Yahoooo!!!
The lesson from an unsuccessful pirate attack in the Gulf of Aden this week was simple: Guns talk.
The Maersk Alabama, the American-flagged ship infamously attacked by pirates in April, was attacked again Monday when Somali pirates opened fire on the ship in an attempt to board it. But the pirates didn't get far this time, after a four-man security team aboard the ship fired back, thwarting the attack.
http://www.csmonitor.com/2009/1119/p02s01-usmi.html
http://www.voanews.com/english/2009-11-18-voa55.cfm
I would say that they will now think twice about attacking a ship which bears "Old Glory".
Guns do talk, and they speak loudly indeed. If all of our ships were armed and the crews trained, then the scourge of piracy would be eliminated. This speaks to the whole gun control argument here in the US. Armed citizens are the scourge of criminals. Kudos to the crew [cool]