Everything keeps coming back to pirates
I most people that know me are aware that I have a strange obsession with pirates. Pirates rule. I like pirates. I've tried to tie almost any historical paper I had to write while at UCSD to piracy in some way. The history behind piracy is extremely interesting to me, and I've found it to be enlightening on current affairs; whether it be Roman piracy propaganda (The created a mass panic about pirates so that they could pretend to go out "fighting piracy" when instead they were just invading other lands and adding to the wealth of Rome, how cool is that???), or state sanctioned privateers (Britain used privateers such as Sir Francis Drake to wage an unannounced war against their ally Spain, also pretty friggin cool). So image the kick I got when I read this article linking terrorists and pirates.
The article discusses the problem of defining terrorism and policing it. It draws a parallel between pirates and terrorists, and the legal precedent that could be used to define and punish terrorists based on anti-piracy laws. A few choice quotes that I liked.
"AT FIRST GLANCE, THE CORRELATION BETWEEN PIRACY AND TERRORISM seems a stretch. Yet much of the basis of this skepticism can be traced to romantic and inaccurate notions about piracy. An examination of the actual history of the crime reveals startling, even astonishing, parallels to contemporary international terrorism. Viewed in its proper historical context, piracy emerges as a clear and powerful precedent."
"Pirates are common enemies, and they are attacked with impunity by all, because they are without the pale of the law. They are scorners of the law of nations; hence they find no protection in that law."
"Terrorists, like pirates, must be given their proper status in law: hostis humani generis, enemies of the human race."
Pirates are so much cooler than ninjas it's not even funny.
The article discusses the problem of defining terrorism and policing it. It draws a parallel between pirates and terrorists, and the legal precedent that could be used to define and punish terrorists based on anti-piracy laws. A few choice quotes that I liked.
"AT FIRST GLANCE, THE CORRELATION BETWEEN PIRACY AND TERRORISM seems a stretch. Yet much of the basis of this skepticism can be traced to romantic and inaccurate notions about piracy. An examination of the actual history of the crime reveals startling, even astonishing, parallels to contemporary international terrorism. Viewed in its proper historical context, piracy emerges as a clear and powerful precedent."
"Pirates are common enemies, and they are attacked with impunity by all, because they are without the pale of the law. They are scorners of the law of nations; hence they find no protection in that law."
"Terrorists, like pirates, must be given their proper status in law: hostis humani generis, enemies of the human race."
Pirates are so much cooler than ninjas it's not even funny.