; and if you don't have a sword, sell your cloak and buy one. Luke 22:36

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