Looks Like They Picked the Wrong Era ...

... to be pirates, that is.

I'm referring, of course, to the recent hijacking of a freighter off the coast of Somalia by pirates. Turns out the ship was loaded with tanks, rocket launchers, missles, and other military equipment coming from the Ukraine and bound from Kenya. Well, instead of following the time honored pirate code of running like heck after taking a ship, these morons have decided to drop anchor ...

... and take on the U.S. Navy. Definitely not a situation conducive to a long and happy life. You can read more about this standoff here.

By the way, The Pirate (Ex) Chaplain in no way endorses modern piracy. Historical piracy against oppressive monarchies, yes. Modern piracy against innocent victims (though I really don't think this arms deal was all that "innocent"), absolutely not. You might want to check out this article's section on modern piracy for more on what's going on out there on the high seas.

And, speaking of another category of bad ideas, looks like the economy is going to continue its free-fall into oblivion. I just checked the news, and saw that the stock exchange ended today way down, and plenty of investors are moving their money to gold. In more personal news, my bank was just bought out as it stood on the verge of collapse. At least my money (what little of it there is) is safe for the time being.

Now if I can just get all those gold investors to load their coins onto galleons ... now THAT could be interesting!