No. 6, April 14, 2008
Seized by pirates (Finale)
The saga of the Ponant, the French luxury yacht captured by pirates off Somalia, came to a relatively undramatic end on Friday. After receiving a reported $2 million ransom from the vessel's owners, the pirates released the 30-member crew and went shore. Tracked by helicopter, they attempted to make their getaway in a four-wheel-drive vehicle, but six were captured by French commandos after it was disabled by sniper fire. Whether anyone was killed in the affair is disputed: the Somalis say three, the French say none. The pirates may be tried in France. They will escape the traditional fate of pirates -- the gallows -- as France abolished capital punishment in 1981, in line with other civilized countries (and in any event had used the guillotine for executions since the French Revolution). Read more from Agence France Presse.
Quench your thirst
My friend Inna Spice has recently had a book of erotic short stories published. On her website she describes Quench Your Thirst thus: "Fourteen original anecdotes of humour, desire, and despair from the editions of Mammoth Book of Best New Erotica, Clean Sheets, Ruthie’s Club and others. Amusing, erotic, sensual, and moving stories about real-life sexual challenges and their effect on human behaviour . . . Some stories will make you laugh. Some will make you cry. Some will make you gasp. Some will make you tingle. Some will make you wet. But most will spark new ideas for your own sexual pleasure." For purchasing and other information see Inna's website or go to lulu.com.
2 comments:
From BBC: "France and the US are drafting a UN Security Council resolution that would authorise countries to chase and seize pirates when they flee into territorial waters, and could lead to an increase in patrols."
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/7358764.stm
Interestingly, the USA first sent warships to the area to control pirates way back in the early 1800's - but pirates still persist. Maybe France and the US should study the strategies used by Pompey to rid the seas of pirates? This would of course mean including certain soverign ports as territorial waters.
>:r
It would seem to be a perennial problem.
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