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Photograph of Captain Richard Phillips clearing security at Mombasa's airport by Karel Prinsloo/AP
As Captain Richard Phillips makes his way back to Vermont, a week after he was held hostage by four Somali pirates, the AP reports that the lone, surviving pirate will be tried in New York.
Phillips is the captain of the container ship Maersk Alabama which was carrying aid; the pirates had tried to hijack the ship while it was in the Horn of Africa last week, but the crew managed to take back control. Abduhl Wal-i-Musi, who is believed to be between 17 and 19 years old, had surrendered to the U.S. Navy before Navy Seals fatally shot his three fellow pirates and rescued Phillips. An official told the AP that Wal-i-Musi would be brought to New York, though it's not clear when.
Some Maersk Alabama crew members from New York told the Post about the drama on the seas. They said the pirates, armed with AK-47s, stormed the ship and had taken Phillips hostage, but Wal-i-Musi had followed other crew members, so the crew took Wal-i-Musi hostage. Miguel Ruiz of the Bronx said, "I pulled a knife on his face and said, 'We are going to kill you,' and my supervisor said, 'Don't do anything to this guy.' We could have killed the hostage, but we didn't have the orders to do it. We are not killers. We try to help other nations."
They ended up trying to trade the captain for the pirate, but the pirates left with Phillips. Ruiz said he also asked why Wal-i-Musi resorted to piracy, "He said, 'We do this because we have 20 million people dying in Somalia. They have no food. They have no water. They have no medicine.'"
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Ruiz said he also asked why Wal-i-Musi resorted to piracy, "He said, 'We do this because we have 20 million people dying in Somalia. They have no food. They have no water. They have no medicine.'"
Well, heck. The lack of food, water, and medicine doesn't seem to prevent Somalia from having the world's fourth-highest birth rate.
That's not birth rate, it's fertility rate. They're different (read the damn page you linked to).
Also, birth/fertility rates are not that useful on their own. You also have to look at infant mortality, which is estimated to be ~11% in Somalia.
Also useful is the life expectancy, which is estimated at 49.25 in Somalia (meaning that it's likely a large number of women are dying before they reach the end of their reproductive life, which depresses the impact of the fertility rate).
You seem to be implying a lack of judgment on behalf of the Somali people to procreate despite their impoverished living situation. What makes you think they can afford or even have ACCESS to condoms and birth control if they can't even afford or have access to a loaf of bread?
Why might I ask did they pick New York for the trial? Are there a lot of Somalians living in NY? Is this the only city that has a special court for pirates? Pittsburgh seems like a more likely city for the trial.
The US Attorney's Office for the Southern District of NY is well versed in terrorism cases.
Miguel Ruiz of the Bronx said, "I pulled a knife on his face and said, 'We are going to kill you,' and my supervisor said, 'Don't do anything to this guy.' We could have killed the hostage, but we didn't have the orders to do it. We are not killers. We try to help other nations."
We're not killers as long as there's one sane commanding officer nearby. Otherwise, we're totally going to kill you.
i think that is a really bad idea...a really really bad idea. how about a court in Florida or Iowa or ANYWHERE BUT NY.
Pity the SEALs didn't knock off this asshole too. A bullet is a lot cheaper than this upcoming judicial three-ring circus and the cost of incarcerating this dirtbag.
Hey, look who's back! Our resident ignoramus.
If you had read any account of the incident, you'd know that this guy surrendered. Killing a man who surrenders is called murder.
Humans are still animals--all humans--and will reproduce more in places where survival of said offspring is more in question. Have six kids, hope three survive. It's subconscious.
I don't know the science/biology behind it, but generally speaking: affluence = declining birthrate. You can see it demonstrated in places like Japan, Western Europe, the US, etc.
How about West Virginia?
A piracy trial in a land locked state? How avant-garde.
Landlocked? Uh, AngryGod, did you forget the ISLAND of Manhattan, or Long and Staten islands, or any of the smaller islands that populate the waters of Southern New York such as City, Rikers, Randall's, etc?
And let's not overlook that large portion of our Northern border that runs along lakes Erie and Ontario.
NY a land-locked state? That will come as a shock to people on Long Island which sticks right out into the Atlantic Ocean; not to mention people on Manhattan island, Staten Island and those who live along the shores of Lake Ontario and Lake Erie. Also, better get word to the crew of the Queen Mary 2. They've been docking their gigantic ocean liner in Brooklyn the last couple of years in what apparently is a land locked state. Silly Brits.
Perhaps Santa will bring you an atlas this Christmas.
ANGRYGOD11 was referring to Snoopy's West Virginia trial venue suggestion, you dingbats. Anyway, we all know L.I. is N.Y.'s Somali coast.
Actually, it wasn't a suggestion. It was another weak joke, this time about how West Virginia doesn't seem to fit jibbly's comment.
And jibbly's right. At least one factor is that better-educated parents know that having fewer children means they can devote more time and money to raising each.