I was so happy to see that Obama hadn't pulled a Jimmy Carter on us, that I was almost intoxicated with joy yesterday on the news that we blew those Somali pirates out of the water.
Turns out, I may have been off. Apparently, Obama did not give the order for the operation. So, we still wait to see; do we have Jimmy Carter Redux as POTUS?
Sorry libs. Obama did not give the direct order to kill the Somali pirates.
You'll have to wait another day for the cut-and-runner to earn his hero badge.
Blackfive has the real story:I just finished listening to the press conference w/ ADM Gortney about the rescue of Captain Phillips. At the time it happened the USS Bainbridge was towing the lifeboat to calmer waters as the sea state was deteriorating. One of the pirates was on board the Bainbridge as the talks about obtaining Phillip's release continued. The lifeboat was approx. 25 m behind the Bainbridge when snipers on the fantail observed one of the pirates in the pilot house of the lifeboat pointing an AK-47 at the back of a tied up Phillips and the other two pirates on board were visible (at least shoulders and heads). The standing authority gave them clearance to engage the pirates if the life of the captain was in imminent danger. The on scene commander deemed this to be true and gave the order to fire. All three bad guys were taken out and then a rigid inflatable boat went to the lifeboat to retrieve Phillips. It is unknown at this point whether the shooters were SEALs or Marine Scout Snipers as both would have been available.They want so desperately for the community organizer to become a real hero.
This was not a rescue attempt ordered by National Command Authority i.e. the President. It was a reaction by the on scene commander under standard authority to safeguard the life of a hostage.
The AP is reporting that President Obama gave the order to use military force to rescue the hostage, that is misleading.
More... They were pointing their weapons at the captain.
Reuters reported:"They were pointing the AK-47s at the captain," Vice Adm. William Gortney, head of the U.S. Naval Central Command, said in a Pentagon briefing from Bahrain.
Gortney also said Washington had rejected negotiations with the pirates. "The United States government policy is to not negotiate," he said.
UPDATE: Epa add (wisely): The story behind the story is going to be coming across as sour grapes. We can only hold onto the facts and remain calm.
Obama HANDLED the situation correctly.
I can prove it.
Phillips is safe.
Bad guys dead or captured.
Get it?
It doesn't matter if Rahm told him to do nothing, say nothing and stay out of it in case it went south so some Looey or Warrant officer could take the blame ... whatever Obama did or did not do, Phillips is safe, bad guys zapped.
15 comments:
Pastorius,
Well, at least the on scene commander did his job.
Gotta love those snipers.
adopt a sniper:
http://www.americansnipers.org/supporters.html
Yes, didn't some ATF or some such sniper take out that woman at Ruby Ridge - who was reportedly holding a baby at the time?
I don't remember the particulars, but their accuracy is amazing.
Right, Anonymous. Thing is, I'm sure he was aiming for the baby.
Hey, by the way, did you know that Bill Clinton ordered hits on over 200 of his friends WHILE he was getting a blowjob from Monica Lewinsky?
It's true.
The story behind the story is going to be coming across as sour grapes. We can only hold onto the facts and remain calm.
Obama HANDLED the situation correctly.
I can prove it.
Phillips is safe.
Bad guys dead or captured.
Get it?
It doesn't matter if Rahm told him to do nothing, say nothing and stay out of it in case it went south so some Looey or Warrant officer could take the blame ... whatever Obama did or did not do, Phillips is safe, bad guys zapped.
The question is, what's the deal on Eyl?
Just as Dennis Blair escaped the hot questions over Charles Freeman, safely recovering Phillips begs the question of these pirates IN TOTO.
With a less than 300 ship navy now, we cannot protect EVEN THAT AREA of the Indian Ocean..so we either take the pirates out where they live, along with their boats, or we do a Carter/Clinton and be responders to a crime on the block somewhere, as if these guys are some kind of car thieves.
Epa,
Point well-taken. I'll add it to the post.
Rush was on the radio quoting a bloomberg report stating Obama is planning to take out the pirates hovels on Somalian ground, then offer aid and training to create a Somali Coast Guard to patrol the seas.
Nation building is ok when it's the elected narcissist-in-chief's idea.
National Review contributor T. Lynch (then-director of Cato Institute's Project on Criminal Justice) on the incident at Ruby Ridge.
One snippet:
A few moments later, the same agent shot Weaver's wife in the head as she was standing in the doorway of her home holding a baby in her arms. The FBI snipers had not yet announced their presence and had not given the Weavers an opportunity to peacefully surrender.
No ODS here.
www.nationalreview.com/comment/comment-lynch082102.asp
So anonymouse, what IS your point?
What does Ruby Ridge have to do with your weak kneed puppet in chief?
There has been a lot of talk in the blogs about Clinton's and Obama's domestic federal law enforcement agendas.
Then there was a comment about "adopting" a sniper.
Federal snipers have been used against US civilians in situations where the civilians posed no imminent threat.
That's the point.
Sorry if those on this site do not remember the incident.
Anonymous,
I do remember the incident. But, it isn't relevant to this discussion, is it?
I'm sorry I was rude. But honestly, I don't understand your point.
Are Federal Snipers, in general, evil, because a Federal sniper did something wrong in the past?
Could you elucidate?
I mean elaborate.
A commenter was suggesting we "adopt" a sniper. I was responding to that by suggesting there may be reasons not to do so. Ruby Ridge is an example.
American Thinker has a piece up about a DHS report, I think, that is along the lines of that Missouri "fusion" report.
I read the report. It certainly does seem to paint dissent about abortion, taxes, illegal immigration, etc. as potential fodder for "right wing extremist" activity - "like in the 90's."
It uses, if you can believe this, the incident of the police killed in Pittsburgh as "an example of the potential violence associated with the rise of rightwing extremism."
So, the right is being smeared with this loon, as if all of us who don't like confiscatory taxes, massive illegal immigration, etc. are potential domestic "man-made disasters in the making."
The left has a history of moving against US citizens during a crisis (Japanese internment, anyone?) So be careful whom you decide to "adopt."
Sorry if that amounted to a "highjacking."
Hi. A Commenter here.
The adopt a sniper program is for active duty deployed snipers in combat operations in the War on the Really Mean Bad Guys With Funny Names (no more War on Terror don'cha know).
Bet Captain Phillips has a differing view on snipers these days.
I do not dislike snipers. I dislike the ones who obey "orders" to kill US citizens who are not imminent threats to life or property.
Hence my hesitation about "adopting" someone you don't know who has a lethal skill - the very skill used to kill those civilians. In a particularly brutal way, no?
Sorry if my failure to support the adoption offended you.
But I agree, the captain has good reason to be very grateful for them.
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