Talk about giving the bastards some of their own medicine

Commander Ciro Pinto is the sort of man I'd like to have captain any ship I'm on, particularly in troubled waters such as the current coast of Somalia. What does he do when those pirate bastards try to attack his ship? He lets them know he's not gonna have any of their bullshit.

ROME -- An Italian cruise ship fended off a pirate attack off the coast of Somalia, with its security forces exchanging fire with the bandits, the commander said Saturday.

Cmdr. Ciro Pinto told Italian state radio that six men in a small white boat approached the Msc Melody and opened fire Saturday night, but retreated after security forces aboard the cruise ship returned fire.

Domenico Pellegrino, head of the ship-owner Msc Cruises, told ANSA news agency that all 1,500 passengers and crew aboard the Melody were safe, and credited Pinto for his "cool-headed" handling of the incident.

How's that for a victory? The bastards failed to seize the ship, got shot at (and, dare I hope, hit?) and forced to crawl back in shame, and the ship got to its regular port victorious. What more could you want?

One would hope events like this would serve as a deterrent to these fucking reptiles, though sadly common sense – and a basic understanding of the stupidity and immorality of this sort of scum – tell us they'll always be back for more. It's high time they got their asses whupped, and I mean royally. I'd say, have a flotilla of U.S. warships just drop by and pay them a much-needed visit. You know, the kind with missiles and cannon barrels aimed at their filthy heads.

It's a universal truth that some pieces of evil like these nimrods just won't stop until they realize they've met someone who's willing to strike back with more force and brutality than they are. I know violence is inherently the wrong choice in resolving any given conflict, but sometimes it truly is all that works. These terrorists don't understand reason, and clearly, after half a year of attacks and hostage-taking, they don't plan to stop any time soon, not as long as fabulous ransoms are being paid.

It's as the expression goes: "The problem with being a bully, is that eventually, you will encounter someone who's bigger, stronger, and crazier than you are".