Israel Seizes Ship Bound For Palestine

The picture above is of the Finnish-flagged ship, the Estelle. It sailed from Naples on October 7th. The ship had about 20 people of eight different nationalities aboard, and was carrying a cargo of medical supplies and construction materials (mostly cement). It was bound for the Gaza Strip in an effort to end the Israeli blockade and get needed supplies to the desperate Palestinian people.

The effort failed though, as the Israeli Navy once again violated international law. They seized the ship as it was 30 miles off the coast of Gaza. That means the ship was not in Israeli waters, but was instead still in international waters -- making the seizure nothing more than an illegal act of piracy. The Israeli government said there were no injuries among the Estelle's passengers (unlike last time when some were killed and injured by the Israeli Navy), and the ship had been taken to the Israeli port of Ashdod.

The Israeli's are trying to claim that they are just trying to defend themselves by preventing military materials from entering Palestinian lands. That is nonsense. If that was true, then the ship should have been allowed to continue to Gaza after being searched (since it had no arms or other military supplies). It should not have been seized and taken to Israel.

The truth is that the Israelis are trying to force the Palestinians into submission by denying them their basic needs, like food, medical supplies, and construction materials. The have been unable to suppress the Palestinian desire for their own country, free from Israeli control, so they are now trying to starve them into submission by denying them the basic commodities necessary for a minimally decent standard of living. This blockade of the Palestinian territories is an abominable crime against humanity, whose victims are innocent people (mostly women and children).

It is time for the United States (and other nations) to put their foot down, and demand that Israel stop the illegal blockade -- and also stop building new settlements on Palestinian land, and negotiate a two-state solution in good faith. Israeli actions have made it clear that they do not want to negotiate in good faith. They want to continue stealing Palestinian land suppress any dissent with their harsh blockade. Israel is in the wrong this time, and it is time for the international community to make that clear.

North Korea Has Lost Its Damn Mind

North Korean leaders have never been known for rational thinking or a reasonable foreign policy. They are a pariah nation, and have been for quite a while. After starving their own people so they can build a huge army, they went and built a nuclear weapon. Now they are trying to develop a missile capable of delivering that weapon (and ignoring the fact that there are several nations that could obliterate them in a few minutes if they ever used that weapon).

They have been able to get away with this because they have one friend, a powerful friend -- China. China saved them from the United Nations in the Korean War, and since then, China has helped to feed them and defend them as they alienated the rest of the world. Previous North Korean rulers knew this and maintained good relations with their giant neighbor. But it looks like their current ruler, Kim Jong Un (pictured above), has completely lost his mind (if he ever had one). He seems to have decided that his country doesn't need any friends -- not even China.

Recently, three Chinese fishing boats were boarded and seized by North Koreans (and word has it that the seizure was done by a North Korean naval ship with uniformed sailors aboard. The boats are currently being held in North Korea and ransoms have been demanded from the Chinese owners of the boats (ranging from $140,000 to $190,000 for each boat), or the boats and fisherman will be "disposed" of.

The Chinese government has been pretty silent about the incident, but released the following statement once it was known, "China is maintaining close contact with North Korea through the relevant channels and we hope this problem will be appropriately solved as soon as possible. We have also stated to North Korea that it should insure the legitimate rights of Chinese ship personnel."

But the Chinese government has a problem. Their people have found out about the aggressive action taken by North Korea, and they don't like it even a little bit. The internet is buzzing about this issue, and Chinese anger grows with each passing day. Even though they try hard, not even the repressive Chinese government can completely control the internet.

It looks like the North Koreans are playing "Russian roulette" with their giant neighbor. No country can ignore the anger of its own people when it reaches a certain level (which is where this seems to be heading) -- not even a brutally repressive regime like China. They may find themselves forced to take some kind of action (stop sending food aid, stop defending North Korea in the United Nations, seize a North Korean navy ship, etc.).

I doubt that there will be outright war over this one issue, but the idiotic leadership of North Korea had better come to it senses. They only have one friend and they badly need that friend. They'd better let go of that tiger's tail before it turns around and bites them.

Navy To Name Ship After Giffords

The United States Navy has certainly been getting some well-deserved good publicity. First they rescue the captain of an American ship from Somali pirates (largely due to the remarkable marksmanship of some Navy Seals). Then naval airpower breaks the back of the Libyan military and gives the rebels in that country the edge they needed to overthrow the Libyan dictator. Next, Navy Seals go into Pakistan and kill Osama bin Laden. And only a few weeks later, Navy Seals go into Somalia and rescue to people held by Somali pirates.

Now the Navy is scoring another public relations coup. This one is not due to the bravery and excellence of sailors, but to the intelligence and compassion of their leadership. The U.S. Navy is naming a new ship after former Arizona Representative Gabrielle Giffords (who survived being shot in the head by a madman in a mass shooting). Here is the announcement as written in Navy Times:

In yet another break with tradition, Navy Secretary Ray Mabus announced Friday that a new Littoral Combat Ship would be named for Gabrielle Giffords, the Arizona congresswoman who survived a January 2011 assassination attempt.

“The selection of Gabrielle Giffords, designated LCS 10, honors the former Congresswoman from Tucson, Arizona, who is known for supporting the military and veterans, advocating for renewable energy and championing border security,” the Navy said in a statement accompanying the announcement.

Roxanna Green, whose 9-year-old daughter Christina-Taylor Green was killed in the shooting, was named sponsor of the ship.

“Giffords and the ship’s sponsor, Roxanna Green, are sources of great inspiration and represent the Navy and Marine Corps qualities of overcoming, adapting and coming out victorious despite great challenges," Mabus said.

The future Gabrielle Giffords (LCS 10) will be an Independence LCS 2-class ship. Funded in the 2012 budget, its construction contract is expected to be awarded in the first half of this year to Austal USA in Mobile, Ala.

For those of you (like me) who are unfamiliar with what an Independence class LCS-2 ship is, the picture above is of one, and here is a description of the ship and its capabilities from Defense Update:

The Littoral Combat Ship is a key element of the Navy's plan to address asymmetric threats of the twenty-first century. Intended to operate in coastal areas of the globe, the ship will be fast, highly maneuverable and geared to supporting mine detection/elimination, anti-submarine warfare and anti-surface warfare, particularly against small surface craft.


The new 127 meter long Independence Class LCS will provide a platform for intelligence gathering, employ surface (anti-ship) and land attacks precision weapons, and operate manned and unmanned aerial and surface vehicles (UAV/USV). To further adapt for specific missions, LCS will incorporate a modular and interchangeable approach, enabling it to be reconfigured to specific missions such as antisubmarine warfare, mine warfare, or surface warfare missions on an as-needed basis. The LCS will be able to swap out mission packages pier-side in a matter of hours, adapting as the tactical situation demands. These ships will also feature advanced networking capability to share tactical information with other Navy aircraft, ships, submarines and joint units.


The Independence Class LCS, built by General Dynamics is designed to offer the largest usable payload volumes per ton of ship displacement of any U.S. Navy surface combatant afloat today -- providing the flexibility to carry out one mission while a separate mission module is in reserve. Its large flight deck sits high above the water, sized to support near-simultaneous operation of two SH-60 helicopters or multiple unmanned vehicles. In addition, the deck is suitable for landing the much-larger H-53 helicopters, should that become a future requirement.


The stable trimaran hull allows for flight operations in high sea conditions.

I think this is a great idea, and I believe most Americans will agree. I bet the sailors assigned to this new American warship will wind up calling her affectionately "Gabby" -- at least I hope so.