Arrrrr!

[Oniya]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20081203/ap_on_re_mi_ea/piracy

Lynne Pincini of Australia said she was heading to a friend's cabin when the order came to keep their heads down and stay inside.

"We heard the announcement, and of course we went straight out on the balcony to have a look," she said. "It was like a very large speedboat. It was running alongside the boat."

[Caeli]

Now if that isn't the stupidest thing I've read in a while. >>;

They were lucky they weren't shot.

[Oniya]

Would've been Darwin in action.

[The Overlord]

First off, if you're up on the news at all, it should be clear that these Somali coast pirates are first-rate douchebags. They'd not only fire on a cruise ship, they'd probably drop a grandmother off her balcony if they thought they'd get cash off her corpse.

That being said I doubt I'd even want to be in a cabin; being below decks and closer to the center mass of the ship with a few bulkheads between you and the intended fire would be an option.

[Oniya]

Oh, that's very clear in the article.  I did like the fact that the cruise ship had high-power hoses and 'ghetto blasters' (in the James Bond sense!) to help fend them off.  I remember seeing something on one of the science channels about sound as a weapon, and didn't realize it had made it into civilian hands already.

That said, the idea of going out to see what's going on wouldn't cross my mind even once.  Captain says get down, he's not telling you to make like John Travolta on a Saturday night.